The Controllers rule their world with fear and technology.

The Controllers purposely spread out bad word about islands so that their subjects wont behave against the laws for fear of being sent, as Bernard is when he is told that he will be conveyed there. The Controllers use soma to dispatch dissatisfactory thoughts, thus the saying One cubic centimetre cures ten gloomy sentiments, for example as when the uproar happened in the hospital, soma gas was used to quell the imperfectness of the situation. Using the process of decanting, the Controllers are able to have a base caste system to build upon, allowing them to have control over the fate of everyone under their rule. The Controllers oversee The World State by threatening and with advanced sciences.