The world is ruled by World Controllers who ensure the stability of society. To do so, a caste system has been created, reaching from intelligent Alpha-Pluses to dwarfed and stupid Epsilons. A drug called soma ensures that no one ever feels pain or remains unhappy, and it is used by members of every caste. Social stability is further ensured through the use of conditioning. Each class is conditioned to love its type of work and its place in society.
The story begins with the Director of the Central London Hatchery and Conditioning Centre giving a group of young students a tour through the buildings. They view the various techniques for producing more babies, as for instance the "Bockanovsky Process-. Scientists take an ovary, remove and fertilize the eggs, force the eggs to bud up to ninety-six times and grow the embryos in bottles. After the babies are decanted from their bottles they are conditioned through Neo-Pavlovian conditioning and hypnopaedia. Conditioning is used to make them hate books and flowers and to teach them "ethics-.
The World Controller of Western Europe, Mustapha Mond appears and gives the students a lecture about the way things used to be. In former times, people used to be parents and have children. This led to dirty homes with families in them where emotions got in the way of happiness and stability. .
After an War the world went through an economic crisis.People were afraid in this hopeless situation and so they allowed the world reformers to take over control. .
Bernard Marx is introduced as a short, dark haired Alpha who is believed to have got a dose of alcohol in his blood surrogate as a fetus. He is not liked by the other Alphas, who work in the hatchery and soon became an outsider.
Bernard likes Lenina Crowne and thus asks her to go with him to the Savage Reservations. Lenina has been dating Henry Foster for the past several months, but since long time relationships arenot accepted, she agrees to go with Bernard Marx to the Reservations.