Brave New World

"Words can be like X-rays, if you use them properly---they'll go through anything. You read and you're pierced." [Chapter 4]

"I'm glad I'm not an Epsilon," said Lenina, with conviction.
"And if you were an Epsilon," said Henry, "your conditioning would have made you no less thankful that you weren't a Beta or an Alpha."  [Chapter 5]

"But if you know about God, why don't you tell them?" asked the Savage indignantly. "Why don't you give them these books about God?"
"For the same reason as we don't give them Othello: they're old; they're about God hundreds of years ago. Not about God now."
"But God doesn't change."
"Men do, though."
"What difference does that make?"
"All the difference in the world."  [Chapter 17]

"I say, you do look ill, John!"
"Did you eat something that didn't agree with you?" asked Bernard.
The Savage nodded. "I ate civilization." [Chapter 18]

From Aldous Huxley's classic work Brave New World. Quotes are from Chapter 4, 5, 17, 18, respectively. I learned that this book is an assigned reading for high schools here.

 

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Teh Talua

Nina seorang perempuan yang ingin makan di restoran Padang di simpang jalan. Makanannya enak, harganya terjangkau. Restoran itu selalu laris, dan ada banyak juga pelanggannya yang orang Jawa.

Bagaimana dengan Nina? Hanya dia yang tahu apakah dia orang Jawa atau Minang. Tapi kita bisa menebaknya dengan mengamati minuman yang Nina pesan. Kalau Nina orang Minang, Nina pasti akan memesan teh talua. Sementara itu, kalau Nina orang Jawa, Nina akan cenderung memesan teh manis. Semua orang tahu orang Jawa suka minuman yang manis.

Teh talua: penambah stamina kerja.
Foto Ramzy Muliawan

Tapi tunggu dulu, Nina bisa juga pesan teh talua meski sebenarnya dia orang Jawa. Ini bukan karena Nina suka rasanya ("Masa teh dicampur telur mentah?!" pikir Nina-Jawa). Seandainya ternyata Nina orang Jawa, Nina masih mungkin mengurungkan niatnya memesan teh manis.

Mengapa? Karena di restoran itu ada Joni.

Joni sudah memasuki usia ngebet kawin. Dua minggu sekali ibunya bertanya peruntungan asmaranya. Biasanya, ibunya Joni yang masih tinggal di Jawa sekaligus berpesan, “Goleko bojo wong Jowo wae, le.”

Inilah sebabnya Joni akan mengenalkan diri ke Nina jika dia melihat Nina memesan teh manis.

Tapi Nina malas. Ia datang hanya karena ingin rendang, yang ia inginkan adalah bisa makan dengan tenang tanpa gangguan. Nina tenteram jika ia bisa makan sendirian. Nina juga senang kalau bisa pesan minuman kesukaan. Di sisi lain, Joni suka kalau bisa berkenalan dengan Nina.

Jadi, apa strategi ekuilibriumnya Nina?

(Kalau Anda ingin mencari titik ekuilibriumnya, anggap perbandingan orang Minang dan Jawa adalah satu banding sembilan. Atur utilitas Nina dan Joni dengan angka-angka yang jamak digunakan.)

Ini adalah modifikasi permainan bir dan quiche. Bacaan lebih lanjut bisa ditemukan di sini. Diposting malam-malam sebelum esok terjerembab ke sedu-sedan lihat hasil ujian mikro tadi siang.