Dystopian Novel
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A Dystopian Novel is a novel that takes place in a dystopia.
- AKA: Dystopian Literature.
- Context:
- It can (typically) portray a society where the conditions of life are miserable, characterized by human misery, poverty, oppression, violence, disease, and/or pollution.
- It can (often) warn against a possible future, reflecting societal anxieties.
- It can (often) explore themes such as Totalitarian Governments, Environmental Disasters, loss of individuality, and the consequences of technological advancement.
- ...
- Example(s):
- 1984 (novel) by George Orwell, depicting a totalitarian regime that practices extreme surveillance and control over its citizens.
- Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, portraying a society with enforced happiness through genetic engineering and mind-altering drugs.
- The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins, set in a future where a wealthy Capitol exercises control over the rest of the nation through deadly games.
- Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, focusing on a future society where books are banned and "firemen" burn any that are found.
- Animal Farm: A Fairy Story by George Orwell.
- ...
- Counter-Example(s):
- a Dystopian Play.
- a Dystopian Film.
- a Utopian Novel.
- See: Science Fiction Novel.
References
2015
- (Wikipedia, 2015) ⇒ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_dystopian_literature Retrieved:2015-3-10.
- This is a list of dystopian literature. A dystopia is an unpleasant (typically repressive) society, often propagandized as being utopian. The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction states that dystopian works depict a negative view of "the way the world is supposedly going in order to provide urgent propaganda for a change in direction." It is a common literary theme.
2015
- (Wikipedia, 2015) ⇒ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utopian_and_dystopian_fiction Retrieved:2015-3-10.
- The utopia and its offshoot, the dystopia, are genres of literature that explore social and political structures. Utopian fiction is the creation of an ideal society, or utopia, as the setting for a novel. Dystopian fiction (sometimes referred to as apocalyptic literature) is the opposite: creation of an utterly horrible or degraded society that is generally headed to an irreversible oblivion, or dystopia. Many novels combine both, often as a metaphor for the different directions humanity can take in its choices, ending up with one of two possible futures. Both utopias and dystopias are commonly found in science fiction and other speculative fiction genres, and arguably are by definition a type of speculative fiction.
More than 400 utopian works were published prior to the year 1900 in the English language alone, with more than a thousand others during the twentieth century.</ref>
- The utopia and its offshoot, the dystopia, are genres of literature that explore social and political structures. Utopian fiction is the creation of an ideal society, or utopia, as the setting for a novel. Dystopian fiction (sometimes referred to as apocalyptic literature) is the opposite: creation of an utterly horrible or degraded society that is generally headed to an irreversible oblivion, or dystopia. Many novels combine both, often as a metaphor for the different directions humanity can take in its choices, ending up with one of two possible futures. Both utopias and dystopias are commonly found in science fiction and other speculative fiction genres, and arguably are by definition a type of speculative fiction.