A dystopia is a world created based on fears the creator faces within present society.
In the duration of this course, we have talked a lot about dystopias and their different components. Though I understood the roles the type of leadership and technology play in dystopias I found myself continuously thinking of fear. It seemed as though the novels and movies we discussed were often reflections of the fears faced by those creating the story. In 1984, George Orwell’s themes are an exagerrated version of the starkly similar he was facing while writing during the Cold War. According to Mises Daily Articles, “we all know that Nineteen Eighty-Four was a brilliant and mordant attack on totalitarian trends in modern society, and it is also clear that Orwell was strongly opposed to communism and to the regime of the Soviet Union. ” Orwell’s reflection of his reality is something we see continuously in dystopian stories and further proves that a dystopia is truly built upon fear. Because of that fear, the author writes in hopes to caution readers from making those fears of society from manifesting. The British Library writes “the dystopian novel, on the other hand, readily provides a graphic warning of the consequences of going in a certain social, political or technological direction, and can do so with startling imagery that resonates with the reader.” The author of the dystopian story wants the audience to take actions against a not so far world. Dystopian worlds are meant to be perceived as truly cautionary tales.
https://mises.org/library/george-orwell-and-cold-war-reconsideration-1
https://www.bl.uk/20th-century-literature/articles/freedom-or-oppression-the-fear-of-dystopia
