"Pierced by every word that was spoken, the tight balloon of Bernard's happy self-confidence was leaking from a thousand wounds."
Huxley uses an extended metaphor comparing Bernard's confidence to a balloon during Chapters Eleven and Twelve. With Bernard feeling "light as air", the reader understands his elation at being accepted. They later also understand his dissapointment and turmoil at his "friends'" betrayal. He comes crashing down from his temporary popularity all because of one party that John refused to go to. This makes me wonder: why exactly did John refuse to attend the party? He doesn't seem to particularly dislike Bernard; in fact, I took his attitude towards Bernard as respect. True, it would be frustrating to be frequently used as a way to become popular. I don't think that is why John wouldn't attend the party, though. I think he was simply frustrated with the "Brave New World" in general, and wanted to set himself apart from it for awhile. When he is cursing at Bernard, he doesn't aim his curses at Bernard, but instead at the Arch-Community-Songster. This represents his anger at the society, for the way it uses him, for its unfamiliar technologies, and the way it treats his mother. At this point in the story, John is left with anger and frustration, while Bernard feels betrayed and dissapointed. What a jolly duo they make.
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