Dystopian Basics
This is the opposite of a Dystopian society.
What is a Utopia?
This character believes that everything in the universe has already been predetermined.
Who is Dr. Manhattan?
A child sits for a government-mandated test and finds he's too smart to survive.
What is "Examination Day?"
Governments across the world are using AI and Facial Recognition technology for this purpose.
What is surveillance?
The name of the protagonist of George Orwell's 1984.
This is the primary emotion those in power use to maintain control over the people.
What is fear?
Who said "There is good and there is evil, and evil must be punished. Even in the face of Armageddon."
Who is Rorschach?
What is "The Lottery?"
Ready Player One features characters in a futuristic version of this place.
What is the Metaverse?
This 1975 pamphlet, intended to frighten away tourists, was originally printed as a means of protesting mayoral budget cuts.
What is "Welcome to Fear City?"
Citizens are often told that this must be sacrificed in order to maintain "safety."
What is freedom?
The events in Watchmen are set against the backdrop of this real-world conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union.
What is the Cold War?
What is "I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream?"
What is Artificial Intelligence?
The name of the fictional city where the happiness of the citizens is dependent on the suffering of one child.
What is Omelas?
The literal meaning of the word "Dystopia" is this.
What is the "bad place?"
The idea that a small minority should be sacrificed for the benefit of the majority aligns with this philosophy.
What is Utilitarianism?
Local man finds a dead body and becomes the next victim himself.
What is "The Hanging Stranger?"
This country has instituted a "social credit" system to reward and/or punish its citizens.
What is China?
This author is responsible for such Dystopian stories as: "There Will Come Soft Rains," "The Pedestrian" and "The Veldt."
Who is Ray Bradbury?
Dystopian stories are often written to encourage readers to do this.
What is question authority/conformity?
In addition to Watchmen, Alan Moore wrote this Dystopian epic about a masked vigilante overthrowing an Authoritarian controlled England.
What is V for Vendetta?
14-year-old superhuman breaks free from prison and takes a government-run TV station hostage.
Who is "Harrison Bergeron?"
Controlling the flow of this is one of the first steps that is necessary for an authoritarian or totalitarian regime to grow.
What is information?
This Dystopian movie released in 2025 features a contest where one-hundred high school students compete in a winner-take-all slow motion marathon...and the losers are shot.
What is The Long Walk?