Dystopian Discussions

Something I've mentioned throughout these blogs, is the idea of dystopian fiction reflecting and exaggerating current real world issues, viewpoints and laws. They provided a political and social commentary, usually making criticisms about current trends, religions, cultural norms, or political systems. Additionally, they allow the writers and their audience to express fears and concerns about the future, especially in uncertain times. This has been a common theme since the start of the genre, with early works expressing concerns of nuclear fallout and fascist governments, such as 1984 and Fahrenheit 451 . Works such as The Handmaid's Tale  written in 1986 has references and inspiration from the second-wave feminist movement and the sexual liberation of the 1960's and 1970's, as well as incorporating threats of post-nuclear environments. More modern dystopian novels use a combination of climate change and political movements as the founding material. As many of these nov...

Utopias/Dystopias The word dystopia was born out of the word "utopia." Utopias are described as an ideal word, but ironically, the literal translation of this word is "no place" (1). This translation became more apparent as technological advances consistently gave humans the opportunities to create utopias, but instead only resulted in wars, oppression, and greater inequalities, creating the concept of dystopias. Dystopias are defined as "an imagined society with suffering or injustice, typically totalitarian or post-apocalyptic" (2). Common ideas in dystopian fiction include a belief that shapes society, usually enforced by propaganda; constant surveillance and fear within society, as well as fear of the outside world; dehumanization of the oppressed; and forced conformity. This artwork depicts the relationship of how utopias in fictions are often, in reality, dystopian society's for the majority of it's citizens. (3) What Separates Dys...

Defining Nature Nature and environment have many meanings depending on what lens we choose to look at it through. The traditional dictionary meaning of nature is "all the animals, plants, rocks etc. in the world and all the features, forces and processes that happen or exist independently of people" (1). This definition highlights humans as apart from nature, rather than a part of nature. Further, the environment is most commonly thought of in a natural setting. However, this dualistic approach ignores how both humans and nature interact with and impact each other. Another way to look at nature and the environment is to acknowledge it as not something humans are apart from, but something we are a part of. This connection changes and affects the way we interpret our world, as well influencing our pop-culture. The Rising Tide of Climate Fiction One way we see these human and nature coming together is in the increased popularity of climate fiction, or dystopias where the ...

New Materialism New Materialism is a complicated concept that can most simply be boiled down to "matter matters." Objects, human or not, have agency, or the ability to perform acts that produce a result or impact (1) regardless of whether we are aware of them or not. Through this lens human, nature, and objects are all equal and constantly shifting tensions to create an "assemblage." In New Materialism, assemblages refer to "modalities of groupings of agencies...which generate different histories, states of affairs, and future possibilities." (2) Overall, this leads to "thing-power," the idea that objects cannot be reduced to human meanings or agendas, as they have their own (3). New Materialism also collapses binaries and hierarchies between humankind and nature. This aspect is very clear in Ready Player One, as the real world and virtual world have become so intertwined the fine line between them has become very blurred. Trailer for ...

The Hunger Games creates a world of inequalities between race, gender, and socio-economic status; contributing to an overall cultural hegemony. An image stating the definition of cultural hegemony, as well as showing a visual interpretation of its meaning. 1 Types of Hegemonies: Jacob M. Appel once said "The most dangerous ideas are not ones that challenge the status quo [but] are those so embedded in the status quo, so wrapped in the cloud of inevitability, that we forget they are ideas at all." 2  This quote points out that much of what creates a cultural hegemony has been indoctrinated into society via certain ideologies.We can see this in the Hunger Games novels, with most obviously the annual gladiator-style games, but also, more subtly, the forced feminization of Katniss to appeal to sponsors, and the Capitol's intense consumerism compared to the Districts' providing for them. Gender: The Hunger Games takes place in a patriarchal society. This is...