V is for Vonnegut and V for Vendetta: Visions of Dystopia

A concept that has proved very popularity within science fiction is that of the dystopian world. They're anti-utopias, dark visions of society. And the more I read about them, the more I think about their opposite. Utopia. How would they function? What would they resemble? How people would act? But I’ve recently come to a very important and revolutionary conclusion. Utopias do not – and more importantly cannot – exist.

A utopia is defined as a visionary system or state of political and/or social perfection. On the surface, it sounds ideal; who wouldn’t want to live in a perfect world? Except humanity isn’t perfect. We are an imperfect race. It isn’t within our capacity to live together in harmony. The differences that define us, that make us who were are, are at the root of our every conflict with one another. Religion, politics, race, ideology – we’re all different in some way. And these differences make us unique individuals. But our differences also tear us apart. It not pretty, but it’s human nature.

In order to create the perfect conditions necessary for a utopian world, one without conflict or strife, we’d need to eradicate difference. This is the point where science fiction comes in, giving us an idea of what that would look like – only when difference is ultimately stamped out, the world becomes decidedly dystopian.

To start off with, in utopian societies everyone would ideally be equal to one another. But how do we accomplish equality when some people will always be smarter, or more athletic, or artistic, or beautiful? In Kurt Vonnegut’s famous short story “Harrison Bergeron”, citizens above average in any way are given handicaps – doled out and enforced by the Handicapper General – as an equalizer. People with exceptional intelligence wear radios that broadcast sharp noises to break up their thoughts, citizens with outstanding good looks wear masks, those that are strong must carry heavily weighted bags, etc. The result is a society of “equal” citizens, or so the government says. But what’s equal about maiming and punishing people for their innate extraordinary qualities? And really, at the heart of it, is there any way to ensure equality without causing harm? Equal opportunity, yes, but equality of intelligence or strength? Absolutely not.

Utopias are just illusions. They’re dreams that can never be realized. Dystopias, though. They’re very possible. Even probable in a way.

Alan Moore and David Lloyd’s comic book series V for Vendetta shows a more straightforward dystopian vision, reaching its objective in a fashion congruent with Vonnegut’s vision. Following a nuclear war that ends in social and political catastrophe, a fascist state has taken over, promising to restore stability and peace. But it’s not really a shelter they offer . . . it’s a cage. Because in order to maintain their control, to maintain tranquility throughout Britain, the hegemonic government “purifies” the country of anyone different. Anyone whose differences might cause them to rebel against the party – including black people, Jews, lesbians, and potential political activists. It’s forced samenesss to ensure passivity and acceptance.

Again society is faced with the total annihilation of difference in order to maintain a peaceful society. Orwell’s 1984, Huxley’s Brave New World, Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, Lowry’s The Giver . . . these stories all tell us one thing. Utopias do not exist. The only recognizable vision is a dystopian one. Beware sameness disguised as equality. Beware the utopia.

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This post is part of the Blogging A through Z Challenge 2012. My theme is (in case you didn’t already guess) science fiction. Stay tuned for the rest of the alphabet, and if you’d like to check in on the rest of the participants, simply click here.

Dystopian Utopia

The other day I was going through some old notes on Plato’s Republic and began thinking about utopias. There are many different kinds of theoretical utopias, from those centered on harmony with nature to spiritual utopias where all religions are united together in a perfect shared faith. Still, the general discourse revolves around a place or society free of hate, violence, bigotry, and jealousy with perfection in law, politics, social environment, etc.

However, there’s a general belief that all utopian societies are unobtainable. The encyclopedia describes it as a place with “seemingly perfect conditions” that tends to be “impossibly idealistic”. This idealism stems from the naïve assumption that human beings will ever agree upon a perfect “social environment” or political system, and an even more naïve belief that mankind, with its overwhelmingly diverse spectrum of beliefs, could ever be free of hate or disgust. We strive for individualism – a healthy part of self-identity formation – but it is not without its drawbacks. Individuality forms when we define ourselves against something or someone else. Cheerleaders wear pink – I am not a cheerleader, therefore I wear black, and so on. However, where difference occurs so too does derision and bigotry. One simply does not exist without the other. 

So really, the only way to create a utopia is to do away with individualism. Over the past centuries we have seen several attempts at this. The chief architects of these attempted societies can also be called by another name – dictator. Known for the use of extreme methods (like genocide) to eradicate difference, what these leaders strive for is nothing short of a nightmare. But that aside, what is a world without individualism? That sounds more akin to a dystopia than a utopia. A dystopia, also known as the counter or anti-utopia, is a society which has evolved into a negative version of a utopia, or a utopian society with at least one fatal flaw. Typical dystopian societies are characterized by a repressive and controlling state where people are alienated and individuality smothered. While it is generally understood that utopias are satirical and used to critique a real life place – for example, many believe that Thomas More’s Utopia was meant as a commentary on England – dystopias, on the other hand, act more as cautionary tales when we, the imperfect human race, strive for an idyllic utopian society.

Perhaps it’s the cynic in me, but I find that the line between utopia and dystopia awfully blurred. Whether it’s my disbelief that mankind can ever live peacefully under one shared belief, or my fear that its success would be at the expense of what makes us interesting and unique, I remain wary of utopian advocates.