What does modern dystopian literature reflect?

Modern dystopian fiction draws not only on topics such as totalitarian governments and anarchism, but also pollution, global warming, climate change, health, the economy and technology. Modern dystopian themes are common in the young adult (YA) genre of literature.

How is a dystopian world different to our world?

Most noticeably, while dystopian fiction often explores social or political struggle, society is still operating and has not yet collapsed (although it might be on the brink). Meanwhile, in apocalyptic fiction, the focus is less on society and more about the characters or a man vs. nature conflict.

Why is dystopian literature an important genre in literature?

Dystopian novels that have a didactic message often explore themes like anarchism, oppression, and mass poverty. Here are other reasons why dystopian fiction is significant in literature: Dystopian fiction can be a way to educate and warn humanity about the dangers of current social and political structures.

Why is dystopian literature so popular?

The concept of dystopian literature is to not only entertain readers, but to let them understand the ideas and characteristics of a dystopian society. This style of writing is so popular because it makes readers think of interesting topics that seem realistic, yet fictional.

Why was dystopian literature created?

Perhaps it makes sense that the modern dystopian novel emerged at the turn of the 20th century. It was a time of political unrest and global anxiety, with two world wars awaiting in the near future. Both were written in the shadow of a world war. Both predicted an even darker future.

What is the role of dystopian literature in the 21st century?

Dystopian literature can be seen as a tool to educate the younger generations and therefore make them more responsive to political issues, and with the huge access to information from social media for example, this may be likely. The Hunger Games, for example has twelve districts, all differing in wealth.

Can dystopian literature be used as an object to draw comparisons?

In this case, one could argue that in light of recent political events, dystopian literature can be used as an object to draw comparisons with society’s problems today. The rise in sales for such dystopian fiction is also a reflection of our fears whether that is surveillance or lies being given by the government.

Why do we believe in dystopias more than utopias?

Atwood herself acknowledges this situation as a sad reality, saying “It’s a sad commentary on our age that we find dystopias a lot easier to believe in than utopias.” Perhaps this is speculative fiction’s effect, it makes these dystopian worlds more relatable and real, therefore making a society more aware of what is going on around them.

Are dystopian settings better than our worlds?

Therefore, dystopian settings are built upon the author’s world’s imperfections and are created to be considerably worse than our own (Basu, Broad and Hintz 2013:2).