Utopia
Vs.
Dystopia
6 Basic questions all societies mustanswer:
human questions
basic issues
1) Why are we here?
Goals & objectives
2) Who's running things?
Power & authority
3) Who does this belong to?
Ownership &property
4) Who's going to do that?
Work & sustenance
5) Who can I marry?
Love, & familyrelations
6) Why don't they agree withus?
Dissent & deviance
From http://www.uwec.edu/geography/ivogeler/w188/articles/utopia.htm
Defining Utopia
• An ideal place (everyone lives in peaceand harmony) that does not exist inreality. A place, state, or condition that isideally “perfect” in respect of:
•Politics
•Laws
•Customs
•Conditions
•Values and beliefs
Eu - a prefix from Greek meaning good.
Ou - a prefix from Greek meaning not.
Topia - a root from Greek meaning place.
American Values and Ideals
Why did Pilgrims come to America?
• Enlightenment Values
• Enlightened Self- Interest
• The Pursuit of Happiness
• Self-Determination
• Expansionism
Dystopia
•The antonym of utopia
•An imaginary place where peoplelead dehumanized and often fearfullives
Dystopian ConceptsA Dystopia may have:
•Totalitarian dictatorship
•What does totalitarian mean?
–It refers to a society in which nearly everyaspect of public and private behavior isregulated by the government. “Big Brother”
•Glorification and justification of violence
•Technology replaces humanity
•Negative social trends are taken tonightmarish extremes
•Characteristics of a dystopiansociety:
–A poor standard of living amongthe lower and middle classes
–A protagonist that questions thesociety
–Set in the future but resemblescontemporary society
Characteristics ofDystopian Literature
•Fictional and futuristic
•Dystopias serve as warnings tocontemporary man
•Comment on our own currentsociety
What if. . .
•No one had to go to school?
•You could have an iPod in your brain?
•Your computer could read your thoughts?
•No one had to pay taxes?
•Everyone had plastic surgery?
•Babies were scientifically created?
•Advanced science and technology couldabolish suffering and death?
This is a Dystopia in the making!
Gattaca (1997)
Did you find what youwere looking for?
•GeneticDiscrimination
•Concerns ofreproductivetechnologies
•Destiny
Dystopian Movies
I, Robot (2004)
Did you find what you were looking for?
•Man vs. Machine
•Humanoid Robotics
•Advancement of Technology
Dystopian Movies
Wall-E
Fahrenheit 451
Minority Report
Children of Men
The Matrix
The Stepford Wives
Other Dystopian films:
More Dystopian films:
The Hunger
Games
Idiocracy
V For Vendetta
I am Legend
Pleasantville
On your Venn Diagram…
•Utopia vs. Dystopia-
–How are they the same, and howare they different?