See "People who confuse topias" after the jump:
I was just being a totally normal human being and writing down all the books I have on preorder (along with how much they’ll cost and their release dates, obviously) and all the sequels I need that have yet to go up for preorder (along with when they’ll come out), and I got to thinking about the different series I’ve gotten myself into this year. Many of which are “dystopian.” So then I got to thinking about the word “dystopian,” and what exactly differentiates between a dystopian novel/series and a utopian one? How exactly was The Giver considered “utopian” and all these books I’ve been reading are “dystopian,” while I’d personally much rather live in the world of Matched by Ally Condie than that of The Giver?
So, here’s what I came up with: the people who decide what classification books are going to receive are deeply confused about the difference between a dystopia and a utopia. Either that, or they know the difference and just stamp books with a “dystopian” label because they know that’s what sells right now. Those are the only explanations. Here is a “list” [quotation marks because it’s almost too short to even be called a “list”] of dystopian novels that actually deserve to be qualified as such, and why:
1. The Hunger Games trilogy— OBVIOUSLY this is dystopian, because there is absolutely nothing positive or world-improving about the situation in which these characters live. Even the people who live in the Capitol don’t really get anything out of it personally, other than the guarantee of material things and a steady supply of food to consume, which we already have. Everyone else gets something, or everything, taken away from them. And then there’s the whole killing-children-for-amusement thing… that’s definitely a step in the wrong direction.
2. The Enclave trilogy (series?) by Ann Aguirre— Literally, this series is about a zombie apocalypse. They live in underground enclaves, are each given one of three professions (they do not choose for themselves, and they cannot create their own): Breeder, Hunter, or Builder. That’s it. If you go “topside,” or aboveground, you’re on your own. Forever. Probably the only thing more dystopian than this is, in fact, The Hunger Games.
1. The Hunger Games trilogy— OBVIOUSLY this is dystopian, because there is absolutely nothing positive or world-improving about the situation in which these characters live. Even the people who live in the Capitol don’t really get anything out of it personally, other than the guarantee of material things and a steady supply of food to consume, which we already have. Everyone else gets something, or everything, taken away from them. And then there’s the whole killing-children-for-amusement thing… that’s definitely a step in the wrong direction.
2. The Enclave trilogy (series?) by Ann Aguirre— Literally, this series is about a zombie apocalypse. They live in underground enclaves, are each given one of three professions (they do not choose for themselves, and they cannot create their own): Breeder, Hunter, or Builder. That’s it. If you go “topside,” or aboveground, you’re on your own. Forever. Probably the only thing more dystopian than this is, in fact, The Hunger Games.
And now, I move on to the ones that are called “dystopian” when really they’re more utopian. Because even though a utopia is defined as a perfect society, the whole purpose of them in books is pretty much to point out that perfection is not possible and there’s always some level of corruption. But they are still utopian because they are there to attempt some form of perfection and make life better. This list is a little longer:
1. As I said before, the Matched trilogy by Ally Condie— The government regulates everything, picks someone PERFECTLY compatible for you to marry, delivers your food straight to your house in the proper portions so you don’t become overweight but still get the necessary nutrients, gives you a job that best suits you, etc. Honestly, everything about it just makes life a whole lot less difficult and complicated. BAM. Utopia. Enter, the problem: nobody can make their own choices! Voila: imperfect, slightly corrupt utopian society.
2. The Delirium trilogy by Lauren Oliver— Love makes people do crazy things, so it’s outlawed. Everyone is given an evaluation before they turn 18 to determine potential matches for marriage, how many kids they will have, etc. Again, it makes life easier. People are generally okay with it, but mostly that’s because they’re jaded and had their “procedure,” which cures them of the disease amor deliria nervosa (aka love), and thereby cures them of basically any deep emotional involvement in anything ever. I shouldn’t have to tell you what the problem is with this and how this is another example of a corrupt utopia.
3. The Divergent trilogy by Veronica Roth— Granted it’s definitely a darker world than you’d picture upon hearing the word “utopia,” but nonetheless it is. Because the whole purpose of this postmodern Chicago society is to avoid all possible causes of conflict and war. The factions each have a specific value that counters that which they believe to be the main cause of conflict, and they value this above everything else, so peace is pretty much ensured all the time. Except for the fact that this particular utopia doesn’t realize that most people are more than one thing, and it doesn’t let them define themselves. The utopian image kind of crumbles when one faction starts using another to gain power and create conflict, but even so, it’s still based upon the idea of perfection.
4. The Awaken trilogy (series?) by Katie Kacvinsky— Violence increases dramatically, to the point of elementary school bombings and regular high school shootings, so in-person schools are outlawed in exchange for digital ones. Avoid personal contact, avoid violence. It’s hardly far-fetched, but the idea is pretty utopian. Yes, there are more unhappy people than there probably should be in a utopia, but if it were dystopian the laws would exist for a worse reason than keeping people safe.
1. As I said before, the Matched trilogy by Ally Condie— The government regulates everything, picks someone PERFECTLY compatible for you to marry, delivers your food straight to your house in the proper portions so you don’t become overweight but still get the necessary nutrients, gives you a job that best suits you, etc. Honestly, everything about it just makes life a whole lot less difficult and complicated. BAM. Utopia. Enter, the problem: nobody can make their own choices! Voila: imperfect, slightly corrupt utopian society.
2. The Delirium trilogy by Lauren Oliver— Love makes people do crazy things, so it’s outlawed. Everyone is given an evaluation before they turn 18 to determine potential matches for marriage, how many kids they will have, etc. Again, it makes life easier. People are generally okay with it, but mostly that’s because they’re jaded and had their “procedure,” which cures them of the disease amor deliria nervosa (aka love), and thereby cures them of basically any deep emotional involvement in anything ever. I shouldn’t have to tell you what the problem is with this and how this is another example of a corrupt utopia.
3. The Divergent trilogy by Veronica Roth— Granted it’s definitely a darker world than you’d picture upon hearing the word “utopia,” but nonetheless it is. Because the whole purpose of this postmodern Chicago society is to avoid all possible causes of conflict and war. The factions each have a specific value that counters that which they believe to be the main cause of conflict, and they value this above everything else, so peace is pretty much ensured all the time. Except for the fact that this particular utopia doesn’t realize that most people are more than one thing, and it doesn’t let them define themselves. The utopian image kind of crumbles when one faction starts using another to gain power and create conflict, but even so, it’s still based upon the idea of perfection.
4. The Awaken trilogy (series?) by Katie Kacvinsky— Violence increases dramatically, to the point of elementary school bombings and regular high school shootings, so in-person schools are outlawed in exchange for digital ones. Avoid personal contact, avoid violence. It’s hardly far-fetched, but the idea is pretty utopian. Yes, there are more unhappy people than there probably should be in a utopia, but if it were dystopian the laws would exist for a worse reason than keeping people safe.
No comments:
Post a Comment