UtopiaAn imagined place or state of things in which everything is perfect. The opposite of dystopia. (Oxford dictionary)
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DystopiaAn imagined place or state in which everything is unpleasant or bad, typically a totalitarian or environmentally degraded one. The opposite of utopia. (Oxford dictionary)
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Common Traits of Dystopian Fiction
The following is a list of common traits of dystopias, although it is by no means definitive. Most dystopian films or literature includes at least a few of the following:
- a hierarchical society where divisions between the upper, middle and lower class are definitive and unbending (Caste system)
- a nation-state ruled by an upper class with few democratic ideals
- state propaganda programs and educational systems that coerce most citizens into worshipping the state and its government, in an attempt to convince them into thinking that life under the regime is good and just
- strict conformity among citizens and the general assumption that dissent and individuality are bad
- a fictional state figurehead that people worship fanatically through a vast personality cult, such as 1984's Big Brother or We's The Benefactor
- a fear or disgust of the world outside the state
- a common view of traditional life, particularly organized religion, as primitive and nonsensical
- a penal system that lacks due process laws and often employs psychological or physical torture
- constant surveillance by state police agencies
- the banishment of the natural world from daily life
- a back story of a natural disaster, war, revolution, uprising, spike in overpopulation or some other climactic event which resulted in dramatic changes to society
- a standard of living among the lower and middle class that is generally poorer than in contemporary society
- a protagonist who questions the society, often feeling intrinsically that something is terribly wrong
- because dystopian literature takes place in the future, it often features technology more advanced than that of contemporary society
http://www.netcharles.com/orwell/articles/col-dystopia.htm
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British Rule in India
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The Berlin Wall
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