In this chapter, John goes to the Park Lane Hospital for the Dying to be with Linda at her death. Music, scents, telescreens, and an unending supply of soma fill the ward, while Delta children romp among the beds, learning to view death as pleasant and useful rather than something to be feared.
The children annoy John, making it impossible for him to speak with his dying mother. When Linda wakes from a soma dream and mistakes her son for Popé, John’s misery turns to fury. At the moment of death, Linda’s terrified eyes seem a reproach to her son. John leaves the hospital angry and distraught.
