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Linda’s Displacement

Brave New World

Linda’s lost connection to London becomes a life of exclusion in Malpais and a final retreat into soma after her return.

increasingupBearing stren­gth in each eventdowndecreasing
The Lost HolidayThe Lost Holiday from "Brave New World". Separation in New Mexico Accident During a visit to the Reservation, Linda wanders away, falls, and is left behind when her party cannot find her.
Separation in New Mexico Accident During a visit to the Reservation, Linda wanders away, falls, and is left behind when her party cannot find her. She is pregnant and unable to return. Lasting rupture The accident transforms an ordinary holiday into a forced life outside the society that formed her. The Director later remembers the disappearance with unresolved feeling.
An Outsider Among the PuebloAn Outsider Among the Pueblo from "Brave New World". Life Without Her Rules Social rejection Linda is condemned by local women for her sexual relationships and by her circumstances as a mother.
Life Without Her Rules Social rejection Linda is condemned by local women for her sexual relationships and by her circumstances as a mother. She has little knowledge of local work or customs. Dependence She raises John with fragments of World State habits and stories, while relying on Pope and struggling with the deprivation of soma.
A Child Between InheritancesA Child Between Inheritances from "Brave New World". Incomplete Guidance Linda’s teaching Linda describes London as clean, comfortable, and full of entertainment.
Incomplete Guidance Linda’s teaching Linda describes London as clean, comfortable, and full of entertainment. John hears these accounts as promises of a faraway paradise. Limits When he asks how the world works, Linda cannot explain what she never learned. John also receives Malpais stories, creating a divided inheritance.
The HomecomingThe Homecoming from "Brave New World". Return Without Belonging Renewed comfort Linda returns to synthetic conveniences and takes increasingly frequent doses of Soma.
Return Without Belonging Renewed comfort Linda returns to synthetic conveniences and takes increasingly frequent doses of Soma. London gives her a refuge from memories of hardship and shame. Public rejection Her aged body and the word “mother” make her an object of disgust. The society she remembers does not welcome her as a person.
The Final HolidayThe Final Holiday from "Brave New World". Death Behind Pleasure Decline Linda remains on a continuous soma holiday until the drug compromises her breathing.
Death Behind Pleasure Decline Linda remains on a continuous soma holiday until the drug compromises her breathing. John visits hoping to recover their relationship. Loss She dies after briefly recognizing him. Her death leaves John bereft and exposes the emotional cost hidden beneath the State’s painless care.
About two decades before the main action
During Linda’s years in Malpais
During John’s early childhood
After Bernard brings Linda back to London
Near the middle of the novel, at Park Lane Hospital