English Project

Term II

The Evolution of
Dystopian Media

Amna Shirin M
Roll no. 43
Class XI A
 Kendriya Vidyalaya no. 1 Palakkad
Certificate
This is to certify that this project titled “The Evolution of

Dystopian Media” is an original work of Amna Shirin M of

class XI A that has been completed independently under

the guidance of Mrs. Jaya P for the second term of the

academic year 2021-22.

Date:

Amna Shirin M Mrs. Jaya P

(Student of class XI A) (PGT English)
 The term dystopia is the
Origin of antonym of utopia (which was

the first introduced in a 1516 novel

by Thomas More) Literally,
dystopian utopia is “no place” and the

genre utopian ideal is about

envisioning a perfect futuristic
society where everybody lives in
harmony without any societal
issues that hinder development.
Inspired by More’s writing on
utopia, English philosopher John
Stuart Mill used the term
“dystopia” to criticize the
government’s land policy in
1868.
A few prominent Dystopian Classics
• 1984 George Orwell
Orwell wrote the book as a warning against a totalitarian
and authoritarian government that monitors every thought,
action and speech of the people. It leaves no room for
individualism, freedom or free will. The party propaganda
is spread around as slogans that the public are meant to
live by. The defeat of the protagonist was Orwell’s way of
pointing out that all powerful governments can break an
individual without a trace of it lingering in what is left of
Winston (the protagonist).

• The Handmaid’s Tale Margaret Atwood

The book is set in New England in the near future where
Christian fundamentalist theocratic regime goes on which
arose as a result of a fertility crisis. The novel is narrated by
the protagonist – Offred, who is a “handmaid” she tells us
all about how the new regime came into being. The
helplessness women throughout the country went through
as their rights were stripped away from them one by one
starting with their financial independence. In the new
regime, women are viewed as domestic commodities who
get things done around the houses of the “Commanders”.
Handmaids are subjected to institutionalized sexual assault
as they are supposed to bear children for the childless
commanders and their wives.
 • Brave New World Aldous Huxley
In this dystopian classic, the World State government of
2540 AD governs the population by numbing them with
bliss rather than telling them what to think. Huxley's Brave
New World takes readers to an apparently flawless world
filled with genetically modified, carefree, and well-fed
inhabitants. Who (ironically) lack all that makes them
human.

• The Hunger Games Suzanne Collins

The dystopian novel that introduced a new generation of
readers to the genre. "The Hunger Games" is a clever satire
on Western obsessions: fashion, reality TV, and the cult of
celebrity, to name a few. It is a page-turner with a
distinctive cast of characters. It follows 16-year-old Katniss
Everdeen as she fights her way through the Hunger Games,
a live TV show in which twelve boys and girls must fight to
the death. It is set in the near future in the country of
Panem. While the Games themselves are gory and
depressing, scenes in the Capitol, Panem's capitol, are
almost nightmarish. The buildings are candy-colored, with
rainbow glass, and the wealthy people of the Capitol dye,
tattoo, and wax themselves almost to the point of becoming
unrecognizable.

Young Adult Dystopia

Originally, the older dystopian books were generally catered
towards the adults and the problems and perspectives were that of
middle-aged people living in a broken society. Over the years,
other dystopian books like Nancy Farmer’s The House of the
Scorpion and Lois Lowry’s Newbery-winning book The Giver
have given younger characters a more central role in dystopian
settings. But the real shift that changed the target demographic of
dystopian books was during the 90’s and 00’s.
Since 2000, dystopian novels for teenagers have maintained the
bleak, dark setting, but the characters' personalities have evolved.
Teenagers who are empowered, fearless, powerful, and
determined to find a way to survive and face their fears replace
passive and weak individuals. The primary protagonists have
powerful personalities that authoritarian governments struggle to
subdue.
 “Freedom is the
freedom to say that
two plus two make
four. If that is
granted, all else
follows.”