In dystopian fiction, we read about worlds where the new normal is something akin to survival of the fittest, when human interaction is tainted with distrust, when danger lurks around every corner. Some novels that come to mind are The Hunger Games, 1984, Anthem, and Fahrenheit 451. Each novel presents a view of society that is grim and dark, but where there is also hope in the protagonist to stand up against the darkness.
Even though we know those worlds are a far cry from our present reality, they pique our interest because they show us “what ifs”, because we’re curious with what’s unfamiliar to us. Perhaps we’re not too far from such a reality if something were to go terribly and horribly wrong in a nightmarish kind of way.
Each author in the dystopian genre brings their own vision of such a world, where the perilous conditions can bring the worst or the best out of people. These stories remind us how fragile and delicate humanity is, and how we must choose to hold onto our own humanity as well.
Fallton Havenstonne 