Dystopias: Beneficial or Unbeneficial?

[Masyn]

I’ve been thinking about the whole idea of Dystopias lately. Personally, i love reading and watching dystopian books and movies. But I was wondering if you guys think dystopian stories are actually bad and unbeneficial to consume, from a Christian viewpoint.
One could argue that they are definitely not good:

-They (most always) have a hero who saves the day, giving us the idea that man doesn’t need a Saviour, we can save ourselves.

– Dystopian novels usually portray rebellion as something good. And in the story it normally, in a sense, IS good (I.e., Katniss rebelling against the Capitol was right, as the Capitol was corrupt.), but the reader might miss the point of the rebellion, and start thinking ANY form of rebellion is good.

Then again, one could argue that dystopian stories actually back up the biblical viewpoint:

-In a dystopian society, Man has really messed things up. Things are all wrong. Manmade solutions to problems always collapse and fail. Because we DO need a Saviour.

-The hero in the story rebels against the norm. He/she sees things are wrong, refuses to continue in the evil ways of the society, and fights for something better. While we know that we as humans cant save ourselves, the hero of the story can inspire us not to be afraid to stand out and stand up for what we believe and for what is right, even when things get difficult.

So, yea. This is just something that’s been on my mind for a while. I’d appreciate it if you could share your thoughts on it. 🙂

[Hope Ann]

I don’t think there is anything inherently better or worse about dystopian fiction when compared to any other fiction. In books, the hero almost always saves the day in some why or another because well, that’s what the hero does, I suppose. Though no matter what the genre, if the book is told from a Christian worldview, then the character will probably win through and with God’s help. And if it isn’t a Christian book, then they’ll win through their own strength.

Like any other type of fiction, dystopian fiction can be good or bad. I think the question is ‘what is the story portraying?’ and ‘Is it Christian and something worth reading?’ Now there are some genres which probably lend themselves more to a Christian worldview than others, but there can be good inspiring dystopian fiction and awful fantasy (in theory, anyway). It’s about the story and the content and the message more than the genre (with the possible exception of horror…I’m not sure about that one way or the other… 😉 )

INTJ - Inhumane. No-feelings. Terrible. Judgment and doom on everyone.

[Kate Flournoy]

@hope said it, Masyn. 🙂

Believe it or not, I don’t think I’ve ever read a dystopian novel, but I definitely know what the genre is.

I will just say a couple of things though. I would say a dystopian story where the hero loses would have more potential for harm than otherwise. Assuming the hero stood for freedom and virtue etc.— everything heroes usually stand for— if he lost, the message would be that evil wins over good.
When the hero wins, regardless of whether he did so with God’s help, the message is sent that light triumphs over darkness; virtue over evil. Yes, it is better if he does so with God’s help, but it’s not wicked if God isn’t mentioned.

Just a few thoughts to chew on.

INFP. kateeverythingwriting.wordpress.com

[Daeus]

I’ve got very little exposure to dystopia, but I think it can be a good genre. I even plan to write a dystopia, well a time travel dystopia. As with pretty much any genre, it doesn’t really matter what other people write, since you can write something different while still keeping to the fundamental rules of the genre.

I think there is one major pitfall with dystopia which can be the easiest to fall into. That is the pitfall presenting apparent (not absolute) consequences as more important than truth and justice. It is where you present a moral crisis where your hero can either lie, cross dress, let an innocent person suffer (to name a few common examples) or let the villain win an apparent victory. Writers often use this dilemma to show (sometimes unwittingly) that ultimately the good of the many is more important than God’s law. This however is only faithlessness.

But yes, I think dystopia can be good.

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[Masyn]

I dont think I was very clear in my question now that I look at it, but you guys helped anyways. 🙂 Thanks for the input!

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