Aldous Huxley
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Aldous Leonard Huxley (26 July 1894 – 22 November 1963) was an English writer and philosopher. He wrote nearly 50 books, both novels and non-fiction works, as well as wide-ranging essays, narratives, and poems. Born into the prominent
Huxley family The Huxley family is a British family; several of its members have excelled in science, medicine, arts and literature. The family also includes members who occupied senior positions in the public service of the United Kingdom. The patriarch of ...
, he graduated from Balliol College, Oxford, with an
undergraduate degree An undergraduate degree (also called first degree or simply degree) is a colloquial term for an academic degree earned by a person who has completed undergraduate courses. In the United States, it is usually offered at an institution of higher e ...
in English literature. Early in his career, he published short stories and poetry and edited the literary magazine ''
Oxford Poetry ''Oxford Poetry'' is a literary magazine based in Oxford, England. It is currently edited by Luke Allan. The magazine is published by Partus Press. Founded in 1910 by Basil Blackwell, its editors have included Dorothy L. Sayers, Aldous Huxley ...
'', before going on to publish
travel writing Travel is the movement of people between distant geographical locations. Travel can be done by foot, bicycle, automobile, train, boat, bus, airplane, ship or other means, with or without luggage, and can be one way or round trip. Travel c ...
, satire, and screenplays. He spent the latter part of his life in the United States, living in Los Angeles from 1937 until his death. By the end of his life, Huxley was widely acknowledged as one of the foremost intellectuals of his time. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature nine times, and was elected Companion of Literature by the Royal Society of Literature in 1962. Huxley was a pacifist. He grew interested in philosophical
mysticism Mysticism is popularly known as becoming one with God or the Absolute, but may refer to any kind of ecstasy or altered state of consciousness which is given a religious or spiritual meaning. It may also refer to the attainment of insight in ...
, as well as
universalism Universalism is the philosophical and theological concept that some ideas have universal application or applicability. A belief in one fundamental truth is another important tenet in universalism. The living truth is seen as more far-reaching th ...
, addressing these subjects with works such as ''
The Perennial Philosophy ''The Perennial Philosophy'' is a comparative study of mysticism by the British writer and novelist Aldous Huxley. Its title derives from the theological tradition of ''perennial philosophy''. Social and political context ''The Perennial P ...
'' (1945), which illustrates commonalities between
Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...
and
Eastern Eastern may refer to: Transportation *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai *Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 *Eastern Air Li ...
mysticism, and ''
The Doors of Perception ''The Doors of Perception'' is an autobiographical book written by Aldous Huxley. Published in 1954, it elaborates on his psychedelic experience under the influence of mescaline in May 1953. Huxley recalls the insights he experienced, ranging ...
'' (1954), which interprets his own psychedelic experience with mescaline. In his most famous novel ''
Brave New World ''Brave New World'' is a dystopian novel by English author Aldous Huxley, written in 1931 and published in 1932. Largely set in a futuristic World State, whose citizens are environmentally engineered into an intelligence-based social hiera ...
'' (1932) and his final novel ''
Island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
'' (1962), he presented his vision of dystopia and
utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imaginary community or society that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book '' Utopia'', describing a fictional island societ ...
, respectively.


Early life

Huxley was born in Godalming, Surrey, England, in 1894. He was the third son of the writer and schoolmaster Leonard Huxley, who edited ''
The Cornhill Magazine ''The Cornhill Magazine'' (1860–1975) was a monthly Victorian magazine and literary journal named after the street address of the founding publisher Smith, Elder & Co. at 65 Cornhill in London.Laurel Brake and Marysa Demoor, ''Dictiona ...
'', and his first wife, Julia Arnold, who founded Prior's Field School. Julia was the niece of poet and critic
Matthew Arnold Matthew Arnold (24 December 1822 – 15 April 1888) was an English poet and cultural critic who worked as an inspector of schools. He was the son of Thomas Arnold, the celebrated headmaster of Rugby School, and brother to both Tom Arnold, lit ...
and the sister of
Mrs. Humphry Ward Mary Augusta Ward (''née'' Arnold; 11 June 1851 – 24 March 1920) was a British novelist who wrote under her married name as Mrs Humphry Ward. She worked to improve education for the poor and she became the founding President of the Women' ...
. Julia named him Aldous after a character in one of her sister's novels. Aldous was the grandson of
Thomas Henry Huxley Thomas Henry Huxley (4 May 1825 – 29 June 1895) was an English biologist and anthropologist specialising in comparative anatomy. He has become known as "Darwin's Bulldog" for his advocacy of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. The stori ...
, the
zoologist Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and d ...
, agnostic, and
controversialist Polemic () is contentious rhetoric intended to support a specific position by forthright claims and to undermine the opposing position. The practice of such argumentation is called ''polemics'', which are seen in arguments on controversial topic ...
whom had often been called "Darwin's Bulldog". His brother Julian Huxley and half-brother
Andrew Huxley Sir Andrew Fielding Huxley (22 November 191730 May 2012) was an English physiologist and biophysicist. He was born into the prominent Huxley family. After leaving Westminster School in central London, he went to Trinity College, Cambridge ...
also became outstanding biologists. Aldous had another brother, Noel Trevenen Huxley (1889–1914), who took his own life after a period of
clinical depression Major depressive disorder (MDD), also known as clinical depression, is a mental disorder characterized by at least two weeks of pervasive low mood, low self-esteem, and loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities. Intro ...
. As a child, Huxley's nickname was "Ogie", short for "Ogre". He was described by his brother, Julian, as someone who frequently " ontemplatedthe strangeness of things". According to his cousin and contemporary Gervas Huxley, he had an early interest in drawing. Huxley's education began in his father's well-equipped botanical laboratory, after which he enrolled at Hillside School near Godalming. He was taught there by his own mother for several years until she became terminally ill. After Hillside he went on to
Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, ...
. His mother died in 1908, when he was 14 (his father later remarried). He contracted the eye disease Keratitis punctata in 1911; this "left impractically blind for two to three years". This "ended his early dreams of becoming a doctor". In October 1913, Huxley entered Balliol College, Oxford, where he studied English literature. He volunteered for the
British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
in January 1916, for the
Great War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
; however, he was rejected on health grounds, being half-blind in one eye.Raychel Haugrud Reiff (2009). "Aldous Huxley: Brave New World". p. 112. Marshall Cavendish His eyesight later partly recovered. He edited ''
Oxford Poetry ''Oxford Poetry'' is a literary magazine based in Oxford, England. It is currently edited by Luke Allan. The magazine is published by Partus Press. Founded in 1910 by Basil Blackwell, its editors have included Dorothy L. Sayers, Aldous Huxley ...
'' in 1916, and in June of that year graduated BA with
first class honours The British undergraduate degree classification system is a grading structure for undergraduate degrees or bachelor's degrees and integrated master's degrees in the United Kingdom. The system has been applied (sometimes with significant variati ...
. His brother Julian wrote: Following his years at Balliol, Huxley, being financially indebted to his father, decided to find employment. He taught French for a year at
Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, ...
, where Eric Blair (who was to take the pen name George Orwell) and Steven Runciman were among his pupils. He was mainly remembered as being an incompetent schoolmaster unable to keep order in class. Nevertheless, Blair and others spoke highly of his excellent command of language. Huxley also worked for a time during the 1920s at Brunner and Mond, an advanced chemical plant in
Billingham Billingham is a town and civil parish in the Borough of Stockton-on-Tees, County Durham, England. The town is on the north side of the River Tees and is governed by Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council. The settlement had previously formed i ...
in County Durham, northeast England. According to an introduction to his science fiction novel ''
Brave New World ''Brave New World'' is a dystopian novel by English author Aldous Huxley, written in 1931 and published in 1932. Largely set in a futuristic World State, whose citizens are environmentally engineered into an intelligence-based social hiera ...
'' (1932), the experience he had there of "an ordered universe in a world of planless incoherence" was an important source for the novel.


Career

Huxley completed his first (unpublished) novel at the age of 17 and began writing seriously in his early twenties, establishing himself as a successful writer and social satirist. His first published novels were social satires, ''
Crome Yellow ''Crome Yellow'' is the first novel by British author Aldous Huxley, published by Chatto & Windus in 1921, followed by a U.S. edition by George H. Doran Company in 1922. Though a social satire of its time, it is still appreciated and has been a ...
'' (1921), '' Antic Hay'' (1923), '' Those Barren Leaves'' (1925), and ''
Point Counter Point ''Point Counter Point'' is a novel by Aldous Huxley, first published in 1928. It is Huxley's longest novel, and was notably more complex and serious than his earlier fiction. In 1998, the Modern Library ranked ''Point Counter Point'' 44th on ...
'' (1928). ''Brave New World'' (1932) was his fifth novel and first dystopian work. In the 1920s, he was also a contributor to '' Vanity Fair'' and British ''Vogue'' magazines.


Contact with the Bloomsbury Set

During the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, Huxley spent much of his time at
Garsington Manor Garsington Manor, in the village of Garsington, near Oxford, England, is a country house, dating from the 17th century. Its fame derives principally from its owner in the early 20th century, the "legendary Ottoline Morrell, who held court from 19 ...
near Oxford, home of
Lady Ottoline Morrell Lady Ottoline Violet Anne Morrell (16 June 1873 – 21 April 1938) was an English aristocrat and society hostess. Her patronage was influential in artistic and intellectual circles, where she befriended writers including Aldous Huxley, Siegfr ...
, working as a farm labourer. While at the Manor, he met several Bloomsbury Group figures, including
Bertrand Russell Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, (18 May 1872 – 2 February 1970) was a British mathematician, philosopher, logician, and public intellectual. He had a considerable influence on mathematics, logic, set theory, linguistics, ...
, Alfred North Whitehead, and
Clive Bell Arthur Clive Heward Bell (16 September 1881 – 17 September 1964) was an English art critic, associated with formalism and the Bloomsbury Group. He developed the art theory known as significant form. Biography Origins Bell was born in East S ...
. Later, in ''Crome Yellow'' (1921), he caricatured the Garsington lifestyle. Jobs were very scarce, but in 1919,
John Middleton Murry John Middleton Murry (6 August 1889 – 12 March 1957) was an English writer. He was a prolific author, producing more than 60 books and thousands of essays and reviews on literature, social issues, politics, and religion during his lifetime. ...
was reorganising the ''
Athenaeum Athenaeum may refer to: Books and periodicals * ''Athenaeum'' (German magazine), a journal of German Romanticism, established 1798 * ''Athenaeum'' (British magazine), a weekly London literary magazine 1828–1921 * ''The Athenaeum'' (Acadia U ...
'' and invited Huxley to join the staff. He accepted immediately, and quickly married the Belgian refugee Maria Nys (1899–1955), also at Garsington. They lived with their young son in Italy part of the time during the 1920s, where Huxley would visit his friend
D. H. Lawrence David Herbert Lawrence (11 September 1885 – 2 March 1930) was an English writer, novelist, poet and essayist. His works reflect on modernity, industrialization, sexuality, emotional health, vitality, spontaneity and instinct. His best-k ...
. Following Lawrence's death in 1930, Huxley edited Lawrence's letters (1932). Very early in 1929, in London, Huxley met
Gerald Heard Henry FitzGerald Heard (6 October 1889 – 14 August 1971), commonly called Gerald Heard, was a British-born American historian, science writer, public lecturer, educator, and philosopher. He wrote many articles and over 35 books. Heard was a g ...
, a writer and broadcaster, philosopher and interpreter of contemporary science. Works of this period included novels about the dehumanising aspects of
scientific progress Progress is the movement towards a refined, improved, or otherwise desired state. In the context of progressivism, it refers to the proposition that advancements in technology, science, and social organization have resulted, and by extension wi ...
, (his
magnum opus A masterpiece, ''magnum opus'' (), or ''chef-d’œuvre'' (; ; ) in modern use is a creation that has been given much critical praise, especially one that is considered the greatest work of a person's career or a work of outstanding creativity, ...
''Brave New World''), and on pacifist themes ('' Eyeless in Gaza''). In ''Brave New World'', set in a dystopian London, Huxley portrays a society operating on the principles of mass production and
Pavlovian conditioning Classical conditioning (also known as Pavlovian or respondent conditioning) is a behavioral procedure in which a biologically potent stimulus (e.g. food) is paired with a previously neutral stimulus (e.g. a triangle). It also refers to the learni ...
. Huxley was strongly influenced by F. Matthias Alexander, on whom he based a character in ''Eyeless in Gaza''. Aldous Huxley by Low (1933) During this period, Huxley began to write and edit non-fiction works on pacifist issues, including '' Ends and Means'' (1937), ''An Encyclopedia of Pacifism'', and ''Pacifism and Philosophy'', and was an active member of the
Peace Pledge Union The Peace Pledge Union (PPU) is a non-governmental organisation that promotes pacifism, based in the United Kingdom. Its members are signatories to the following pledge: "War is a crime against humanity. I renounce war, and am therefore determin ...
.


Life in the United States

In 1937, Huxley moved to Hollywood with his wife Maria, son
Matthew Huxley Matthew Huxley (19 April 1920 – 10 February 2005) was an epidemiologist and anthropologist, as well as an educator and author. His work ranged from promoting universal health care to establishing standards of care for nursing home patients and th ...
, and friend Gerald Heard. He lived in the U.S., mainly southern
California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
, until his death, and for a time in
Taos, New Mexico Taos is a town in Taos County in the north-central region of New Mexico in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Initially founded in 1615, it was intermittently occupied until its formal establishment in 1795 by Nuevo México Governor Fernando Ch ...
, where he wrote '' Ends and Means'' (1937). The book contains tracts on
war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...
,
religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...
,
nationalism Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...
, and
ethics Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that "involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior".''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' The field of ethics, along with aesthetics, concer ...
. Heard introduced Huxley to
Vedanta ''Vedanta'' (; sa, वेदान्त, ), also ''Uttara Mīmāṃsā'', is one of the six (''āstika'') schools of Hindu philosophy. Literally meaning "end of the Vedas", Vedanta reflects ideas that emerged from, or were aligned with, t ...
( Upanishad-centered philosophy),
meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm ...
, and vegetarianism through the principle of ahimsa. In 1938, Huxley befriended Jiddu Krishnamurti, whose teachings he greatly admired. Huxley and Krishnamurti entered into an enduring exchange (sometimes edging on debate) over many years, with Krishnamurti representing the more rarefied, detached, ivory-tower perspective and Huxley, with his pragmatic concerns, the more socially and historically informed position. Huxley wrote a foreword to Krishnamurti's quintessential statement, ''
The First and Last Freedom is a book by 20th-century Indian philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti (18951986). Originally published in 1954 with a comprehensive foreword by Aldous Huxley, it was instrumental in broadening Krishnamurti's audience and exposing his ideas. It was ...
'' (1954). Huxley became a Vedantist in the circle of
Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
Swami Prabhavananda Swami Prabhavananda (December 26, 1893 – July 4, 1976) was an Indian philosopher, monk of the Ramakrishna Order, and religious teacher. He moved to America in 1923 to take up the role of assistant minister in the San Francisco Vedanta Society. ...
, and introduced Christopher Isherwood to them. Not long afterwards, Huxley wrote his book on widely held spiritual values and ideas, ''
The Perennial Philosophy ''The Perennial Philosophy'' is a comparative study of mysticism by the British writer and novelist Aldous Huxley. Its title derives from the theological tradition of ''perennial philosophy''. Social and political context ''The Perennial P ...
'', which discussed the teachings of renowned mystics of the world. Huxley's book affirmed a sensibility that insists there are
realities Reality is the sum or aggregate of all that is real or existent within a system, as opposed to that which is only imaginary. The term is also used to refer to the ontological status of things, indicating their existence. In physical terms, rea ...
beyond the generally accepted "five senses" and that there is genuine meaning for humans beyond both sensual satisfactions and sentimentalities. Huxley became a close friend of Remsen Bird, president of Occidental College. He spent much time at the college in the Eagle Rock neighbourhood of Los Angeles. The college appears as "Tarzana College" in his satirical novel ''
After Many a Summer ''After Many a Summer'' (1939) is a novel by Aldous Huxley that tells the story of a Hollywood millionaire who fears his impending death. It was published in the United States as ''After Many a Summer Dies the Swan''. Written soon after Huxley ...
'' (1939). The novel won Huxley a British literary award, the 1939
James Tait Black Memorial Prize The James Tait Black Memorial Prizes are literary prizes awarded for literature written in the English language. They, along with the Hawthornden Prize, are Britain's oldest literary awards. Based at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, Uni ...
for fiction. Huxley also incorporated Bird into the novel. During this period, Huxley earned a substantial income as a Hollywood screenwriter; Christopher Isherwood, in his autobiography ''My Guru and His Disciple'', states that Huxley earned more than $3,000 per week (approximately $50,000 in 2020 dollars) as a screenwriter, and that he used much of it to transport Jewish and left-wing writer and artist refugees from Hitler's Germany to the US. In March 1938, Huxley's friend
Anita Loos Corinne Anita Loos (April 26, 1888 – August 18, 1981) was an American actress, novelist, playwright and screenwriter. In 1912, she became the first female staff screenwriter in Hollywood (film industry), Hollywood, when D. W. Griffith put h ...
, a novelist and screenwriter, put him in touch with
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 ...
(MGM), which hired him for ''
Madame Curie Marie Salomea Skłodowska–Curie ( , , ; born Maria Salomea Skłodowska, ; 7 November 1867 – 4 July 1934) was a Polish and naturalized-French physicist and chemist who conducted pioneering research on radioactivity. She was the first ...
'' which was originally to star
Greta Garbo Greta Garbo (born Greta Lovisa Gustafsson; 18 September 1905 – 15 April 1990) was a Swedish-American actress. Regarded as one of the greatest screen actresses, she was known for her melancholic, somber persona, her film portrayals of tragic ch ...
and be directed by
George Cukor George Dewey Cukor (; July 7, 1899 – January 24, 1983) was an American film director and film producer. He mainly concentrated on comedies and literary adaptations. His career flourished at RKO when David O. Selznick, the studio's Head ...
. (Eventually, the film was completed by MGM in 1943 with a different director and cast.) Huxley received screen credit for '' Pride and Prejudice'' (1940) and was paid for his work on a number of other films, including ''
Jane Eyre ''Jane Eyre'' ( ; originally published as ''Jane Eyre: An Autobiography'') is a novel by the English writer Charlotte Brontë. It was published under her pen name "Currer Bell" on 19 October 1847 by Smith, Elder & Co. of London. The first ...
'' (1944). He was commissioned by
Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...
in 1945 to write a script based on ''
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (commonly ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English novel by Lewis Carroll. It details the story of a young girl named Alice who falls through a rabbit hole into a fantasy world of anthropomorphic creature ...
'' and the biography of the story's author,
Lewis Carroll Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (; 27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet and mathematician. His most notable works are '' Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (1865) and its sequ ...
. The script was not used, however. Huxley wrote an introduction to the posthumous publication of
J. D. Unwin Joseph Daniel Unwin MC (1895–1936) was an English ethnologist and social anthropologist at Oxford University and Cambridge University. Contributions to anthropology In '' Sex and Culture'' (1934), Unwin studied 80 primitive tribes and six ...
's 1940 book ''Hopousia or The Sexual and Economic Foundations of a New Society''. On 21 October 1949, Huxley wrote to George Orwell, author of ''
Nineteen Eighty-Four ''Nineteen Eighty-Four'' (also stylised as ''1984'') is a dystopian social science fiction novel and cautionary tale written by the English writer George Orwell. It was published on 8 June 1949 by Secker & Warburg as Orwell's ninth and fina ...
'', congratulating him on "how fine and how profoundly important the book is". In his letter, he predicted: In 1953, Huxley and Maria applied for
United States citizenship Citizenship of the United States is a legal status that entails Americans with specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits in the United States. It serves as a foundation of fundamental rights derived from and protected by the Cons ...
and presented themselves for examination. When Huxley refused to bear arms for the U.S. and would not state that his objections were based on religious ideals, the only excuse allowed under the
McCarran Act The Internal Security Act of 1950, (Public Law 81-831), also known as the Subversive Activities Control Act of 1950, the McCarran Act after its principal sponsor Sen. Pat McCarran (D-Nevada), or the Concentration Camp Law, is a United States fed ...
, the judge had to adjourn the proceedings. He withdrew his application. Nevertheless, he remained in the U.S. In 1959, Huxley turned down an offer to be made a
Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are th ...
by the Macmillan government without giving a reason; his brother Julian had been knighted in 1958, while his brother Andrew would be knighted in 1974. In the fall semester of 1960 Huxley was invited by Professor
Huston Smith Huston Cummings Smith (May 31, 1919 – December 30, 2016) was an influential scholar of religious studies in the United States, He authored at least thirteen books on world's religions and philosophy, and his book about comparative religion, ' ...
to be the Carnegie Visiting Professor of Humanities at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...
(MIT). As part of the MIT centennial program of events organised by the Department of Humanities, Huxley presented a series of lectures titled, "What a Piece of Work is a Man" which concerned history, language, and art. Robert S. de Ropp (scientist, humanitarian, and author), who had spent time with Huxley in England in the 1930s, connected with him again in the U.S. in the early 1960s and wrote that “the enormous intellect, the beautifully modulated voice, the gentle objectivity, all were unchanged. He was one of the most highly civilized human beings I had ever met.”


Late-in-life perspectives

Biographer Harold H. Watts wrote that Huxley's writings in the "final and extended period of his life" are "the work of a man who is meditating on the central problems of many modern men". Huxley had deeply felt apprehensions about the future the developed world might make for itself. From these, he made some warnings in his writings and talks. In a 1958 televised interview conducted by journalist
Mike Wallace Myron Leon Wallace (May 9, 1918 – April 7, 2012) was an American journalist, game show host, actor, and media personality. He interviewed a wide range of prominent newsmakers during his seven-decade career. He was one of the original correspo ...
, Huxley outlined several major concerns: the difficulties and dangers of world overpopulation; the tendency towards distinctly hierarchical social organisation; the crucial importance of evaluating the use of technology in mass societies susceptible to persuasion; the tendency to promote modern politicians to a naive public as well-marketed commodities. In a December 1962 letter to brother Julian, summarizing a paper he had presented in Santa Barbara, he wrote, "What I said was that if we didn't pretty quickly start thinking of human problems in ecological terms rather than in terms of power politics we should very soon be in a bad way." Huxley's engagement with Eastern wisdom traditions was entirely compatible with a strong appreciation of modern science. Biographer Milton Birnbaum wrote that Huxley "ended by embracing both science and Eastern religion". In his last book, '' Literature and Science'', Huxley wrote that "The ethical and philosophical implications of modern science are more Buddhist than Christian...." In "A Philosopher's Visionary Prediction," published one month before he died, Huxley endorsed training in
general semantics General semantics is concerned with how events translate to perceptions, how they are further modified by the names and labels we apply to them, and how we might gain a measure of control over our own cognitive, emotional, and behavioral respons ...
and "the nonverbal world of culturally uncontaminated consciousness," writing that "We must learn how to be mentally silent, we must cultivate the art of pure receptivity.... e individual must learn to decondition himself, must be able to cut holes in the fence of verbalized symbols that hems him in."


Association with Vedanta

Beginning in 1939 and continuing until his death in 1963, Huxley had an extensive association with the
Vedanta Society of Southern California ''Vedanta'' (; sa, वेदान्त, ), also ''Uttara Mīmāṃsā'', is one of the six (''āstika'') schools of Hindu philosophy. Literally meaning "end of the Vedas", Vedanta reflects ideas that emerged from, or were aligned with, t ...
, founded and headed by
Swami Prabhavananda Swami Prabhavananda (December 26, 1893 – July 4, 1976) was an Indian philosopher, monk of the Ramakrishna Order, and religious teacher. He moved to America in 1923 to take up the role of assistant minister in the San Francisco Vedanta Society. ...
. Together with Gerald Heard, Christopher Isherwood and other followers, he was initiated by the Swami and was taught meditation and spiritual practices. In 1944, Huxley wrote the introduction to the "Bhagavad Gita: The Song of God", translated by Swami Prabhavananda and Christopher Isherwood, which was published by the Vedanta Society of Southern California. From 1941 until 1960, Huxley contributed 48 articles to ''Vedanta and the West'', published by the society. He also served on the editorial board with Isherwood, Heard, and playwright
John Van Druten John William Van Druten (1 June 190119 December 1957) was an English playwright and theatre director. He began his career in London, and later moved to America, becoming a U.S. citizen. He was known for his plays of witty and urbane observation ...
from 1951 through 1962. Huxley also occasionally lectured at the Hollywood and Santa Barbara Vedanta temples. Two of those lectures have been released on CD: '' Knowledge and Understanding'' and '' Who Are We?'' from 1955. Nonetheless, Huxley's agnosticism, together with his speculative propensity, made it difficult for him to fully embrace any form of institutionalised religion.


Psychedelic drug use and mystical experiences

In early 1953, Huxley had his first experience with the psychedelic drug mescaline. Huxley had initiated a correspondence with Doctor
Humphry Osmond Humphry Fortescue Osmond (1 July 1917 – 6 February 2004) was an English psychiatrist who expatriated to Canada, then moved to work in the United States. He is known for inventing the word ''psychedelic'' and for his research into interesting a ...
, a British psychiatrist then employed in a Canadian institution, and eventually asked him to supply a dose of mescaline; Osmond obliged and supervised Huxley's session in southern California. After the publication of ''
The Doors of Perception ''The Doors of Perception'' is an autobiographical book written by Aldous Huxley. Published in 1954, it elaborates on his psychedelic experience under the influence of mescaline in May 1953. Huxley recalls the insights he experienced, ranging ...
'', in which he recounted this experience, Huxley and Swami Prabhavananda disagreed about the meaning and importance of the psychedelic drug experience, which may have caused the relationship to cool, but Huxley continued to write articles for the society's journal, lecture at the temple, and attend social functions. Huxley later had an experience on mescaline that he considered more profound than those detailed in ''The Doors of Perception''. Huxley wrote that "The mystical experience is doubly valuable; it is valuable because it gives the experiencer a better understanding of himself and the world and because it may help him to lead a less self-centered and more creative life." Having tried LSD in the 1950s, he became an advisor to
Timothy Leary Timothy Francis Leary (October 22, 1920 – May 31, 1996) was an American psychologist and author known for his strong advocacy of psychedelic drugs. Evaluations of Leary are polarized, ranging from bold oracle to publicity hound. He was "a her ...
and
Richard Alpert Ram Dass (born Richard Alpert; April 6, 1931 – December 22, 2019), also known as Baba Ram Dass, was an American spiritual teacher, guru of modern yoga, psychologist, and author. His best-selling 1971 book '' Be Here Now'', which has been d ...
in their early-1960s research work with psychedelic drugs at Harvard. Personality differences led Huxley to distance himself from Leary, when Huxley grew concerned that Leary had become too keen on promoting the drugs rather indiscriminately, even playing the rebel with a fondness for publicity.


Eyesight

Differing accounts exist about the details of the quality of Huxley's eyesight at specific points in his life. Circa 1939, Huxley encountered the Bates method, in which he was instructed by
Margaret Darst Corbett Margaret Darst Corbett (January 17, 1889 – December 5, 1962)Llano, California Llano (Spanish for "Plain") is an unincorporated community located in Los Angeles County, California, near the San Bernardino County line. The town has a population of about 1,200. Geography Llano is located about southeast of Palmdale in ...
, in northern Los Angeles County. Huxley then said that his sight improved dramatically with the Bates method and the extreme and pure natural lighting of the southwestern American desert. He reported that, for the first time in more than 25 years, he was able to read without glasses and without strain. He even tried driving a car along the dirt road beside the ranch. He wrote a book about his experiences with the Bates method, ''
The Art of Seeing ''The Art of Seeing: An Adventure in Re-education'' is a 1942 book by Aldous Huxley, which details his experience with and views on the discredited Bates method, which according to Huxley improved his eyesight. Huxley's own sight In the pre ...
'', which was published in 1942 (U.S.), 1943 (UK). The book contained some generally disputed theories, and its publication created a growing degree of popular controversy about Huxley's eyesight. It was, and is, widely believed that Huxley was nearly blind since the illness in his teens, despite the partial recovery that had enabled him to study at Oxford. For example, some ten years after publication of ''The Art of Seeing'', in 1952,
Bennett Cerf Bennett Alfred Cerf (May 25, 1898 – August 27, 1971) was an American writer, publisher, and co-founder of the American publishing firm Random House. Cerf was also known for his own compilations of jokes and puns, for regular personal appearanc ...
was present when Huxley spoke at a Hollywood banquet, wearing no glasses and apparently reading his paper from the lectern without difficulty:
"Then suddenly he faltered—and the disturbing truth became obvious. He wasn't reading his address at all. He had learned it by heart. To refresh his memory he brought the paper closer and closer to his eyes. When it was only an inch or so away he still couldn't read it, and had to fish for a magnifying glass in his pocket to make the typing visible to him. It was an agonising moment."Cerf, Bennett (12 April 1952), ''The Saturday Review'' (column), quoted in
Brazilian author
João Ubaldo Ribeiro João Ubaldo Ribeiro (January 23, 1941 – July 18, 2014) was a Brazilian writer, journalist, screenwriter and professor. Several of his books and short stories have been turned into movies and TV series in Brazil. Ribeiro was a member of the B ...
, who as a young journalist spent several evenings in the Huxleys' company in the late 1950s, wrote that Huxley had said to him, with a wry smile: "I can hardly see at all. And I don't give a damn, really." On the other hand, Huxley's second wife Laura later emphasised in her biographical account, ''This Timeless Moment'': "One of the great achievements of his life: that of having regained his sight." After revealing a letter she wrote to the ''Los Angeles Times'' disclaiming the label of Huxley as a "poor fellow who can hardly see" by Walter C. Alvarez, she tempered her statement:
"Although I feel it was an injustice to treat Aldous as though he were blind, it is true there were many indications of his impaired vision. For instance, although Aldous did not wear glasses, he would quite often use a magnifying lens."
Laura Huxley proceeded to elaborate a few nuances of inconsistency peculiar to Huxley's vision. Her account, in this respect, agrees with the following sample of Huxley's own words from ''The Art of Seeing'':
"The most characteristic fact about the functioning of the total organism, or any part of the organism, is that it is not constant, but highly variable."
Nevertheless, the topic of Huxley's eyesight has continued to endure similar, significant controversy. American popular science author Steven Johnson, in his book ''Mind Wide Open'', quotes Huxley about his difficulties with visual encoding:
"I am and, for as long as I can remember, I have always been a poor visualizer. Words, even the pregnant words of poets, do not evoke pictures in my mind. No hypnagogic visions greet me on the verge of sleep. When I recall something, the memory does not present itself to me as a vividly seen event or object. By an effort of the will, I can evoke a not very vivid image of what happened yesterday afternoon ..."


Personal life

Huxley married on 10 July 1919 Maria Nys (10 September 1899 – 12 February 1955), a Belgian epidemiologist from
Bellem Bellem is a village and ''deelgemeente'' (sub-municipality) in the municipality of Aalter in the Belgium, Belgian province of East Flanders. The village was originally called ''Bethlehem''. Bellem is located about west of Ghent. History The pa ...
, a village near
Aalter Aalter () is a municipality located between Bruges and Ghent in the Belgian province of East Flanders. The municipality comprises the towns of Aalter, Bellem, , , Knesselare and . It is bordered on the north by Maldegem, on the east by Zomerge ...
, he met at
Garsington Garsington is a village and civil parish about southeast of Oxford in Oxfordshire. "A History of the County of Oxfordshire" provides a detailed history of the parish from 1082. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 1,689. The v ...
, Oxfordshire, in 1919. They had one child,
Matthew Huxley Matthew Huxley (19 April 1920 – 10 February 2005) was an epidemiologist and anthropologist, as well as an educator and author. His work ranged from promoting universal health care to establishing standards of care for nursing home patients and th ...
(19 April 1920 – 10 February 2005), who had a career as an author, anthropologist, and prominent
epidemiologist Epidemiology is the study and analysis of the distribution (who, when, and where), patterns and determinants of health and disease conditions in a defined population. It is a cornerstone of public health, and shapes policy decisions and evidenc ...
. In 1955, Maria Huxley died of cancer. In 1956, Huxley married Laura Archera (1911–2007), also an author, as well as a violinist and psychotherapist. She wrote ''This Timeless Moment'', a biography of Huxley. She told the story of their marriage through Mary Ann Braubach's 2010 documentary, ''Huxley on Huxley''. Huxley was diagnosed with laryngeal cancer in 1960; in the years that followed, with his health deteriorating, he wrote the utopian novel ''
Island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
'', and gave lectures on "Human Potentialities" both at the
UCSF Medical Center The University of California, San Francisco Medical Center is a research and teaching hospital in San Francisco, California and is the medical center of the University of California, San Francisco. It is affiliated with the UCSF School of Med ...
and at the
Esalen Institute The Esalen Institute, commonly called Esalen, is a non-profit American retreat center and intentional community in Big Sur, California, which focuses on humanistic alternative education. The institute played a key role in the Human Poten ...
. These lectures were fundamental to the beginning of the
Human Potential Movement The Human Potential Movement (HPM) arose out of the counterculture of the 1960s and formed around the concept of an extraordinary potential that its advocates believed to lie largely untapped in all people. The movement takes as its premise the be ...
. Huxley was a close friend of Jiddu Krishnamurti and Rosalind Rajagopal, and was involved in the creation of the Happy Valley School, now
Besant Hill School Besant Hill School of Happy Valley, formerly the Happy Valley School, is an American private, coeducational boarding school and day school in Ojai, California. The school has approximately 100 students and about 35 faculty and staff, all of wh ...
, of Happy Valley, in Ojai, California. The most substantial collection of Huxley's few remaining papers, following the destruction of most in the 1961 Bel Air Fire, is at the Library of the University of California, Los Angeles. Some are also at the Stanford University Libraries. On 9 April 1962 Huxley was informed he was elected Companion of Literature by the Royal Society of Literature, the senior literary organisation in Britain, and he accepted the title via letter on 28 April 1962. Peter Edgerly Firchow, Hermann Josef Real (2005). ''The Perennial Satirist: Essays in Honour of Bernfried Nugel, Presented on the Occasion of His 65th Birthday'', p. 1. LIT Verlag Münster The correspondence between Huxley and the society is kept at the
Cambridge University Library Cambridge University Library is the main research library of the University of Cambridge. It is the largest of the over 100 libraries within the university. The Library is a major scholarly resource for the members of the University of Cambri ...
. The society invited Huxley to appear at a banquet and give a lecture at Somerset House, London, in June 1963. Huxley wrote a draft of the speech he intended to give at the society; however, his deteriorating health meant he was not able to attend.


Death

On his deathbed, unable to speak owing to advanced laryngeal cancer, Huxley made a written request to his wife Laura for "
LSD Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), also known colloquially as acid, is a potent psychedelic drug. Effects typically include intensified thoughts, emotions, and sensory perception. At sufficiently high dosages LSD manifests primarily mental, vi ...
, 100
µg In the metric system, a microgram or microgramme is a unit of mass equal to one millionth () of a gram. The unit symbol is μg according to the International System of Units (SI); the recommended symbol in the United States and United Kingdom whe ...
,
intramuscular Intramuscular injection, often abbreviated IM, is the injection of a substance into a muscle. In medicine, it is one of several methods for parenteral administration of medications. Intramuscular injection may be preferred because muscles have ...
." According to her account of his death in ''This Timeless Moment'', she obliged with an injection at 11:20 a.m. and a second dose an hour later; Huxley died aged 69, at 5:20 p.m. PST on 22 November 1963. Media coverage of Huxley's death, along with that of fellow British author
C. S. Lewis Clive Staples Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963) was a British writer and Anglican lay theologian. He held academic positions in English literature at both Oxford University (Magdalen College, 1925–1954) and Cambridge Univers ...
, was overshadowed by the
assassination of John F. Kennedy John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, was assassinated on Friday, November 22, 1963, at 12:30 p.m. CST in Dallas, Texas, while riding in a presidential motorcade through Dealey Plaza. Kennedy was in the vehicle with ...
on the same day, less than seven hours before Huxley's death. In a 2009 article for '' New York'' magazine titled "The Eclipsed Celebrity Death Club", Christopher Bonanos wrote: This coincidence served as the basis for
Peter Kreeft Peter John Kreeft (; born March 16, 1937) is a professor of philosophy at Boston College and The King's College. A convert to Roman Catholicism, he is the author of over eighty books on Christian philosophy, theology and apologetics. He also f ...
's book '' Between Heaven and Hell: A Dialog Somewhere Beyond Death with John F. Kennedy, C. S. Lewis, & Aldous Huxley'', which imagines a conversation among the three men taking place in Purgatory following their deaths. Huxley's memorial service took place in London in December 1963; it was led by his elder brother Julian. On 27 October 1971, his ashes were interred in the family grave at the Watts Cemetery, home of the
Watts Mortuary Chapel The Watts Cemetery Chapel or Watts Mortuary Chapel is a chapel in an Modern Style (British Art Nouveau style) version of Celtic Revival in the village cemetery of Compton in Surrey. While the overall architectural structure is loosely Romanes ...
in
Compton, Guildford Compton is a village and civil parish in the Guildford district of Surrey, England. It is between Godalming and Guildford. It has a medieval church and a close connection to fine art and pottery, being the later life home of artist George Fred ...
, Surrey, England. Huxley had been a long-time friend of Russian composer Igor Stravinsky, who dedicated his last orchestral composition to Huxley. What became '' Variations: Aldous Huxley in memoriam'' was begun in July 1963, completed in October 1964, and premiered by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra on 17 April 1965.


Awards

* 1939:
James Tait Black Memorial Prize The James Tait Black Memorial Prizes are literary prizes awarded for literature written in the English language. They, along with the Hawthornden Prize, are Britain's oldest literary awards. Based at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, Uni ...
* 1959:
American Academy of Arts and Letters The American Academy of Arts and Letters is a 300-member honor society whose goal is to "foster, assist, and sustain excellence" in American literature, music, and art. Its fixed number membership is elected for lifetime appointments. Its headqu ...
Award of Merit . * 1962: Companion of Literature


Film adaptations of Huxley's work

* 1950: ''
Prelude to Fame ''Prelude to Fame'' is a 1950 British drama film set in Italy, directed by Fergus McDonell and starring Guy Rolfe, Kathleen Byron and Kathleen Ryan. It is based on the 1924 story "Young Archimides" by Aldous Huxley, about a mathematical prodi ...
'' based upon ''Young Archimedes'' * 1968: ''
Point Counter Point ''Point Counter Point'' is a novel by Aldous Huxley, first published in 1928. It is Huxley's longest novel, and was notably more complex and serious than his earlier fiction. In 1998, the Modern Library ranked ''Point Counter Point'' 44th on ...
'' * 1971: '' The Devils'' * 1980: ''
Brave New World ''Brave New World'' is a dystopian novel by English author Aldous Huxley, written in 1931 and published in 1932. Largely set in a futuristic World State, whose citizens are environmentally engineered into an intelligence-based social hiera ...
'' * 1998: ''
Brave New World ''Brave New World'' is a dystopian novel by English author Aldous Huxley, written in 1931 and published in 1932. Largely set in a futuristic World State, whose citizens are environmentally engineered into an intelligence-based social hiera ...
'' * 2020: ''
Brave New World ''Brave New World'' is a dystopian novel by English author Aldous Huxley, written in 1931 and published in 1932. Largely set in a futuristic World State, whose citizens are environmentally engineered into an intelligence-based social hiera ...
''


Bibliography


See also

*
List of peace activists This list of peace activists includes people who have proactively advocated diplomatic, philosophical, and non-military resolution of major territorial or ideological disputes through nonviolent means and methods. Peace activists usually work ...


References


Sources

* * * . Reprinted in ''Perspectives on Schoenberg and Stravinsky'', revised edition, edited by
Benjamin Boretz Benjamin Aaron Boretz (born October 3, 1934) is an American composer and music theorist. Life and work Benjamin Boretz was born in Brooklyn, New York to Abraham Jacob Boretz and Leah (Yullis) Boretz. He graduated with a degree in music from Br ...
and
Edward T. Cone Edward Toner Cone (May 4, 1917 – October 23, 2004) was an American composer, music theorist, pianist, and philanthropist. Life and career Cone was born in Greensboro, North Carolina. He studied composition under Roger Sessions at Prince ...
. New York: W. W. Norton, 1972. *


Further reading

* Anderson, Jack. 4 July 1982. "Ballet: Suzanne Farrell in ''Variations'' Premiere". ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
''. * Atkins, John. ''Aldous Huxley: A Literary Study'', J. Calder, 1956 * Barnes, Clive. 1 April 1966. "Ballet: Still Another Balanchine-Stravinsky Pearl; City Troupe Performs in Premiere Here ''Variations'' for Huxley at State Theater". ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'', p. 28. * * Firchow, Peter. ''Aldous Huxley: Satirist and Novelist'', U of Minnesota P, 1972 * Firchow, Peter. ''The End of Utopia: A Study of Aldous Huxley's Brave New World'', Bucknell UP, 1984 * Grant, Patrick. "Belief in mysticism: Aldous Huxley, from Grey Eminence to Island" in ''Six Modern Authors and Problems of Belief''. MacMillan 1979. * * Huxley, Aldous. ''The Human Situation: Aldous Huxley Lectures at Santa Barbara 1959'', Flamingo Modern Classic, 1994, * Huxley, Laura Archera. ''This Timeless Moment'', Celestial Arts, 2001, * * Meckier, Jerome. ''Aldous Huxley: Modern Satirical Novelist of Ideas'', Firchow and Nugel editors, LIT Verlag Berlin-Hamburg-Münster, 2006, * Morgan, W. John, 'Pacifism or Bourgeois Pacifism? Huxley, Orwell, and Caudwell', Chapter 5 in Morgan, W. John and Guilherme, Alexandre (Eds.),''Peace and War-Historical, Philosophical, and Anthropological Perspectives'', Palgrave Macmillan, 2020, pp, 71–96. . * Murray, Nicholas. ''Aldous Huxley'', Macmillan, 2003, * Poller, Jake. ''Aldous Huxley'', Reaktion Critical Lives, 2021. . * Poller, Jake. ''Aldous Huxley and Alternative Spirituality'', Brill, 2019. . * Rolo, Charles J. (ed.). ''The World of Aldous Huxley'', Grosset Universal Library, 1947. * Shaw, Jeffrey M. ''Illusions of Freedom: Thomas Merton and Jacques Ellul on Technology and the Human Condition''. Eugene, Oregon: Wipf and Stock. 2014. . * Shadurski, Maxim. ''The Nationality of Utopia: H. G. Wells, England, and the World State''. New York and London: Routledge, 2020. (Chapter 5) * Watt, Conrad (ed.). ''Aldous Huxley'', Routledge, 1997,


External links


Aldous Huxley full interview 1958: The Problems of Survival and Freedom in America
*
Portraits
at the National Portrait Gallery * *
Raymond Fraser Raymond Fraser (May 8, 1941 – October 22, 2018) was a Canadian biographer, editor, essayist, memoirist, novelist, poet and short story writer. Fraser published fourteen books of fiction, three of non-fiction, and eight poetry collections. Fras ...
, George Wickes (Spring 1960)
"Interview: Aldous Huxley: The Art of Fiction No. 24"
''
The Paris Review ''The Paris Review'' is a quarterly English-language literary magazine established in Paris in 1953 by Harold L. Humes, Peter Matthiessen, and George Plimpton. In its first five years, ''The Paris Review'' published works by Jack Kerouac, Phil ...
''.
BBC discussion programme ''In our time'': "Brave New World"
Huxley and the novel. 9 April 2009. (Audio, 45 minutes)
BBC ''In their own words'' series
12 October 1958 (video, 12 mins)
"The Ultimate Revolution"
(talk at
UC Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant uni ...
, 20 March 1962)
Huxley interviewed
on ''
The Mike Wallace Interview ''The Mike Wallace Interview'' is a series of 30-minute television interviews conducted by host Mike Wallace from 1957 to 1960. From 1957 to 1959, they were carried by the ABC American Broadcasting Company television network, and in 1959–1960, ...
'' 18 May 1958 (video)
Centre for Huxley Research

Aldous Huxley Papers
at
University of California, Los Angeles Library The library system of the University of California, Los Angeles, is one of the largest academic research libraries in North America, with a collection of over twelve million books and 100,000 serials. The UCLA Library System is spread over 12 libr ...
Special Collections
Aldous Huxley Collection
at the
Harry Ransom Center The Harry Ransom Center (until 1983 the Humanities Research Center) is an archive, library and museum at the University of Texas at Austin, specializing in the collection of literary and cultural artifacts from the Americas and Europe for the pur ...


Online editions

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Huxley, Aldous 1894 births 1963 deaths 20th-century English novelists 20th-century essayists Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford Anti-consumerists Bates method English emigrants to the United States 20th-century British short story writers Burials in Surrey British consciousness researchers and theorists Deaths from cancer in California Deaths from laryngeal cancer Duke University faculty English agnostics English essayists English male novelists English male poets English male short story writers English pacifists English people of Cornish descent English satirists English science fiction writers English short story writers English travel writers Futurologists Human Potential Movement Aldous James Tait Black Memorial Prize recipients Male essayists Moral philosophers Mystics Neo-Vedanta People educated at Eton College People from Godalming Perennial philosophy Philosophers of culture Philosophers of ethics and morality Philosophers of literature Philosophers of mind Philosophers of technology British psychedelic drug advocates Writers from Los Angeles Writers from Taos, New Mexico 20th-century English philosophers Lost Generation writers