How to recognize a dystopia - Alex Gendler
Have you ever tried to picture
an ideal world?
One without war, poverty, or crime?
If so, you're not alone.
Plato imagined an enlightened
republic ruled by philosopher kings,
many religions promise
bliss in the afterlife,
and throughout history,
various groups have tried to build
paradise on Earth.
Thomas More's 1516 book "Utopia"
gave this concept a name,
Greek for "no place."
Though the name suggested impossibility,
modern scientific and political progress
raised hopes of these dreams
finally becoming reality.
But time and time again,
they instead turned into nightmares
of war, famine, and oppression.
And as artists began to question
utopian thinking,
the genre of dystopia,
the not good place, was born.
One of the earliest dystopian works
is Jonathan Swift's "Gulliver's Travels."
Throughout his journey, Gulliver
encounters fictional societies,
some of which at first seem impressive,
but turn out to be seriously flawed.
On the flying island of Laputa,
scientists and social planners
pursue extravagant and useless schemes
while neglecting the practical needs
of the people below.
And the Houyhnhnm who live
in perfectly logical harmony
have no tolerance for the imperfections
of actual human beings.
With his novel, Swift established
a blueprint for dystopia,
imagining a world where certain trends
in contemporary society
are taken to extremes,
exposing their underlying flaws.
And the next few centuries would
provide plenty of material.
Industrial technology that promised
to free laborers
imprisoned them in slums
and factories, instead,
while tycoons grew richer than kings.
By the late 1800's, many feared
where such conditions might lead.
H. G. Wells's "The Time Machine" imagined
upper classes and workers
evolving into separate species,
while Jack London's "The Iron Heel"
portrayed a tyrannical oligarchy
ruling over impoverished masses.
The new century brought more exciting
and terrifying changes.
Medical advances made it possible
to transcend biological limits
while mass media allowed instant
communication
between leaders and the public.
In Aldous Huxley's "Brave New World",
citizens are genetically engineered
and conditioned to perform
their social roles.
While propaganda and drugs keep
the society happy,
it's clear some crucial
human element is lost.
But the best known dystopias
were not imaginary at all.
As Europe suffered unprecedented
industrial warfare,
new political movements took power.
Some promised to erase
all social distinctions,
while others sought to unite people
around a mythical heritage.
The results were real-world dystopias
where life passed under the watchful eye
of the State
and death came with ruthless efficiency
to any who didn't belong.
Many writers of the time didn't
just observe these horrors,
but lived through them.
In his novel "We", Soviet writer
Yevgeny Zamyatin described a future
where free will and individuality
were eliminated.
Banned in the U.S.S.R., the book inspired
authors like George Orwell
who fought on the front lines
against both fascism and communism.
While his novel "Animal Farm" directly
mocked the Soviet regime,
the classic "1984" was a broader critique
of totalitarianism, media, and language.
And in the U.S.A., Sinclair Lewis's
"It Can't Happen Here"
envisioned how easily democracy
gave way to fascism.
In the decades after World War II,
writers wondered what new technologies
like atomic energy,
artificial intelligence, and space travel
meant for humanity's future.
Contrasting with popular visions
of shining progress,
dystopian science fiction expanded
to films, comics, and games.
Robots turned against their creators
while TV screens broadcast
deadly mass entertainment.
Workers toiled in space colonies
above an Earth of depleted resources
and overpopulated, crime-plagued cities.
Yet politics was never far away.
Works like "Dr. Strangelove" and "Watchmen"
explored the real threat of nuclear war,
while "V for Vendetta"
and "The Handmaid's Tale"
warned how easily our rights could
disappear in a crisis.
And today's dystopian fiction continues
to reflect modern anxieties
about inequality,
climate change,
government power,
and global epidemics.
So why bother with all this pessimism?
Because at their heart, dystopias
are cautionary tales,
not about some particular government
or technology,
but the very idea that humanity can be
molded into an ideal shape.
Think back to the perfect world
you imagined.
Did you also imagine what it would
take to achieve?
How would you make people cooperate?
And how would you make sure it lasted?
Now take another look.
Does that world still seem perfect?
