Least Dystopian Government

In my opinion, a big factor in dystopias is the type of government. The most common governments I have seen in dystopias are totalitarian and authoritarian governments. Totalitarianism, according to Oxford Languages, is a system of government that is centralized, dictatorial, and requires complete subservience from the state. A couple of examples of totalitarianism in dystopias are George Orwell’s “1984” and Ray Bradbury’s “Fahrenheit 451”. On the other hand, authoritarianism, according to Oxford Languages, is a system that enforces or advocates strict obedience to authority at the expense of personal freedom. Some examples of authoritarianism in dystopias are Suzanne Collins’ “the Hunger Games” and Margaret Atwood’s “The Handmaids Tale”. In both types of government, individual freedoms are discouraged and assert control over the public.  

Although totalitarianism and authoritarianism are most dystopian, Constitutional and Direct Democracy are the least dystopian. Democracy is more focused on the people ruling. People have a direct power on governmental laws or elect representatives to do it for them. Constitutional democracies are beneficial for larger societies that need regulations for their representatives. Direct democracies are more beneficial for smaller societies where every person represents themselves. One reason that democracy is least likely to be dystopian is that the inclusion of people’s opinions promotes equality. Additionally, democracy satisfies the needs of the majority and people in power can be held accountable. There are more checks and balances than governments like dictatorships.

However, there are a couple of ways that democracy can be abused or be disadvantageous. One disadvantage is that decision making can be delayed. This is especially true for a direct democracy but also applies to constitutional democracies. Since there are many opinions offered on each governmental issue, coming to a final decision will take a longer time. Additionally, a way that democracy can be abused is through the possibility of corruption. There is no perfect governmental system, and all have the possibility of corruption. These disadvantages do not negate from the fact that democracy has more benefits and would be the least dystopian.