10Sp English:"Tomorrow, when the war began"

Dystopian literature

According to the Science-Fiction Dictionary, Brave New Words, dystopian literature is "an imagined society or state of affairs in which conditions are extremely bad, especially in which these conditions result from the continuation of some current trend to an extreme." 

 

Name three synonyms for dystopia.

1)Cacotopia

2)Anti-utopia

3)Kakotopia

What is the antonym for dystopia?  

Utopia

Dystopian Origins and characteristics

Dystopia is a relatively new genre but has deeply rooted origins dating back to Thomas More's 1516 text Utopia. Dystopia fiction often comes about when major events happen in the world (WWII, the rise of communism, major advances in technology).  

Defining features of dystopia include:

Full Government control

Citizens relinquishing all rights

Seemingly perfect societies with a dark side to them

The rise of technology, and how it overtakes humanity

Citizens have a fear of the outside world

Citizens worship one leader

Citizens live in a dehumanised state

Types of Dystopian Controls

• Corporate control: One or more large corporations control society through products, advertising, and/or the media.  
• Bureaucratic control: Society is controlled by a mindless bureaucracy through a tangle of red tape, relentless regulations, and incompetent government officials.  
• Technological control: Society is controlled by technology—through computers, robots, and/or scientific means.  
• Philosophical/religious control: Society is controlled by philosophical or religious ideology often enforced through a dictatorship or theocratic government.  

Which dystopian novels have you read?  

None

How many others can you name?  

The Giver, Hunger games Tomorrow when the war began, Darkest minds etc.

FAMOUS DYSTOPIAN TEXTS

• 1984 - George Orwell - often seen as the definitive text - 'Big Brother is watching you
• Brave New World - Aldous Huxley - once again an earlier example of dystopian literature
• A Clockwork Orange- Anthony Burgess - Stanley Kubrick's film adaptation was banned in the U.K for twenty-five years until 1999 due to its "ultra-violence' and copycat crimes. Burgess claims he regrets ever having published the book.