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A dystopia is a fictional society, usually existing in a future time period, in which the condition of life is extremely bad due to deprivation, oppression, or terror. In most dystopian fiction, a corrupt government creates or sustains the poor quality of life, often conditioning the masses to believe the society is proper and just, even perfect. Most dystopian fiction takes place in the future but often purposely incorporates contemporary social trends taken to horrendous extremes.
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the term was coined in the late 19th century by John Stuart Mill, who also used Bentham's synonym, cacotopia, at the same time. Both words were based on utopia, analyzed as eu-topia, for a place where everything is as it should be; hence the converse "dys-topia" for a place where this is certainly not the case. Often, the difference between a Utopia and a Dystopia is in the author's point of view.
Dystopias are frequently written as warnings, or as satires, showing current trends extrapolated to a nightmarish conclusion. In this, they also differ from utopias; idealistic utopias have no roots in today's society, being in some other place or time, or after some major discontinuity in history (e.g. see H.G. Wells' utopias, such as The World Set Free).
Science fiction, particularly post-apocalyptic science fiction and cyberpunk, often feature dystopias.
Common traits of dystopian fiction
The following is a list of common traits of dystopias, although it is by no means definitive. Most dystopian films or literature includes at least a few of the following:
- a hierarchical society where divisions between the upper, middle and lower class are definitive and unbending.
- a nation-state ruled by an upper class with few democratic ideals
- state propaganda programs and educational systems that coerce most citizens into worshipping the state and its government, in an attempt to convince them into thinking that life under the regime is good and just
- strict conformity among citizens and the general assumption that dissent and individuality are bad
- a fictional state figurehead that people worship fanatically through a vast personality cult, such as 1984s Big Brother or Wes The Benefactor
- a fear of the world outside the state
- a common view of traditional life, particularly organized religion, as primitive and nonsensical
- a penal system that lacks due process laws and often employs psychological or physical torture
- constant surveillance by state police agencies
- the banishment of the natural world from daily life
- a back story of a natural disaster, war, revolution, uprising, spike in overpopulation or some other climactic event which resulted in dramatic changes to society
- a standard of living among the lower and middle class that is generally poorer than in contemporary society
- a protagonist who questions the society, often feeling intrinsically that something is terribly wrong
- because dystopian literature takes place in the future, it often features technology more advanced than that of contemporary society
To have an effect on the reader, dystopian fiction typically has one other trait: familiarity. It is not enough to show people living in a society that seems unpleasant. The society must have echoes of today, of the reader's own experience. If the reader can identify the patterns or trends that would lead to the dystopia, it becomes a more involving and effective experience. Authors can use a dystopia effectively to highlight their own concerns about societal trends. George Orwell apparently wanted to title 1984 1948, because he saw this world emerging in austere postwar Europe.
Examples of dystopian literature
Examples of dystopian films
See also
bg:Дистопия
de:Dystopie
es:Distopa
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