Character portrait Bernard Marx

 

Bernard Marx is the most important character in the first half of the book. Due to his unusual shortness he is a kind of an outsider in the Brave-New-Worldian society.  There are rumours, that there was an accident with alcohol in Bernard’s blood-surrogate. These rumours are the fundament for Bernard’s highly developed inferiority complex. Bernard has an independent mind, so he hasn’t got many friends and he doesn’t like the common social activities in Brave New World. Unlike most others, he doesn’t join communal sports events or solidarity services. His attitudes to the principles of Brave New World are critical. He questions the way how children are conditioned by sleep teaching and he also doesn’t take soma in order to get happier, so he is often angry, resentful or jealous, unlike his soma taking fellow citizens. Even in his relationships Bernard shows a different behaviour. In Brave New World it’s normal to change partners many times a year, but he is quite faithful to Lenina, whom he doesn’t want to sleep around. He takes the Savage to Brave New World because he wants to use him for his own purposes. After having defeated director of hatcheries, who had planned to exile him to Iceland, success goes to his head. He becomes reck and arrogant. One day the savage refuses to participate in a party, which should increase Bernard’s popularity. Because of this incident Bernard’s glory doesn’t last for long and he becomes again the outsider he was before the episode with the savage. Although he isn’t happy with his life he is terrible afraid of being sent away to an Iceland.