Brave New World vs. 1984: Fear or Pleasure — Which Dystopia Is Closer to Us?

 Two books, two visions of the future. Two warnings that only grow more relevant with each passing year. George Orwell's "1984" and Aldous Huxley's "Brave New World" are perhaps the most famous dystopias of the 20th century, referenced today more frequently than ever before. But which one more accurately predicted our present? What is more dangerous: control through pain or control through pleasure?

Orwell showed us a world of total surveillance, repression, and historical manipulation. A world where the state controls every aspect of life through fear and coercion. Huxley, on the other hand, offered a different model: a society where freedom is suppressed through pleasure, where people are so consumed by entertainment and physical gratification that they willingly abandon the freedom to think.

So, what is more dangerous: control through pain or control through pleasure? Which of these models more accurately describes what is happening today? Let's find out.

How Societies Function in Both Novels

1984: The World of Big Brother

The world of "1984" is a world of absolute control. The state monitors every step of its citizens through telescreens installed everywhere. Children inform on their parents, neighbors on each other. Even thoughts can be a crime ("thoughtcrime"), and a special "Thought Police" catches those who dare to think differently.

The image of Big Brother who is "watching you" has become iconic: it symbolizes not just a dictator but an omnipresent system that sees everything. Orwell's world is a world of physical coercion, where personality is broken through pain and suffering. Room 101, where the protagonist Winston Smith faces his greatest fear, is the embodiment of control through pain.

The Party actively rewrites history, altering the past to align with the current political line. "Who controls the past controls the future; who controls the present controls the past," says Orwell. Language also becomes a tool of control: Newspeak is designed to make even the thought of freedom impossible.

Brave New World: A Paradise of Pleasure or Hell of Meaninglessness?

Huxley's world appears much more pleasant on the surface. There is no violence, no wars, no disease. Everyone gets their dose of pleasure: sexual entertainment is encouraged, and the drug "soma" is always at hand to suppress any discontent or anxiety. "A gramm is better than a damn," say the inhabitants of this world.

But behind this facade lies a much more subtle form of control. People are grown in test tubes, genetically programmed to fulfill a specific role in society. From an early age, their consciousness is shaped by hypnopaedia—suggestions during sleep that define their values and desires.

As a result, the inhabitants of the "brave new world" don't just obey—they are happy in their obedience. They don't need freedom because they don't even understand what it means to be free. As one character says: "Real slaves don't need a whip. They love their slavery."

Methods of Personality Suppression

The difference between the two dystopias becomes especially apparent when we compare their methods of personality suppression.

In "1984," it's open terror. People live in constant fear. They know they are being watched, that any deviation from the norm can lead to arrest, torture, or "vaporization"—complete destruction of the personality, erasure even from society's memory. Even the most personal and intimate act—love—becomes an act of resistance that is severely suppressed.

In Huxley's world, control is much more sophisticated. People don't feel oppressed—on the contrary, they receive an endless stream of pleasures. Sex has become mere entertainment, devoid of deep emotional connection. Art and literature have been hollowed out to primitive "feelies." Even religion has been replaced by a cult of consumption: "Our Ford" instead of "Our Lord."

It's important to understand the fundamental difference: in one world, a person knows they are not free. In the other, they don't even suspect it. In Orwell's world, you are forced to love Big Brother through suffering. In Huxley's world, you are programmed to love your slavery through pleasure.

Who Would Win Today?

Looking at the modern world, which dystopia seems closer to reality?

Many signs point to the victory of Huxley's model. We live in a society where pleasure has become almost mandatory. An endless stream of entertainment content distracts us from serious problems. Social media gives us dopamine hits through likes and approval. We anesthetize any discomfort: from physical pain to existential anxiety. Depression and anxiety have been transformed into medical diagnoses that need treatment, rather than signals that something is wrong in our lives.

Consumer culture convinces us that happiness lies in acquiring things. Pop culture is becoming increasingly superficial. Many lack the patience even to read long texts—they prefer short TikTok videos that instantly satisfy the need for entertainment.

At the same time, elements of Orwell's world are also present: mass surveillance through smartphones and CCTV cameras, data collection by corporations, censorship and suppression of dissent in some countries. But even these elements are often perceived differently: we voluntarily give up our data in exchange for the convenience of services, agree to surveillance for the sake of security.

Writer and media theorist Neil Postman aptly noted: "Orwell feared those who would ban books. Huxley feared that there would be no reason to ban books, because no one would want to read them. Orwell feared that the truth would be concealed from us. Huxley feared the truth would be drowned in a sea of irrelevance."

Overall, our society more closely resembles Huxley's model: we are not so much intimidated as we are lulled to sleep. Not suppressed by force but distracted by pleasures. As Huxley wrote: "The great revolution of our generation is the revolution of the destruction of the human soul by entertainment."

Personal Reflection

What scares me more personally? I admit that cruel tyranny seems like a more obvious evil, but precisely because of this, it is easier to resist. It is much more difficult to fight a system that lulls critical thinking to sleep and suppresses the very will to resist through pleasure. As philosopher Slavoj Žižek once said: "The most effective form of slavery is when slaves think they are free."

Freedom has its price—the price of discomfort, uncertainty, responsibility. True freedom is not so much freedom from external constraints as inner freedom to think, feel, and be aware. And it is precisely this freedom that is so easily voluntarily exchanged for comfort and security.

Conclusion

Orwell and Huxley offered two different paths to unfreedom. One through fear and pain, the other through pleasure and comfort. In the modern world, we see elements of both dystopias, but the cult of pleasure seems to have proven a more effective method Фof control.

Thank you for thinking with me about these complex questions. Which dystopia do you consider more realistic for our world—Orwell's model or Huxley's? Share your thoughts in the comments.