“That’s why,” he said speaking with an averted face, “I wanted to do something first…I mean, to show you I was worthy of you. Not that I could ever really be that…I wanted to do something.”
“Why should you think it necessary…” Lenina began, but left the sentence unfinished.
“…I’ll do anything,” he went on, more and more incoherently. “Anything you tell me. There may be some sports are painful—you know. But their labour in delight sets them off. That’s what I feel. I mean I’d sweep the floor if you wanted.
But we’ve got vacuum cleaners here,” said Lenina in bewilderment. “It isn’t necessary.” “No,of course it isn’t necessary. But some kinds of baseness are nobly undergone. I’d like to undergo something nobly. Don’t you see?”
“But if there are vacuum cleaners…”
“That’s not the point.”
“And Epsilon Semi-Morons to work them,” she went on, “well, really, why?”
“Why? But for you, for you. Just to show that I…”
“Or what on earth vacuum cleaners have got to do with lions...”
“To show how much…how much I love you, Lenina,” he bought out almost desperately. (pg 189-191) First few pages into chapter 13
In this passage John finally expresses his love for Lenina. He tries using different examples to show her how much he loves her, but Lenina does not seem to understand where he is coming from. He finally declares his love for her, and she asks him why he had not said anything earlier.
This passage very well highlights the difference in the mindset of those in the World State and that of John. While John expresses his love for Lenina through different analogies as well as his desire to marry her, Lenina is more confused beyond anything. She has no idea what his admiration for her has to do with sweeping floors or the skin of mountain lions—to her there are other people for that type of work. This exchange between them really illustrates how there is no sense of true love in this society; because no one has any real relationships with anybody else, there is no concept of going out of your way to undergo something “nobly” for someone. Although Lenina has had many lovers, she has not had any relationships with them—now that she has met someone who actually possesses feelings towards her, she does not know how to handle them because she does not know that such a thing can exist. We can see through John’s words how misplaced the values in this society truly are. While John talks of marriage and being only with one person for the rest of our lives, Lenina is merely confused and horrified.To her “everyone belongs to everyone else,” and she does not understand why John would even bring up the idea of being with one person forever.
As there is no sense of true love in this society, there is in turn no sense of family or caring for one another either, further stripping the citizens of the individuality that John tries so hard to find and define in his ultimate rejection of the World State. His inability to make Lenina understand how he really feels about her, along with his status as an outsider among the Indians as well as the World State, lead him to be deeply conflicted between his values and the shallow superficiality of the world in which he is in.
Question: Was there any way for John to have lived truly happily in the World State had he not committed suicide? Should he have continued to fight for his values and challenge the status quo, rather than secluding himself from society as he does at the end of the novel?
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