Dystopia: Definition, Elements, Examples, Movie, Novel

Dystopia Etymological Meaning

The term “dystopia” is coined by using Greek prefix ‘dys-’ meaning ‘bad’ or ‘evil’ or ‘wrong’ and Greek root word ‘topos’ meaning ‘place’.

Dystopia Definition

A dystopia is a fictional society that is the opposite of utopia. A few scholars claim that it is “An imaginary place or state in which the condition of life is extremely bad, as from deprivation, oppression, or terror” or “an imaginary place where everything is as bad as it can be.” It is usually characterized by an authoritarian or totalitarian form of government, or some other kind of oppressive social control.

Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia defines the dystopia as- “A dystopia is the idea of a society in a repressive and controlled state, often under the guise of being utopian.” And adds, “…Dystopian societies feature different kinds of repressive social control systems, and various forms of active and passive coercion.” Ideas and works about dystopian societies often explore the concept of humans abusing technology and humans individually and collectively coping, or not being able to properly cope with technology that has progressed far more rapidly than humanity’s spiritual evolution. Dystopian societies are often imagined as police states, with unlimited power over the citizens.

The word derives from Ancient Greek: äo-, bad, hard”, and Ancient Greek: üyo. “place, landscape”. It can alternatively be called cacotopia, or anti-utopia.

The first known use of dystopian, as mentioned in the Oxford English Dictionary, is a speech given before the British House of Commons by John Stuart Mill in 1868, in which Mill denounced the government’s Irish land policy. Dystopian depiction can easily be found in novels such as Nineteen Eighty Four (George Orwell), Brave New World (Aldous Huxley) and Fahrenheit 451(Ray Bradbury).

Utopia Vs Dystopia

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