Page 1 of 5 Group 4

Delaney Taylor, Raven Harper, Nikhil Madhav, Blake Penney, Grayson Minger, Saleem Wakil, Bittany Bates 9-27-2012 Ms. Roberts A4

Group Consensus
When someone opens a book, the first thing they will probably do is find out what type of storyline it contains. Will the book be action, drama, or fantasy based? In a dystopian novel, a book could fit into any combination of wonderful and exciting elements. The only restriction to a dystopian book is that it must contain a negative twist in its storyline. Dystopia means quite simply that something has gone very wrong with the world of the protagonist. The issue could be something that has happened directly to the protagonist or something that affects the public in general. In the majority of dystopian books, the problem lies with the government. For example, in The Hunger Games President Snow threatens the boy that Katniss Everdeen loves in order to force her cooperation. In this excerpt, President Snow snarls, Speak Miss Everdeen. Him I can easily kill off if we dont come to a happy resolution. The government takes advantage of their power to oppress the society, individuals, or nature. This leaves people feeling as if they have no power. They will do whatever they are told. The changes come slowly and creep up on society in a manner that leaves people oblivious to what has occurred until it is too late to stop the changes. They come so slowly that society accepts all the changes as normal. For instance, in The Giver it is described like this, Our people made that choice, the choice to go to samenessWe gained control of many things. But we had to let go of others. Dystopian protagonists often refuse to let go of the things of the past and reject the things of the future. It is usually

Page 2 of 5 Group 4

after the protagonist rejects the changes in their society that they will emerge and try to escape or confront the antagonist. The plot of dystopia generally escalates very quickly starting as soon as the protagonist discovers that something is wrong with their surroundings. The discovery could be instigated by a number of things such as a group of rebels or an event that occurs in the protagonists life that shows the faults of the conditions in which they live. In The Maze Runner, the fault is the disappearance of the sun. But there was something about the largest object in the solar system vanishing that tended to disrupt normal schedules. After the main character discovers the fault, they will usually begin to rebel against it. This usually leads to the action part of the book where the protagonist will either try to escape from the faults in their life or begin to resist. When we study the dystopian antagonist, we can usually put them into two groups, unintentional and purposeful villains. The purposeful villain is an enemy who wants to affect people in a negative way. They are purely evil. The unintentional antagonist however is someone who doesnt want to be evil but believes what they are doing is the right thing. The protagonist usually attracts the attention of the antagonist by not going with the flow or questioning why the villain is doing the things they are doing. The protagonist is often an innocent person who hasnt done anything wrong but is simply curious or skeptical about what goes on around them. The protagonist is usually one of few people who realize what is going on around them. Dystopia is often confused with other genres due to its wide range of coverage. Confusion often arises when comparing it to its fellow genres, post-apocalyptic and science fiction. When comparing definitions of the two, you can see that post-apocalyptic actually fits inside the definition of dystopia. Since dystopia is when something goes wrong in the world, post-apocalyptic is simply dystopia on a more catastrophic level. The main difference is that in post-apocalyptic people generally die in massive quantities, whereas in dystopia they are either misled or tricked into making their conditions less optimal.

Page 3 of 5 Group 4

Science fiction can often become a sub-genre of dystopia due to the fact that in most science fiction novels something goes wrong in the process of trying to make a discovery or experiment. Whenever something goes dramatically wrong in someones life it almost always becomes a dystopian book. Dystopia will often overlap with other genres due to this fact. Usually, the setting of dystopian novels is futuristic or in an alternate world. Often futuristic books purpose is to warn us of what our society could become if proper precautions are not taken. This can be very interesting because it makes you think twice about things you would normally accept as harmless. The futuristic setting also serves to capture the readers imagination and get them hooked on technology that has not yet been invented. Alternate worlds also serve to stimulate the imagination of the reader. This also allows the writer to add things to the book that would be impossible on Earth. On different worlds, the setting can be changed to better fit the storyline. They allows for a greater variety of characters who behave differently than humans. Both of these twists in a tale allow for a readers lively imagination to express its creativity. They also provide a constant flow of opportunities for action, life, and detail in a story. Particularly in recent years, dystopian books have come forward as the favorites of all ages. They have appealed especially to teenagers and young adults due to their exciting subjects and fast paced action. For most young people, fast paced action and drama are crucial elements in a great book. If you look at the popular stories in the last year whether book or movie, you can see that they are all action packed and exciting. When a book incorporates vibrant detail, a great story line, wonderful dialogue and is action based teens respond with enthusiasm and delight. Dystopia provides the perfect foundation for a writer to provide a story with all the elements necessary to make an intriguing, interesting, and addicting tale that everyone will love. Dystopia has many attributes that make it preferable for both writers and readers. It can be made into a science fiction, mysterious, dramatic, or post-apocalyptic story. With so many possibilities, the

Page 4 of 5 Group 4

author has the freedom to invent their own fantasy that is sure to keep the reader completely thrilled with their story. No matter what direction the author takes the story, when a story is labeled dystopia, you can be sure that it will be a wonderful book for all ages of readers. In the hands of a great writer, nothing is impossible for a dystopian novel. The imaginative sub-genres leave the writer free to create another world or reinvent the one we live in. With all of its potential, its no wonder some of the top stories in the last year have been dystopian.

Page 5 of 5 Group 4

Work Cited
Collins, Susanne. THE HUNGER GAMES 577 Broadway, New York, NY: Scholastic Press, September 2009
Dashner, James, THE MAZE RUNNER, New York, NY: Random House Inc. 2009 Lowry, Lois. THE GIVER New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Co. 1993