Utopian societies are never perfect and in reality, many fall short of what perfect societies should convey. Many utopian societies conveyed in novels introduce the bright side of the society, but those utopias also contain a disturbing side to their existence. Utopias that are conveyed in novels such as Divergent and “‘Repent, Harlequin!’ Said the Ticktockman” have differences such as their culture, environment, and overall setup, while simultaneously having similarities with their foundations. Many sources support the claim of utopias, such as the short story “‘Repent, Harlequin!’ Said the Ticktockman” by Harlan Ellison. Veronica Roth’s book Divergent further expand upon the idea of utopian society where everyone has a certain role in certain …show more content…
The first paragraph of the essay will introduce the topic of utopian societies in their sinister dark side, along with the thesis statement. The second paragraph will cover the similarities of Divergent and “‘Repent, Harlequin!’ Said the Ticktockman,” and compare the similarities with the analysis of Lois Lowry’s novel The Giver by Hanson Carter and George Orwell’s novel 1984. The third paragraph will cover the differences in culture between Divergent and “‘Repent, Harlequin!’ Said the Ticktockman.” The fourth paragraph will cover the differences in environment between Divergent and “‘Repent, Harlequin!’ Said the Ticktockman.” The last paragraph will cover the differences in overall setup between Divergent and “‘Repent, Harlequin!’ Said the …show more content…
To correct and ultimately prevent this problem, all drafts will be peer edited by multiple people to ensure an accurate and comprehendible essay is created. Another problem would be having many specific questions regarding the project. To resolve this issue, all questions will be forwarded to the professor in person to have a clear understanding of project concerns. No compromises will be made with this essay and a well devised final draft will be constructed with quality in mind. This essay will hopefully contribute many interesting elements that can better define Science Fiction. This essay can perhaps prove that any utopia has a dark element to it no matter how it is constructed. Perhaps this essay can prove that a utopia will always be categorized under Science Fiction due to it's supernatural aspects that will most likely never come true. Along with strong evidence and logical points, this essay can possibly clear the confusion associated with Science Fiction and possibly further the understanding of Science Fiction as a
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Show MoreSeveral people have their own idea of what a “perfect” society would be like. Since everyone’s perspective on the topic is different, when one person makes their “ideal” society a reality, it can backfire. In the novels Anthem by Ayn Rand and Divergent by Veronica Roth, this is exactly what happened. The lead characters in both stories were faced with someone’s idea of a perfect society and they were both rebels against what the person saw as perfect, this caused both societies in the end to backfire, or at least get a little whacky. The protagonists in Anthem and Divergent have similar reactions to the various dystopian elements such as restriction, illusion of a perfect utopia, and dehumanization, which helps them develop their characters
In Anthem, written by Ayn Rand, the main character Equality develops intellect and curiosity as he grows with the strict society around him. These traits make it difficult for him to survive in the collectivist society and follow the rules that his brothers easily obey. Throughout the selection, his curiosity and intellect grow into traits that make it near impossible for him to live in the world he was raised in. Ayn Rand’s descriptive style of writing helps the reader visualize the development of Equality’s curiosity and intellect, as well as the struggles he faces in his society because of these traits. From the beginning of the novel, Equality’s ever-present curiosity is shown to give him trouble in his severely strict community.
The technology of this “utopia” has friends betraying and criticizing each other, this creates a very dystopic society.
Gatlin Farrington 12/1 P.4 Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is an excellent utopian/dystopian fictional story about a man who fights for the freedom to read. The government in this world has made almost every book (with a few exceptions) illegal. They have done this due to the contradictory ideas found in them. It was thought that all of the contradictions might confuse citizens on what is the truth and what isn’t.
Since the age of Thomas Moore, intellectuals have been fascinated by the idea of an ideal society where all is well and total happiness is readily available to all of its members. Such ideals of a ‘utopia’ continued throughout the centuries until it reached a major pivoting point in the nineteenth century. Historical events such as the Second World War, the Cold War, the emergence of McCarthyism, and the creation of a nuclear bomb left people with a heavily misanthropic view of the world. People started to question the practicality or realistic possibility of a utopian society, thus creating the genre of dystopian literature. (Gerhard, 2012)
Dystopian stories are usually set in an unfavorable society in which to live, where the antagonist is the society itself, and the protagonist is the person who is looking towards changing this society and fixing its flaws, who believes that they can make a difference by overthrowing the government or escaping from it. The conflict is often not solved, or the hero fails to solve it, and the dystopian society continues as it was before. Harrison Bergeron is an example of a dystopian story where society has intensely controlled the population’s unique qualities to make everyone exactly equal. People’s talent, beauty, intelligence, and any other quality that makes them different is brought down and destroyed by forcing them to wear handicaps, masks, and weights. Harrison Bergeron is the protagonist of the story.
‘Positive characters … usually prove miserably ineffectual when contending with ruthless overwhelming powers’ claims Amin Malak, noting on such protagonists as Winston Smith and Offred in George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four and Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, and, when looking at the dystopian genre as a whole, he certainly seems to be correct. Dystopian fiction does seem to portray the worse side of human nature than the better, leaving the positive traits to the struggling protagonists. While utopian writers seemed to think that the essence of human nature was to do good, dystopian writers seem to think very differently and it is from this notion that these novels seem to be written. Nineteen Eighty-Four certainly seems to do this, with almost every member of the society representing one or more negative aspects of humanity.
A dystopian society is dehumanizing, unpleasant, and completely unlike modern American society. Or is it? There are many similarities and differences between dystopian societies and modern American society. Three examples are in the book Fahrenheit 451, the film “2081”/”Harrison Bergeron”, and the novel The Selection. These similarities and differences can be represented in first responders, handicaps, and jobs.
This short story is mainly about equality for everyone and it’s a Utopian society that becomes a Dystopian society. A Utopian society is, “an imagined community or society that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for its citizens”(“Utopia”). On the other hand, a Dystopian society is, “an imaginary society that is as dehumanizing and as unpleasant as possible”(Dystopian). The setting of “Harrison Bergeron”
Although these two messages seem different, they carry a lot of similarities which is why I decided to look further into: A comparison of George Orwell and William Golding’s representation of the primal structures of human society in “1984” and “Lord of the Flies” The scope of the essay is limited to these novels however it offers the authors’ ideas and beliefs and reference to secondary sources while critiquing the novels. It also offers primary sources in the form of direct quotations from the novels.
How a Utopia compares to present day In the novel Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley, we are presented with a society that is abnormal from our own modern day society because of their technological advancements and different life perspectives. Although our society and the “World State” are very different, Huxley relates the two worlds throughout the novel with several meaningful quotes. Social critic Neil Postman, in his “Six Assertions”, talks about many of the topics in Brave New World and whether or not they are relevant in today’s society.
The utopian society in the Brave New World can be compared and contrasted between our contemporary society using individualism, community and the human experience. The fictional novel by Aldous Huxley, published in 1932, is about a utopian society where people focus stability and community over individuality and freedom, but an outsider is introduced to intervene with the operation of the utopian state. In the contemporary world, people need to show individuality in their communities in order to survive, and to be human, one must show emotion, which is the opposite in the Brave New World. Individualism is very important in the contemporary world, but in the utopian state, individuals are conditioned to be the same as everyone else. They do not know how to be themselves.
The movie, The Village, and the novel 1984 provides new insight and connections on a “utopian” society. Both are very similar to each other in a way that their utopian society has many flaws. 1984 is about a rebellion against an iron-fisted totalitarian government while The Village is about an attempt to protect the innocence of people. In these societies, the leaders lie in order to try and achieve a utopian world. Both societies have different purposes to control the people through fear, but despite their attempts to create a utopian society, they were only successful to a certain extent.
For an utopian society to exist, there needs to be a merging of conformity and individualism in the society. Pure individualism or pure conformity in a society leads to a lopsided and corrupted society; they need to exist in synchrony. In Merry Mount, the people follow an ideology of complete freedom of thought and of individualism. The Puritan’s society shows what happens when everyone conforms and no one expresses their individual beliefs. When the ideologies of conformity and individualism merge it combines into a greater society as a whole, better than either of the individual half’s.
Evil Dead is a science fiction film and it was written and directed by Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell. It was release in 1981. The movie opens with five youngsters going on a road trip following a map. They are heading to an old abandoned cabin. The tension starts to build when they cross the weak bridge leading to the cabin because they almost had the car fall under the bridge.