Aldous Huxley an 'Emotion- and

Aldous Huxley An 'emotion- and morality-free' society in Aldous Huxley's "Brave New World" and Friedrich Nietzsche's "Thus Spoke Zarathustra" The dawn of 19th century signified the birth of modernism in human society. With the development of the Industrial Revolution and eventually, capitalism, 19th century-modern society had been introduced not only with a new capitalist economy, but with ideologies that changed the values and beliefs of people. As modernism and social and intellectual progress pervaded the lives of humanity, people moved towards further rationalization.

Increased rationalization meant that intellectual progress occurred, thereby resulting in eventual preference to objectivity and empiricism rather than believing in one's emotions and values of morality. Emotions and morality in the modern society, in effect, became hindrances to the achievement of intellectual development through the aid of science and its empirical nature. The notion of an emotion- and morality- free society was the theme presented in the works "Thus Spoke Zarathustra" by Friedrich Nietzsche and "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley.

Nietzche's discourse on the concept of a morality-free society and Huxley's belief in an emotion-free humanity was put forth within the context of 19th and 20th century society, respectively. It is therefore this paper's objective to discuss and analyze how Nietzsche and Huxley depicted the notion of an emotion- and morality- free society in the period of modernism.

This paper posits that the works of Nietzsche and Huxley reflected how modern society had changed to become a society that considered emotions and morality (i.e., values and beliefs) were hindrances that prevented people from achieving greater intellectual progress, which was a prerequisite in inducing social progress. In "Thus Spoke Zarathustra," Nietzsche proposed that a new social order was coming in the modern society.

This new social order was characterized as a morality-free society, wherein rationalization is achieved only when humanity would learn to detach itself from any values and beliefs reflecting any kind of moral standard. Nietzsche asserted in the discourse that: entreat you, my brothers, remain true to the earth, and do not believe those who speak to you of superterrestrial hopes! They are poisoners, whether they know it or not.

They are despisers of life, atrophying and self-poisoned men, of whom the earth is weary: so let them be gone! Once blasphemy against God was the greatest blasphemy, but God died, and thereupon these blasphemers died too. To blaspheme the earth is now the most dreadful offence, and to esteem the bowels of the Inscrutable more highly than the meaning of the earth. This passage showed how Nietzsche abhorred the idea of humanity subsisting to "superstitions," which are actually any form of orthodox values or beliefs extant in society.

He introduced the concept of the "Superman" when he argued how this individual is not only the ideal human of modern society, but he is also the model individual, for he was able to transcend the boundaries that morality and religion had put on humanity. Thus, for him, the "Superman" already existed during his time, though the feat of transcending and not believing in morality can well be under way to a rapidly rationalizing society.

Morality for Nietzsche was a spiritual hindrance that prevents people from further pursuing their self-interests in life as they bring into consideration questions and issues about morality.

The individual who is able to pursue his/her self-interest without any doubt or hesitation would be the only one who will achieve self-actualization in life, thus becoming the individual which he labeled as the "Superman." Huxley's "Brave New World" showed a similar change in the order of society; only, the author depicted how modernism can lead to the development of an emotionless individual.

While Huxley portrayed the emotionless society as the picture of the ideal or Utopia-like society, it was apparent that he did not approve of this kind of order, for it is emotions which truly define and distinguish humans from other animals. In sum, it is emotions that give meaning to humanity. He illustrated the modern society as eternally pursuing an ideal social order, wherein equality in all aspects.