Dystopian

Dystopian is the term that can imply numerous meanings and take various forms. A dystopian literary piece belongs to a specific genre and involves depicting an unpleasant, frightening, miserable society, community, or situation. A dystopian world is very far from perfection. When describing it, writers aren’t afraid to make it as repulsive as possible. Moreover, dystopian literary works always involve human oppression or misery. 

A dystopian (as a noun, not an adjective) can also imply an author who writes and describes something in the dystopian style, depicting a society or a nation in the state of devastation.

The term itself was created by adding the part “dys-“ to the word “utopia”, which derives from the Greek “topos” and can be translated as “place”. While utopia was introduced into English in the 16th century by Thomas More, dystopia as a linguistic term appeared somewhere around 1865-1875. 

Distinguishing these two terms from one another isn’t difficult, as they have completely opposite meanings. Utopia implies perfection, a society without flaws, and the world of everyone’s dreams. It also allows the author to express his dreams, desires, and aspirations concerning the world we’re living in. Dystopia signifies a complete opposite: terror, destruction, and all the bad things that could happen to humanity. 

Interestingly enough, some authors use utopia to introduce the dystopian picture. For instance, at the beginning of the book, the character might see the society without flaws, but with the course of events and the flow of the plot, more things are revealed, making the character realize how dystopian the situation really is.

Dystopian literary pieces are versatile, but the majority of them fall into two principal categories: post-apocalyptic and destroyed by the state. The first type involves a disaster, after which the world changes its appearance and transforms into a horrible dystopia. The other type implies a situation when the government takes everything under total control and tries to create a perfect society, which leads to suppression, loss of personal freedom, and other negative consequences.

Writing dystopian pieces allows the author to do a number of things. First of all, it’s a great way to express personal concerns about the current state of affairs and what it can lead to. This literary genre helps the writer illustrate the fears and anxieties, which he wants to share with other people in order to raise awareness of certain problems. 

Dystopian works give the writers endless possibilities to use their creativeness and imagination. Because the dystopian world can look pretty much any way the author wants it to, the creative liberty for the writer is unlimited. It also provides a lot of character development scenarios. When illustrating a destroyed world, the author can introduce any character into the story. This genre allows the writers to create real epic heroes as well as add suspense, drama, and action to the plot. Plus, the dystopian genre doesn’t limit authors to only one style, giving them a chance to incorporate other genres, like horror, political thriller, romance, and so on.

Another purpose of dystopian pieces is to present certain virtues and values, which the author considers to be “extinct”. Oftentimes, we can notice such character features as self-sacrifice, altruism, compassion, etc.

Dystopian literary works help the author send a message and teach a lesson. In the atmosphere of destruction and despair, the author points at certain events, ideas, or characters, which can have a positive influence on the reader. The dystopian background establishes a stronger emotional connection between the reader and the story, thus making a bigger impact and conveying a more persuasive message.

Interestingly enough, not many examples of dystopian literary works began to appear before the late 19th century. Only in the second half of the 19th century, this genre comes into active use in the literary world. This phenomenon can be explained by the development of the technology, the World War II, and the fact that the humankind is influencing the planet in a bad way. All of these factors might have an influence on the genre development.

There is a large number of dystopian works in the world of literature. One of the most famous ones is the “Brave New World”, in which Huxley presents his own vision of the possible future. The author illustrates various issues, like brainwashing or the complete absence of the family concept. 

Written in the middle of the 20th century, “The Chrysalids” by J. Wyndham depicts the world where differences between people cannot be tolerated. This is a common theme for many works in this genre, and Wyndham masterfully illustrated the issue. 

Jack London in his work “The Iron Heel” pays more attention not to the scientific or fictional disasters but to the political side of life. He describes the world where only two classes of people exist: the oligarchs and the poor. The first group rules and the second one suffers from their tyranny. This literary piece is far from science fiction, illustrating real issues, and we’re even able to notice some of them these days. That’s why this literary work serves as an example of how a dystopian genre can help the author convey a certain message and make an impact on the readers.