The future predicted by
Huxley is a dystopia where systematic control of thought and behaviour are
conducted through genetic engineering, biological conditioning and predestined
genetic stratification. All
these processes are carried out using highly advanced biotechnology in the
‘Central London Hatchery and Conditioning Centre’. Seven key processes occur in
this hatchery to produce obedient, efficient and happy citizens.
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| ‘Central London Hatchery and Conditioning Centre’. |
STEP 1 : COLLECTION OF
REPRODUCTIVE MATERIAL
The
first step involved is acquiring the necessary tools to produce an embryo –
sperm and egg. In the futuristic society depicted by Huxley, the Hatchery
obtains its sperm and egg through donations from the 30% of the citizens from
each class that are left fertile. The volunteers who donate their reproductive
cells are offered a 6 month bonus salary. Once collected the reproductive
material is stored in separate incubators with insulated doors to ensure
optimum temperature is achieved. Ova are
stored at 37 degrees and as sperm optimally function at a lower temperature,
they are stored at 35 degrees. . Each egg is contained in a numbered test tube
and is monitored for temperature, salinity and viscosity
.
STEP 2: FERTILISATION
The next step in the
process of reproduction is the fertilisation. This occurs in the fertilising
room of the hatchery. The fertilising room contains 300 workers who carry out
the process of artificial breeding. In
the fertilisation room the ova are removed from the incubators drained and
checked for abnormalities. Once considered ready these eggs are counted and
placed in a porous reptacle where they are suspended in a free swimming
spermatozoa at a concentration of 100,000 cm3.
Upon successful fertilisation the eggs are placed back into the
incubator.
STEP 3 : SOCIAL STRATIFICATION (BOKANOVSKY’S PROCESS)
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| Bokanovsky's Process |
Immediately after
fertilisation, the process of stratification of embryos into different class
begins. The embryos of the Alpha and
Beta classes remain in the incubator till the bottling process. Howe
ver Gamma,
Delta and Epsilon embryos are removed 36 hours after being re-incubated to
undergo the “Bokanovsky’s Process”. The Bokanovsky process involves one egg
budding and proliferating up to 96 times to produce 96 identical healthy adults
from one egg. The process takes up to eight minutes where the egg is exposed to
harsh X rays , the eggs that survive are then chilled and dosed with alcohol to
enhance budding. The highest success
rate is achieved when producing 72 clones.
STEP 4 : THE
BOTTLING ROOM
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| The Bottling Process |
All morula (including
Alpha and Beta) are then transferred from the incubators to the bottling room
where they are transferred to larger containers lined with peritoneum from
pigs. This is
to imitate the abdominal cavity that lines all viscera . Once
morula are placed in these lined containers, saline solution is poured in, the
bottles are labelled with their date of fertilization, heredity, and of which
Bokanovsky group they came from.
STEP 5 : SOCIAL
PREDESTINATION ROOM
From the bottling
room, the morula pass through the Social Predestination Room . (Little detail
is provided in the novel about the events that take place in this room.
STEP 6: EMBRYO
STORE
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| Mofications carried out in the Embryo Store |
From the social
predestination room embryos are transferred into the embryo store which is
described as a a dark and red environment akin to mother’s womb. It is here
that majority of the engineering of embryos take place
The embryo store is designed to house
a conveyer belt that is 2.04 km long which is travelling at 33.3km/h. The bottles containing the embryos are placed
on these belts. They spend 267 days here travelling 8m per day. Throughout
their time in this room many modifications are carried out on these embryos.
- At
the end of each day, the embryo is shaken in order to familiarise them with the
sensation of movement
-all the embryos are provided
with essential hormones such as placentin , thyroxin ,corpus leutum ,hog’s stomach extract and foetal foul’s liver
to enhance growth
- At 112m (16 days) centrifugal pumps are installed to create an
artificial maternal circulation.
-At the 200 m mark (45 days) the
gender is tested and the bottles are father labelled (T for males and F for females)
-70 % of the female embryos of
all casts are given testosterone to sterilise them , the rest are left fertile
in order to extract their eggs when they are fully developed for the production
of the next generation of embryos.
- During the last 96m, doses of
pituitary hormones are gradually increased
Apart from these processes other conditioning
is carried out to ensure the embryos remain content with their pre-destined
role in society.
-On the 40th day (320m)
oxygen levels are modified depending on the cast of the embryo. Alpha and Beta
embryo’s are given more oxygen. Lower cast embryos are deprived of oxygen by
reducing the number of revolution on the centrifugal pump. This is done so as
to restrict neurological development among the lower cast citizens. Readers are
told that gamma, Delta and epsilon citizens have a lower IQ than alpha and beta
citizens due to these modifications.
-Another key process carried out
in the embryo store is the conditioning in order to facilitate the embryos in their
pre-determined roles. The developing
foetuses are conditioned for example to have an improved sense of balance by
increasing the amount of nutrients when being tipped upside down. These embryos
then are enabled to work as rocket engineers where a sense of balance is key. Huxley
provides other examples where foetuses destined to live in closer climates are provided
nutrients when temperature is reduced during development.
STEP 6: THE
DECANTING ROOM
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| Decanting |
Once development is complete,
foetuses are “born” in the decanting room
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| Hypnopaedia |
.
STEP 7: INFANT NURSERY
The final stage in the
development of the foetuses is the c
onditioning that occurs in the nursery where
these children are “raised”. Here children
are taught key social rules and regulation
though powerful methods of conditioning and hypnopaedia. Delta children are
taught to hate books and are electric shocked at the sight of them. Alpha and Beta babies are taught moral lesson
through hypnopaedia where they are told they
should be glad “ they are not gamma” and “everybody belongs to everybody”
