Character names

Aldous Huxley clearly had fun choosing the names of the characters from Brave New World: he often chose the first and last names of famous historical figures, for example scientists, psychologists, and philosophers, and combined them with each other in a humorous way. Huxley chose these names for a good reason. They all describe a certain motif or character trait. They also tell something about the character’s role model.

For example, Bernard Marx works in the Hatchery and Conditioning Center as a psychologist. Although he belongs to the Alpha caste, he doesn't look like an Alpha and is therefore excluded.

The first name ‘Bernard’ could refer to Claude Bernard (1817 - 1873), a French physiologist and father of experimental medicine, to the French theologian and m...