Quiz 2

Summer 2011
Your Name: __________________________________

PST3127
Prof. Klein

1. Mustapha Mond explains that the underlying logic of the Brave New World is the economy: a stable economy
allows for a stable society. As presented in lecture, what are the two economic functions that humans must perform
to ensure economic and, hence, social stability?
i) ______________________ Consumption
ii) ______________________Production
2. Huxley holds that although our beliefs have no basis in rationality, we nonetheless hold them with great emotional
intensity. We consider our beliefs to be: Self-____________, Axio-___________, and Utterly-__________, (Fill in
the blanks with a word or partial word. Getting 2 out of 3 gets you full credit.)
Self-evident, Axiomatic, Utterly indisputable
3. As discussed in lecture, which character in Huxleys novel most resembles Platos vision of a philosopher king,
i.e. which character recognizes that the world is a cave, yet he nonetheless dedicates his life to making it as good a
cave as possible? ______________________Mustapha Mond
5. Affluenza is a critique of __________ and Brave New World is a critique of ____________.
a) self, others
b) others, self
c) others, others
d) self, self
4. Acording to de Graaf, meaningful work is
a) self-chosen (you set your own goals)
b) not all-consuming (it leaves time for diverse life activities)
c) neither a nor b
d) both a and b
6. Various authors describe societys state of collective illusion using such metaphors as a cave, a matrix, a
Brave New World, etc. What is John de Graafs metaphor in Affluenza?
Disease
__________________________________
7. John de Graaf challenges societys most authoritative source of knowledge, which is:
a) public opinion
b) repetition
c) silence
d) all of the above
8. According to de Graaf, in our society we are mislead in believing that we can satisfy our
__________________________________ needs with __________________________________.
Non-material, material goods
9. As discussed in Affluenza, Benjamin Franklin and Harry Truman both do not celebrated the pursuit of happiness
through material acquisitions. (T/F)
10. John de Graaf, unlike Immanuel Kant, claims that not everyone is capable of enlightenment through the
application of reason. (T/F)

What is the underlying 'logic' of the Brave New World? (why are the inhabitants' minds
formed the way they are)
Formed this way for social stability. in order to maintain a functioning civilization the peoples
consciousness is influenced. Stable society ensures that the economy will remain strong.
What danger does Bloom see to the AMerican universities today?
Conformism of thought.
Something good that affluenza brings us
Material Goods
Something bad that affluenza brings us
Stress, anxiety, debt, destruction of nature
Something valuable that affluenza denies us
Satisfaction of non-material wants, meaning
According to de Graaf, what US corporation implemented the less-than-40-hour work week?
Kellogg Corporation from 1933-1985
Where did John the Savage ultimately go to live in peace?
Lighthouse in outskirts of London
From BNW, give an example of each dimension of false consciousness and explain how it is
false:
False Desire: The people desire to be slaves. They riot when denied their Soma b/c they desire it
although they are in fact slaves to it. Also through conditioning they are taught to dislike nature and
books
False Belief: Sexual promiscuity through recreational sex with anyone is okay and any other idea such
as monogamy is prohibited. Also the only type of religion is based on Ford. The people are glad to be in
their own social class.
False Knowledge: The people carry out task without actually understanding the idea behind what they
are doing. They use science but have no concept of what science is and have no knowledge of
concepts.
In BNW when John the Savage first comes to London he is enthusiastic about the mondern
world. Later he adopts a more critical stance and starts asking question and passing
judgements. What group of people in the real world resemble John the Savage in
the status of new entrants to modern world?
Immigrants to first world nations from isolated communities, ex Mong tribesmen and Native Americans
In BNW when the Simple Lifters were mowed down by machine guns, it was evidence that
the Old Totalitarianisn was not working.
True

Plato's philosopher-king was an enlightened man who returns to the cave to rule over the
masses who cannot and will not escape their lives of illusion. what character in BNW
fits this description?
Mustapha Mond
Various authors describe society's state of collective illusion using such metaphors as a
cave, matric, ,BWN, etc, what metaphor does John de Graaf use in his book?
Affluenza
How do 'rising standards of consumerism' (de Graaf) create a 'prison of the mind' (Huxley)?
Due to the accumulation of stuff (more consumption), we are creating for ourselves a prision. To
purchase more stuff, we have to work harder and harder to pay for it. Becomes a cycle, a prison.
According to Karl Marx increases in material productivity will enable us to satisfy our
needs with fewer hours of work, giving us more freedom. in the US that has
arguable not occured. What has been the effect of increased productivity?
It has brought about higher expectations for workers. B/c a worker can produce at a certain higher
level, they are expected to maintain that higher level of productivty for the 40+ hour/week that is
worked.
Nature can be understood as a source of 'wealth' in 2 senses. 1, nature is a source of raw
materials to input into production, what is the other understanding of naturewealth?
It is non-material kind. Nature can be all-encompassing, and we can immerse ourselves in it and obtain
much non-material wealth from it.
The planners in BNW attempted various experiments to see if they could make society
better, and discovered they could not, identify each goal of experiment.
Cyprus experiment: experiemtn in which Alphas were placed on an island called cyprus. goal was to
see how well society could work if only Alphas were created, instead of an efficient society, there was
class struggle an eventual civil war. Alphas believed that only they were the ones who must do higher
level jobs. Menial jobs were meant for someone else.
Ireland Exp: Exp where people of all castes were sent to Ireland. They were given a reduced workload
to see how they would repond to extra free time. Instead of enjoying their freetime, they were lazy and
exp did not increase the people's self-development. Soma use on island skyrocketed.
What scene in BNW is an example of 'forcing someone to be free'?
John tries to prevent everyone from receiving and taking soma
What scene does plato use to porttray our normal situation when we observe the world?
the scene where we are all hanging upside down in the cave. We observe the world from there, it is
what we are used to and we accept it w/o question
According to de Graaf, our society abounds in one class fo things and experience scarcity in
at lease one other class of things

Abundance? Material possessions

Lacking? non-material (relationships, faith, etc)
What is the 'realm of necessity'?
a concept introduced by Karl Marx that we must necessarily have 'unfreedom' in our lives (a job to pay
bills) in order to enjoy the freedom in our lives. Unfreedom can be minimized by eliminating material
possessions
Which American Leaders urged people to live simply and consume little?
Ben Franklin and Harry Truman
Bloom's book, 'closing of the american mind' is a call to democratize the university. t/f
False
According to Huxley, approx how many repetitions does it take to make one truth?
62,000
Alexis de Tocqueville found that people in a democratic society manifest a remarkable
monotony of thought
True
in BNW enlightened thinkers find refuge from mass society in segregated colonies in places
like Iceland and Falkland Islands, Alan Bloom has a somewhat similar vision of mass
society, be he sees thinkers finding refuge in which institution?
the universities
Huxley notes that the masses have been assigned a nearly sub-human existence in society,
but he remains confident that they will someday rise up and will create a more just
society. t/f
False
in BNW the people who oppose the system ultimately realize that the world must be
organized this way and that no better society is possible t/f
true
Difference b/t old and new totalitarianism
old: force and fear
new: the mind
John de Graaf's book challenges how we think, believe and desire. What intellectual
authorities does de Graaf challenge?
Repetition, Public Opinion, and Silence

Early in the 20th centry legislation was passed in the US to limit the amount of work that
an employer could require of an employee, t/f
false, passed senate, but not house.
which philospoher or philosophical position embraces the claim 'the cave is good!'
the anti-enlightenment (ex. owen harris)
Alexis de tocqueville found that people in a democratic society manifest a remarkable
monotony of thought t/f
true
Which philosopher or philosophical position believes that you can re-engineer society?
the enlightenment, plato, kant
according to conservatives like Harris people who commit crimes probably do so because:
they are simply bad people (people are what they are)
in BNW a good citizen would likely disapprove of which activites?
taking classes in literature, philosophy or history
give an example from affluenza of something that constitues a prison of the mind
thinking you have to buy your kid over-priced shoes to have a relationship with them
According to owen harris, conservative philosophers share plato's view that society is a
cave from which man can escape with the power of reason t/f
false
bloom believes that the proper role of the university is to prepare young people for
successful and productive careers t/f
false
give an example of a university department that bloom believes fulfills the core mission of
the university
philosophy, mathematics, biology, physics, political science, chemistry
BNW teaches us that positive social change is possible t/f
False
according to bloom, philosophers have no impact on industry or government t/f
false

the logic of BNW is to make all people both happy consumers and productive workers t/f
true
where does BNW take place?
London, England
According to Huxley ideas transmitted through repetition become:
axiomatic, self-evident, and utterly indisputable
when de Tocqueville visited the US to study character of our democratic society, he was
impressed by americans independence of mind and diversity of thinking. t/f
false, those in the US are enslaved by public opinion
as presented by de Graaf the two characteristics of a good job are:
self chosen and not all consuming