I came to realize over the course of reading a few queries recently that a plot I would normally say “eh” to suddenly piqued my interested if it was set in some sort of post-apocalyptic world. So of course I want to blog about it.
I read a fascinating book for a review once called ENCHANTED HUNTERS by Maria Tatar, which explores the assumptions and power behind childhood reading. Tatar’s take on it has resonated with me ever since, and may shed some illumination on why dystopian might be such a captivating and lasting trend:
The authors of children’s books stockpile arsenals of beauty and horror to construct “peak experiences” – memorable moments that offer up the exquisite, the terrifying, and everything in between…. Children’s literature traffics in sensory bliss and horror, offering a secure place for children to go and face down the twin seductions of good and evil.
It offers a safe place, in sum, to explore the horrors of what might be.
Now, more than ever, as technology surmounts higher and higher peaks, it’s hard to imagine that anything can come next. And if it doesn’t, dystopian novels are there to show us that life will go on even if the WORST happens.
Just as bed-time stories used to serve to scare children into going to sleep, these tales of dystopia serve to scare us into why we SHOULD care about the today, and why we SHOULD be cautious about the tomorrow.
Translate that into a teenager’s life, which is tumultuous enough, and I think it shows why YA is leading this trend: forget powers and long-lost vampire heritage. If the world ends, YOU could be a hero just by being able to survive. It’s the ultimate geek-out escape; a way to feel powerful in the imagination by being YOURSELF.
Just my two cents into the popularity of this genre. What do you think?
I love this post. I've never actually thought of dystopian that way, but you're right: part of the reason why I love reading this kind of story is because the stories usually have a taste of possibility.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking today about writing a master's thesis on this exact topic.
ReplyDeleteI could not agree more and no one does Dystopian like YA writers.
ReplyDelete"If the world ends, YOU could be a hero just by being able to survive. It’s the ultimate geek-out escape; a way to feel powerful in the imagination by being YOURSELF."
ReplyDeleteWow. Just... wow.
I guess I never thought about it like that, but in a way that's what I like in fantasy--or fantasy before it became obsessed with living forever. It is a celebration of being human and that in the end the best weapon in any war, is you and your own brand of smarts.
ReplyDeleteI've always loved dystopian lit. Actually took a class on it in college. Who hasn't sat around wondering what comes after the world ends?
ReplyDeleteI completely agree. It's the idea that I don't need magical or paranormal powers to be the hero. Another part of it, I think, is the confirmation that the people in charge don't always do the right thing and that teens can play a role in setting things right.
ReplyDeleteI love dystopian novels. I'm crossing my finger that readers and editors won't get sick of dystopians anytime soon.
I've never thought about it that way, but what you're saying makes perfect sense. Great observation and something to ponder some more...
ReplyDeleteAs a high school student, the apocalypse is seriously annoying. Everyone is obsessed. So, this is good for writers I guess, because the theme is popular. But ugh, it's irksome. John Green wrote an unpublished book called "Zombie Corn" about zombies that plant corn after the apocalypse hits. It's gotten some good reviews on his forum.
ReplyDeleteI haven't given it much thought, but I'd say you've described the intrigue perfectly. It's all about the primal instincts. When the world falls apart YOU are the one who needs to find the cure, the food, the shelter, whatever it is to save everyone else.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your two cents.
Great point -- and also it follows that the reader gets to imagine being the first of a new breed of people (SURVIVORS!), perhaps (and preferably, for this reader) with the ideal romantic partner.
ReplyDeleteNow, what's this I hear about a CONTEST?!
:)
Interesting thoughts! I've never cared for Dystopian settings myself (I tend to be fairly optimistic in general, so the whole doom-and-gloom thing doesn't really resonate with me), but I think you make a really good point about why people connect with that kind of literature. Taking it a step further, I think writers can use those same principles in their stories, even without setting them in a Dystopian future (or past).
ReplyDeleteVery cool take on this. I like post-apoc/dystopian novels too (and just wrote one myself). You might have something on the hero bit. Someone can't really aspire to be a werewolf or a vampire or have special telekinetic powers, but he/she CAN aspire to have courage, make a valuable contribution to society, figure out something monumental and crucial, etc. Yessss, nice!
ReplyDeleteWoohoo, just followed a linky on another blog that reminded me of your 500-follower goal. You made it! Congrats. (And now, for that contest, heh-heh...)
ReplyDeleteOr you could be a deliciously evil villian. With no laws to rein you in, who decides right and wrong? Wha, ha, ha....Okay, I read way too many comic books. : )
ReplyDeleteGreat post, love the quote from Tatar.
ReplyDeleteI think another reason why YA dystopia is so popular is that it often shows people being powerless in the face of Big Brother-type oppression - and of course, kids and teens feel like that all the time :)
These are the very reasons that I love reading/writing dystopians! There is something powerful in rediscovering/gaining belief in oneself through great strife and it's something that I feel is getting sort of lost in many books nowadays.
ReplyDeleteAt the moment there seems to be so much emphasis on having superpowers or, in the extreme opposite trying to be 'normal' (oh that apparently coveted status of normal, which I have never been and would never want to be and thusly to not understand the longing for) but rarely is there an emphasis on 'This is ME. This is who I am and I am powerful just because I am me.'
That makes sense. I read the first Hunger Games book but wasn't drawn in enough to finish the series. I know, shocking; I must be like the only person out there who didn't finish it but it just wasn't my thing. There have been a few that have interesting premises that piqued my interest though. I really liked Ally Condie's Matched and I'm looking forward to Veronica Roth's Divergent.
ReplyDeleteI think for me personally it's hard to get into the mindset because I'm such a hardcore historical fiction nut. I think my mind is trapped in the past instead of looking towards the myriad of possible futures. But I don't shy away from them completely like I used to, which says something :)
hey! sounds good to me! I think my next novel will be dystopian...
ReplyDeleteThis is a fantastic post. My co-author and I just completed a YA MS that walks a fine line between speculative fiction and dystopian and reading this gave me chills. Thank you for providing such awesome insight:)
ReplyDeleteGathering Blue by Lois Lowry was a great love of mine as a child. It's true, what I loved about the main character was that she didn't have special powers, instead she had a bum leg and was pretty good at weaving. That's what changed her life in a dystopian society.. :)
ReplyDeleteGood and another post from you admin :)
ReplyDelete