An Outcast's Trek of the Brave New World

“The control of feelings…so they do not control you,” said Sarek, the Vulcan Ambassador, to Spock to remind him to keep his human emotions in control after a fight with other boys. Sarek is the father of Spock who married a human woman because he loved her, but used the excuse that it was deemed logical. Spock had to choose whether he wanted to become completely Vulcan, where he is unable to convey any emotion, or stay true to human feelings like his human mother. Spock was treated as an outcast on Vulcan because he was partially human so he found a home on planet Earth Federation where he was accepted as an intellectual. Watching Star Trek, the 2009 film, and hearing this quote reminded me of the conflict that Huxley created in Brave New World. Similarly, the World State and Vulcan promoted the suppression of all human emotions and there was one individual that defied the norm in both civilizations. John, the savage, was the individual against the majority in the World State while Spock was the individual against the majority in Vulcan. However, they were both able to find a home even if they were still outsiders (Spock and the Federation compared to John and New Mexico with the Indians). It seems there are always outsiders or people considered different, always challenging the norm. Do these outsiders help society function and progress, or do they just cause more problems, or both?