"And then - it was almost the last day of my leave - then...well, she got lost." (Page 96)
Bernard is about to embark on his week-long trip to New Mexico with Lenina when the Director hits him with this anecdote of his trip to New Mexico quite a while back with a woman he was seeing at the time. The short story surprises Bernard in that he didn't realize the Director possessed the capacity to have the feelings he insinuated in his story. The Director had lost the woman in the hills while horseback riding near the reservation of savages, and he never found her. The anecdote added to the story simply because it showed that the Director has feelings. However, it also provides necessary information for the scenes to come when Bernard discovers this long-lost lover on his voyage to the reservations. Without this particular anecdote, the reader would be completely lost as to why the woman Bernard finds is important or special. I'm sure Huxley could have explained it, but an explanation as part of the narrative of the story is never quite as good as one straight from the character affected. These upcoming scenes have the potential to be a soap-opera drama.
No comments:
Post a Comment