Dystopian Fiction’s Reflection on Modern Society
The dystopia as a phenomenon of literature originated in the 20th century. The works of this genre created a picture of a dehumanized society, projecting into the future the existing, present, and real social institutions, tendencies, and relations that oppose a cultural person and spiritual values. Thus, dystopias were originally born as a warning to humanity about some dangers threatening it, as a basis for the critical review of cultural values, socio-historical practice, and its timely change. In this context, the attitude of dystopias to contemporary social reality may be traced.
Society has faced many problems that some writers describe in their fiction stories – mass culture, the influence of the media on society, the degradation of the population, and others. Mind and common sense are powerless against the problems of cultural degradation, and the current direction of development is the new picture of the future. These expectations are naturally connected with the progress in culture and the change of these problems.
The influence of the works of those dystopian fiction authors who wrote their novels in the 20th century on modern society can be traced in different spheres of life, which explains the relevance of these stories. Based on the ideas of such writers as George Orwell, Aldous Huxley, Ray Bradbury, and others, it is possible to make a comprehensive comparison of the thoughts and hypotheses of that time regarding possible options for the future.
Some ideas are relevant today, and as arguments, specific academic sources may be used. For instance, Resch (1997) argues that “Orwell’s attempt to fashion progressive politics in terms of cultural values remains instructive” (p. 140). Also, as Morgan (2018) notes, although Huxley’s dystopia does not consider the modern world from the point of view of technological progress, in his Brave New World, the state is “founded on genetic and biotechnological engineering” (p. 226). Therefore, the works of the authors of that era are directly connected with modern society and reflect some ideas that are relevant today.
Discussion of Source Material
Based on some academic sources, it is possible to consider what reflection the dystopian literature of the 20th century has on modern society. According to Anwar (2016), after the World Wars, authors began to pay particular attention to the problems of people in terms of their life and natural needs.
The author considers the fiction works of that era as an attempt to convey the destructive nature of violence and everything related to injustice (Anwar, 2016). “The tone of dystopia is of despair and the feel it gives is that of fear,” and the novels by Orwell, Huxley, Bradbury and other representatives of this genre are the caution to future generations (p. 247). Therefore, such literature has a connection with modernity as the instruction on how to prevent the collapse of social values and norms.
Political satire is a hot topic in both the works of the last century and in modern literature. Awan and Raza (2016) note that the novel Nineteen Eighty-Four by Orwell purposefully makes fun of totalitarianism as a social order. Today, in the era of democracy and the desire to achieve maximum freedom, such an order is unacceptable, which may indicate that the writer managed to convey his ideas.
Despite the fictional nature of characters and events, the story presented in the novel is proof that forcible management does not lead to maintaining order. Modern society has adopted this idea, condemning any manifestations of violence against the rights of citizens and human freedom.
Bina, Mateus, Pereira, and Caffa (2017) consider the influence of the last century’s literature on the modern foundations of life. As the author remarks, dystopian fiction is the genre that reveals the most significant problems of society and presents them in a gloomy and impartial light (Bina et al., 2017). The most acute problems that existed at that time and are observed now are social inequality and discrimination, and if these historical survivors are supported, problems may arise.
As Bina et al. (2017) argue, “insufficient attention to these dynamics may hasten society’s fall into dystopia and dystopia or collapse” (p. 192). Therefore, the struggle with the aforementioned phenomena is a feature of modern life.
Claisse and Delvenne (2015) describe the ideas of dystopia in the context of its impact on the characteristics of social development. The use of some authors’ ideas overlaps with the modern concepts of countering such unacceptable phenomena as inequality, the infringement of rights, and other signs of totalitarianism. As substantiations, the authors cite the ideas of writers and suggest paying attention to the trends that are traced in their works (Claisse & Delvenne, 2015). This approach allows estimating the reflection of dystopia in modern society.
Confrontation as a desire to achieve freedom is the idea that McManus (2017) considers when analyzing the influence of dystopian fiction on modern society. The author claims that “terrible isolation is one of the primary indices of life’s degradation,” and the desire to avoid this fate is a natural movement toward civilization (McManus, 2017, p. 84). The works of different authors form the basis of the analysis (Orwell, Huxley, Eggers, and others). Thus, the relationship between the ideas of the past and present epoch can be traced as a way of improving the world order.
Morgan (2018) draws attention to such a social phenomenon as inverted totalitarianism and notes that the dystopian novels of the last century largely shaped the intellectual basis for the consideration of this issue. The prerequisites of democracy are seen as a path to enlightenment, and the way of life that is typical for today’s society can be described as opposed to the ideas of Orwell, Huxley, and other writers. Despite the grim promise, specific thoughts are aimed at influencing society in order to eradicate any manifestations of inequality and injustice.
To assess the influence of dystopian works on the course of life in modern society, Resch (1997) considers political courses as one of the main indicators characterizing the ruling elites’ interests. Some concepts, for instance, totalitarianism are not criticized directly, but as a justification of their inadmissibility, the ideas of the authors of the last century are cited.
Resch (1997) mentions the Cold War as one of the manifestations of intolerance to the interests of different nations and draws attention to literary examples. The problem of displacement of cultural values is considered an essential aspect. In order to prevent the events described by Orwell, the world-famous dystopian, it is crucial to follow the course of justice and respect for the interests of the individual.
The topic of intersection between the past and the future is the key theme of the article by Stock (2016). The author examines the works of dystopia and compares the concepts of two time frames based on the ideas presented (Stock, 2016). The hints of writers are clear evidence that their images are directly related to everyday life, and ridiculing certain concepts speaks of condemnation.
Stock (2016) mentions the thoughts of Orwell and other members of the dystopian genre as “specifically predictive” and remarks that attention should be drawn to the connection between the notions of the world order in the past and in the future (p. 415). Despite a fictitious nature, the works are considered serious sources that allow assessing the degree of risk and preventing significant negative social changes.
References
Anwar, M. (2016). Postmodern dystopian fiction: An analysis of Bradbury’s ‘Fahrenheit 451’. International Journal, 4(1), 246-249.
Awan, A. G., & Raza, S. A. (2016). The effects of totalitarianism and Marxism towards dystopian society in George Orwell’s selected fiction. Global Journal of Management and Social Sciences, 2(4), 21-37.
Bina, O., Mateus, S., Pereira, L., & Caffa, A. (2017). The future imagined: Exploring fiction as a means of reflecting on today’s Grand Societal Challenges and tomorrow’s options. Futures, 86, 166-184.
Claisse, F., & Delvenne, P. (2015). Building on anticipation: Dystopia as empowerment. Current Sociology, 63(2), 155-169. =
McManus, P. (2017). From Huxley to Eggers: Happy dystopians. New Left Review, 2(105), 81-105.
Morgan, D. R. (2018). Inverted totalitarianism in (post) postnormal accelerated dystopia: The arrival of Brave New World and 1984 in the twenty-first century. Foresight, 20(3), 221-236.
Resch, R. P. (1997). Utopia, dystopia, and the middle class in George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four. Boundary 2, 24(1), 137-176.
Stock, A. (2016). The future-as-past in dystopian fiction. Poetics Today, 37(3), 415-442.