“…the Savage looked at him over the top of his book and then, as the laughter still continued, closed it indignantly, got up and, with the gesture of one who removes his pearl from before swine, locked it away in its drawer.” Brave New World (p. 185)
Even though I have attended a Catholic school since I was in kindergarten, I still had to look up what “pearls before swine” was referring to. Sad, but true.
After ChaCha-ing the answer, the allusion came back to me (again thanks to Mrs. Sander and my last minute studying for those Moodle allusion tests). Jesus used the allusion when telling the disciples to go out and spread his message. He told them not to share his message with people who just didn’t want to listen.
In the context in the above excerpt, John is hiding his beloved book of poems from Bernard and Helmholtz. Both men laugh at the classic love story; they cannot believe the amount of love and commitment that existed in the old world. Bernard and Helmholtz act as “swine” who only care for pleasure, enjoyment, and order in life. I thought this allusion was especially ironic because in the New World, the Bible is on the list of forbidden books. Obviously, the author places this allusion strategically in the novel to show how ridiculous a world of technology could become.
On another note, I have been extremely confused how people refer to John as “the Savage” and occasionally, “Mr. Savage.” Notice how “savage” is capitalized. If no person in the New World respects John, why would “savage” be capitalized? And plus, savage is an extremely general term. What would they call Linda if she was around? The Savage 2? Really original.
Savage is also derogatory
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