Dystopian Novels

A Neurotic

Can anyone recommend some decent dystopian novels? I've just read 1984 and The Handmaid's Tale and I'm eager for more :pac:

turgon

A Clockwork Orange?

A Neurotic

Good call - I've heard much of it, never occured to me, should do the job!

We

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Dystopian_novels

Maybe you will be able to spot a few here that you've heard about

Roche

The road by Cormac McCarthy is an easy read. If you like this genre I recommend subversive novels too by the likes of Charles Bukowski, Henry Miller, and I recently read Apathy and small other victories by Paul Neilan - excellent.

Joe Cool

A Scanner Darkly - Philip K. Dick

turgon

A Neurotic wrote: »

Good call - I've heard much of it, never occured to me, should do the job!

Its a great book. Its written in a heavily Russian slang that many would find hard to read (or dismiss), but in my opinion its just another reason its so good. Certainly Orwellian in parts.

ilovenerds

Brave New World is good...

Also I just ordered Fahrenheit 451 and hopefully that will be interesting..:)

turgon

Yeah I forgot about Brave New World, although its not technically a dystopia, those who liked 1984 would probably enjoy it a bit. Although in some peoples opinion it may be a dystopia. Depends on your view

Definition of dystopia wrote:

An imaginary place or state in which the condition of life is extremely bad, as from deprivation, oppression, or terror.

turgon

turgon wrote: »

Its a great book. Its written in a heavily Russian slang that many would find hard to read (or dismiss), but in my opinion its just another reason its so good. Certainly Orwellian in parts.

See that ilovenerds?

ilovenerds

"Many dystopias found in fictional and artistic works can be described as a utopian society with at least one fatal flaw,[9] whereas a utopian society is founded on the good life, a dystopian society’s dreams of improvement are overshadowed by stimulating fears of the "ugly consequences of present-day behavior."

I think Brave new World qualifies as a dystopia under these conditions... People are certainly oppressed and I'd consider any society where there is no room for or acceptance of individuality to be inherently flawed...

pieye

We by Yevgeny Zamyatin, good novel; really interesting back story... yes I had to look up the spelling.

johnnyskeleton

Metropolis by Thea von Harbou
Oryx & Crake by Margaret Atwood

TedB

ilovenerds wrote: »

"Many dystopias found in fictional and artistic works can be described as a utopian society with at least one fatal flaw,[9] whereas a utopian society is founded on the good life, a dystopian society’s dreams of improvement are overshadowed by stimulating fears of the "ugly consequences of present-day behavior."

I think Brave new World qualifies as a dystopia under these conditions... People are certainly oppressed and I'd consider any society where there is no room for or acceptance of individuality to be inherently flawed...

Brave New World is different than a typical dystopian novel in that people choose to be oppressed. They are engineered to such a fashion that they don't desire full knowledge of their situation. They are engineered to be happy and content. Essentially BNW is about rights - AKA, your rights to be unhappy and independent. Information is concealed from you, but you are oblivious, apathetic anyway. Whereas with Orwell information is concealed from you and you are miserable, unhappy, opressed.

Orwell is about fear - he is about domination. The consequences of challenging the system are severe and absolute. The consequences of challenging the system in BNW leads to you being banished to an island of like minded people - not particularly harsh :pac:

turgon

^True, but in brave New World they dont even seem to have the choice, they have to be engineered, so this woule give more credence to its place as dystopian.

I think in evaluating a good dystopian its has to be relevant, imo. It is here that 1984 comes out superior.

TedB

turgon wrote: »

^True, but in brave New World they dont even seem to have the choice, they have to be engineered, so this woule give more credence to its place as dystopian.

I think in evaluating a good dystopian its has to be relevant, imo. It is here that 1984 comes out superior.

Thats true, but does the fact that certain people were able to question their own instincts not make it entirely different? I kind of got the impression that even on a subconscious level (even though they were engineered) that the choice was there - just that people constantly chose to live in the society they did. Which is in reality a utopia if you don't mind everything being pre-arranged for you!

turgon

TedB wrote: »

Thats true, but does the fact that certain people were able to question their own instincts not make it entirely different?!

Yes, I think the soma issue was one where they had a choice, so it wasnt all forced on them.

There was a good thread in the humanities forum on this whole issue, it was a bit "high-brow" so no one really responded though.

TedB

turgon wrote: »

Yes, I think the soma issue was one where they had a choice, so it wasnt all forced on them.

There was a good thread in the humanities forum on this whole issue, it was a bit "high-brow" so no one really responded though.

Good thread, cheers for the link.

MissRibena

I think Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro qualifies. I wasn't a fan but lots of people rave about it.

turgon

Anyone here read any other Huxley books???

TakeTheVeil

Most have been said already, but,

- 'We'
- 'Brave New World'
- 'Oryx and Crake'
- 'The Road'
- 'Anthem' (Novella)
- 'Atlas Shrugged'
- 'Island'
- 'Tale of Two Cities'
- 'Neuromancer'

TakeTheVeil

turgon wrote: »

Anyone here read any other Huxley books???

I thought 'Island' was quite good.

TedB

turgon wrote: »

Anyone here read any other Huxley books???

Loved Point Counter Point and Crome Yellow... was interesting. Intend to read Eyeless in Gaza soon. I think he's a great author, has a very strange yet interesting world view.

turgon

Are they similar to Brave New World, in that the author appears to have a biological scientific basis for his theory?

TedB

turgon wrote: »

Are they similar to Brave New World, in that the author appears to have a biological scientific basis for his theory?

Not at all. I read the other books well before I read Brave New World and found them very different. Point Counter Point is a ramble through London high society in the 1920s - There is no real central plot stream, just a conurbation of seperate plots based on a multitude of interesting characters. Crome Yellow is the story of a young poet as he spends a couple of weeks in a 'big' house out in the English countryside with a few other eccentric aristocrats. There is one character in that who is based around his future novel, 'Brave New World', and exhibits all of the eugenics Huxley was so intrinsically opposed to.

The_Minister

Another vote for A Clockwork Orange from me.

Make sure you read the full version, and not the crappy edited one.

turgon

Edited one? I wasnt aware of one. Hope I read the right version then

A piece of trivia is that when published in the States, A Clockwork Orange was supplemented by a glossary of slang at back. I found it funny as it fits into that stereotype of Americans being "intellectually shallow,;" in that they needed guidance.

doctor evil

ilovenerds wrote: »

Also I just ordered Fahrenheit 451 and hopefully that will be interesting..:)

You won't be disappointed.

Corkfeen

The Man in the High Castle by Philip K Dick would be worth having a look at.
A Clockwork Orange was brilliant too. Remember starting it and after reading a page, "No way I can finish this", it quickly grows on you and get easier to read though.

pearcider

Philip K Dick is the master. Check out The Man in The High Castle - one of his best! Book of the New Sun by Gene Wolfe as a pick from leftfield.