Dystopia

Dystopia. Sounds a little like Utopia, but they are polar opposites. Where Utopia is the freedom from rules and conformity; dystopia is the exact opposite. Dystopian novels are quite popular these days thanks to The Hunger Games and Divergent. Dystopia isn't a new concept though. The first dystopian novel was The Iron Heel by Jack London in 1908. You probably know Jack London from a few of his other works which include White Fang and The Call of the Wild. Other older dystopian tales are Fahrenheit 451, Brave New World, 1984, Clockwork Orange and The Giver. Those of you with middle school students should recognize The Giver. The characteristics of this genre is a society or community, generally in the future, that is undesirable and repressed by a governing body. The rules are generally very strict and often dehumanizing. I think the attraction of these books is that there is always a person, usually a timid, young or meek individual, that rises up and challenges the institutions. Here are a few dystopian series from recent years:

The Hunger Games Series

Divergent Series

Uglies Series

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