Genre Study 1: What is Dystopia?

Over the past week or so I have published a number of reivews on books that technically aren't 'dystopian' insofar as it is commonly understood. Often if you ask someone what dystopia is you will get answers that I would boil down into two general categories: 1. 1984 Orwellsian Big Brother or 2. Mad Maxian post-apocalypse barbaric wasteland. And, generally, most "dystopian literature" falls under these categories to greater and lesser degrees. However a quick look at the definitions of dystopia may help.

 

• The Oxford English Dictionary defines the word ‘Dystopia’ as, “an imagined place or state in which everything is unpleasant or bad, typically a totalitarian or environmentally degraded one,” and Merriam-Webster similarly defines ‘Dystopia’ as, “an imaginary place where people lead dehumanized and often fearful lives.”

As we can see, both categories above fall into the definitions. However, these definitions leave some room to maneuver around and explore the full implication of a 'dystopia'


I go back to my review of Frankenstein. Now, is that book a dystopian novel? No. Well, not at we understand them today, nor even at the time of its release. However, there are two instances in the book that clearly are dystopian. 

1. Frankenstein's attempt to create the prefect human ends not in perfection but in monstrosity. For me this represents sciences attempts to improve the human condition and the potential outcome of that process. This is no different than 'The Birthmark' by Hawthorne or with the scientists in Oryx and Crake by Atwood, Planet of the Apes, etc etc. Shelley envisions the possibly future of mankind should science create the perfect human and imagines not an angel but a demon.


2. Even more clearly dystopian is when Frankenstein is confronted by his monster and the monster demands from him a mate. Frankenstein, initially complying with the request, later destroys the monster's mate as he envisions a future where the monsters breed a race of their own, come out of the forests and jungles to destroy and supplant mankind as the dominant species on earth.


While a book may not be heavily dystopian like 1984, Brave New World, etc etc. The exploration of the possible outcomes of the world and mankind is often what sets dystopian novels apart from science fiction and fantasy. The other key is the negativity of that future or outcome. Otherwise you have futures such as Star Trek or Utopian landscapes or just fantasy. This negativity often goes hand in hand with a specific issue being explored or cautioned against (for the sake of this entry, lets say genetic manipulation) and this issue is often the catalyst for the apocalypse or doom of mankind.


The social commentary in dystopian novels is by no means unique to the genre, but is often a prerequisite for the genre. If the future is bad, it is bad for a reason, and the authors often pick a specific socio-cultural or political thing as the reason why the future went bad, a reason often aligning with the authors own viewpoints. For example, if you are concerned about the dangers of genetic engineering well, have a engineered disease set loose on mankind along with super smart pigs as in Oryx and Crake. Concerned with Big Government? 1984 and others like it.

This is not to say the future can be bad because of reasons outside of our control. For example, alien invasion. However, futures that are bad because of outside factors are often more closely aligned with science fiction rather than dystopian novels. Deathstalker, for instance, is primarily a sci-fi novel, though it does contain dystopian elements.


All in All, dystopian literature, despite its somewhat constricting requirements as a genre, has very broad parameters when executed. Yes, I will try to limit my reviews in this genre to books that, if not entirely dystopic, at least contain a decent amount of that dystopian goodness. That, and I don't only read dystopian and apocalyptic novels, and if I think the currently nonexistent readers of this blog will enjoy the book, I will put out a review and suggest checking it out.