Rise of the Dystopian Vision

Artist depiction of a future dystopia (source: Annibale Siconolfi at https://www.instagram.com/annibalesiconolfi/)

Introduction to the Imagining Dystopia topic

In the 1950s to 1960s, there was a lot of optimism for the future. This is reflected in much of the science fiction of the time. Stories often depicted advanced human societies or even utopias emerging as tech progressed. From the 1970s onward, however, people developed a much more pessimistic view of the what lay ahead. The changing material conditions caused a substantial overall shift in tone of fictional worlds. As a result, dystopian worlds became a more popular setting for numerous stories. Our collective fears are realized in these worlds, often as a grim warning of what is yet to come.

The transition from optimistic futurism to doomerism is best exemplified by the popularity of the cyberpunk genre. For the uninitiated, cyberpunk imagines a not-too-distant future where technology has progressed but living standards for ordinary people have decreased rather than seeing improvement. Series like Ghost in the Shell, Bladerunner, and Cyberpunk 2077 show the realistic tedium and banality of dystopian worlds. Nightmarish conditions tend to creep up slowly and humans merely adapt to these conditions. What I like best about cyberpunk is that it exposes the purely neutral role technology plays in societies. My studies of underdeveloped countries, I have learned that systemic exploitation, not lack of technological progress, keeps the vast majority of the global population impoverished. Progress is made through social equality; tech alone will not save humanity.

Dystopian worlds are often maintained through totalitarian governments. These governments exist in many different forms. Sometimes, they are a direct cause of the state of the world, and other times, they are just a product of the corruption already present within the world. As a historian and political scientist, I am especially critical about how governments are portrayed in fiction. It is often the construction of an authoritarian villain that causes a writer to betray their political ignorance and cultural bias. Books like George Orwell's 1984 and Animal Farm are shallow critiques of government that are lauded by readers who share his political views. Good, nuanced examples of fictional totalitarian governments do exist. Usually, it takes a hard examination of one's own biases and an open-minded study of other cultures to better understand the nature of authoritarianism.

Stories with dystopian worlds often have strong artistic and philosophical messages. Of course, a fair amount of them are merely action shlock with no real point. For an easy example of this, one need only point to the multitude of zombie apocalypse stories that have been created over the past several decades. When I was a teenager, zombies were very popular in games and media. My theory behind this trend is that the rugged human survival archetype that normally served as the protagonist in postapocalyptic zombie world became sort of a power fantasy for ordinary people. Zombies are slow, stupid, and weak, so dealing with them would easily be in the skillset of any comic book nerd. It was the knowledge of zombies that made them feel special.

The disconnect between systemic problems and worsening conditions has led to the more individualist survival fetishism that is displayed in a lot of the zombie stories. What a good dystopian story should convey is a clear warning about the dangers of certain harmful social practices or the rise of destructive political movements. Realistic political factions and social groups might support or oppose the status quo, which presents a possible alternative to the current dysfunctional system. On the individual level, characters within the fictional universe can provide a relatable window into the everyday experiences of the dystopian setting. From all of these elements, we better understand the shared anxieties of humanity and are more motivated to prevent the horrors of an imagined dystopia.