"I ventured to think," stammered Bernard, "that your fordship might find the matter of sufficient scientific interest..." - Brave New World, page 141.
Chapter 9 was a very short chapter. I thought to myself, why so short of a chapter? What was the point? Then I got to thinking and realized that this chapter showed both Bernard and John in very extreme situations of power. Bernard has the great opportunity of bringing back two people who have been living on the Reservation for quite some time. Mustapha Mond thought it would be scientifically sufficient to see how these people behaved once brought back to the real world. Although, I cannot help but wonder if the real motive behind Bernard's bringing of the savages back home is to get back at the Director. This would completely humiliate the D.H.C. who is the father of John. On the other hand, John is put in a situation where he finds Lenina in a soma holiday. He reaches out to touch her and maybe even unzip her clothes but realizes the horror in his thoughts and thinks better.
The difference in the reactions to the situations of power between the two men are incredible. Bernard uses this power to his advantage, showing himself as a shameless opportunist, whereas John thinks better of the situation and is able to control himself. I believe that this will come back to haunt Bernard. Nothing good comes from using others for personal gain and in the end, Bernard will probably regret his actions.
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