brave new world ch 7

Allusion
"Do you see that damned spot,"= Macbeth references blood to life
Jesus- christianity
pookong- rain god
John- John the baptist, also gives two quotes to blood and life from the bible.
Summary
Bernard and Lenina are now heading towards the village where they will be staying. As they walk towards the pueblo, Lenina started to get more and more uncomfortable at the sight of dirty black natives. She was also horrified when she saw a pregnant woman and the native elders. Bernard however, didn't seem to mind the native people. In fact, he shocks Lenina with the knowledge that he has about them. He agrees with there customs and beliefs. They finally make it to their small home. Lenina repeatedly reminds Bernard how much she prefers living in a hotel room with amenities to their current housing on the reservation.  She soon freaks out when she realizes she forgot her soma supply. When they look out the window they notice that a ceremony is starting to take place. They see a native boy being whipped by a man with a mask. He is whipped in front of what is a Christian cross and Pookong the native rain god. The  ceremony includes black snakes being held, danced with, and then sprinkled with grains of corn and water. After the ritual ends, Bernard and Lenina are visited by a slightly lighter native called John. He explains to them that he wishes he was the one whipped. It would be a sign that he has reached manhood and would almost be seen as an equal. John soon takes them to see his mother Linda who talks about how she was injured, healed, and left to live here. She was beaten by the native wives because she had slept with the men of their tribe. She didn't know or understand how life was different here. Its also revealed that the guy she had a baby by is actually the director. Bernard realizes that John is the director's son.

This shines a little more light on the distopia by introducing the savage's way of life and may spark conflict now that Bernard knows that the director got a Linda pregnant and didn't prevent the birth. Also revealed is the sign of racism since John is disliked by both the natives and the people from the city. The rituals of each group are similar but very different. The rain dance ritual of the native people is similar to the Soma chant that the people in London performed.