The best definition of a dystopia in my opinion comes from Thomas Hobbes, Leviathan. He describes human nature, how the human true self is a chaotic, wild beast that without government will run amok until everything is drowning in chaos. In many dystopian societies, there is usually an egregious problem in one or many parts of their society. A lot of dystopian works feature real-world aspects such as the hunger games which is based on the rich’s exploitation of the lower class, and 1984 is based on a government that is too involved/ has too much control over its citizens’ lives. According to Hobbes, humans are selfish, prideful beings that will do what they want when they want, regardless of the consequences. Many of the actions committed by humans are for their own interest, this can be seen in the novel 1984, as much as the government claimed to be protecting everyone from their own humane desires, the true purpose was to have absolute control over everything going on within the society. The rich maintained the status quo, and no one from the lower classes was able to climb that economic ladder, if you are born in the Proles, you will remain there unless by some luck of fate you move up. Society is governed by those with the money, they control every aspect of life, from who you want romantically to what your job entails you to do. 1984, is a dystopian novel depicting what human nature looks like with a giant magnifier glass from the government attached. A dystopia is a place where a specific aspect of human nature can be truly seen, whether it is from the rich showing their selfishness in their money monopoly while the poor constant get poorer or from the chaos of human nature just waiting to pull everyone around them in and have them overcome by the mayhem surrounding them.
