Why do people find dystopian novels so appealing?

by Jonathan Clerk

Many people like to read feel-good novels with romance and chivalrous heroes set in beautiful, far-off kingdoms or utopian worlds. Some people don’t. Some readers are drawn to books with a darker setting. Dystopian novels are incredibly popular in spite, or often because of the dark and depressing worlds they are set in. These books sell thousands of copies (with the biggest ones selling millions) but some people can’t understand why. Here are a few of the biggest reasons why people find dystopian novels so appealing.

What Are Dystopian Novels?

A dystopian novel is any book set in a dystopian world. A dystopian world can include a lot of things but the easiest way to describe it is any world where things are dire for the average person. These worlds may include mass poverty, government or corporate oppression, surveillance of the public, a police state, or mass conspiracies. These books are frequently set in the future and are often a comment on what can happen if the current problems of the day go too far.

That is the general idea of what dystopian novels are but the worlds vary dramatically from book to book. To further help explain what is included in the dystopian novel genre, some of the most iconic novels in this genre include titles such as George Orwell’s 1984, Aldous Huxley's Brave New World, Anthony Burgess's A Clockwork Orange, Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, and Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games series. For more of the best dystopian novels of all-time, check out this Cool Things Chicago list of the best dystopian novels.

What Would You Do?

Every reader is different so the reasons different people like dystopian novels vary a lot depending on who you talk to. One thing you will hear quite often though is that readers like to imagine themselves in these bleak worlds and in the character’s shoes to think about what they would do if they found themselves in a dystopian world. It is the same reason that people enjoy reading things like end of the world novels and zombie apocalypse novels. 

These readers love the aspect of these books that pits average, everyday citizens – much like the reader – in extraordinary circumstances. They ask themselves questions as they read like, could I survive this? And, how would I fight against this broken system? These readers like the novels because they can fantasize about how they would navigate these very different worlds. 

It is an Allegory

Other readers enjoy these novels because many of them are an allegory for our times. These novels are very often a direct reflection of what is going on in society when the book is written so people who agree with the premise of these novels enjoy reading them. If you believe the government is corrupt or corporations have too much power or the media is manipulating the masses, there is a dystopian novel for you that shows what could happen if these types of things are played out to the Nth degree. 

This is also what keeps many of these books so popular over the years. Books like A Brave New World and 1984 were both written over a half-century ago but remain just as popular today as they were back then. This is because their main dystopian themes, the dangers of technology and government surveillance respectively, are as relatable (if not more so) today than they were when written. 

They Bring You Down

The critics of this genre will tell you that these dystopian novels are just so dark and depressing. Many of the fans of these novels will wholeheartedly agree! The thing about any good art is that it should make you feel emotion. If you want art to uplift you and make you feel all warm and fuzzy, that’s fine. If the feelings you feel trend more toward sadness or despair that is ok too.

Some readers really enjoy the darkness of these novels. They want to be made to think about bad things or experience unhappy feelings. It is a normal human response to want these things and is the reason why sad songs or movies where the hero dies at the end, are just as popular as their upbeat counterparts. 

Dark Humor

It is not for everyone but for some people, nothing tickles the funny bone like dark humor. When people are around troubling or disturbing things all the time, many try and deal with the situation with humor. It is where the term “gallows humor” comes from. Making the best of a bad situation often comes in the form of a joke in these novels and for people who can’t help but laugh at crass, ill-timed, or taboo humor, these novels are often littered with them. 

From an author’s point of view, they feel the need to both illustrate gallows humor in intense situations and to lighten the mood for the reader occasionally with some funny parts. This is why many dystopian novel fans will tell you that many of these books are actually quite funny. If you can find humor in the wastelands these novels like some of the characters do, you are sure to become a fan too.

The Triumph of the Human Spirit

Just because these books start in a very dark place doesn’t mean that some don’t have happy endings. Sometimes, the hero wins at the end, and good triumphs over evil. The books in this genre share a common bond of gloomy worlds but that doesn’t mean when you turn the last page there won’t be a ray of hope.

Just like life, sometimes the highest highs come from the lowest lows. Dystopian worlds are often painted as the lowest of the low, especially for the characters most affected by the tumult, but that can be a perfect backdrop to show the triumph of the human spirit. There can be a single person fighting the good fight and through dedication to the cause, a belief in themselves, pureness of intention, and often the help of a few friends along the way, they will eventuality win the day because even in dystopian universes, the good can still prevail. 

Conclusion

Dystopian novels are not for everyone but they may be more for you than you know. If you can relate to any of these reasons above or just want to try a new genre that includes some amazing books, check out dystopian novels. It may be a much more satisfying experience than you think.

Jonathan Clerk is an independent Chicago-based journalist with 20 years of experience covering lifestyle, fashion and local events. 

Gloria Chao On Finding Inspiration & What to Write Next

Inspiration is a funny thing. It can come to us like a lightning bolt, through the lyrics of a song, or in the fog of a dream. Ask any writer where their stories come from and you’ll get a myriad of answers, and in that vein I created the WHAT (What the Hell Are you Thinking?) interview. Always including in the WHAT is one random question to really dig down into the interviewees mind, and probably supply some illumination into my own as well.

Today’s guest for the WHAT is Gloria Chao the critically acclaimed author of American Panda, Our Wayward Fate, and Rent a Boyfriend (Nov 10, 2020). Her wayward journey to fiction included studying business at MIT, then becoming a dentist. Gloria was once a black belt in kung-fu and an avid dancer, but nowadays you can find her teaming up with her husband on the curling ice. 

Ideas for our books can come from just about anywhere, and sometimes even we can’t pinpoint exactly how or why. Did you have a specific origin point for your book?

For Rent a Boyfriend (out November 10, 2020), there was a clear origin point. When I learned that women in some Asian countries can feel so much familial pressure to bring home the ideal spouse that they hire fake boyfriends, my gut response was, I get it. As a Taiwanese American with traditional parents, I understood that pressure. I found myself wondering how a rental boyfriend would work and what it was like for both sides, and I decided to explore it. I brought the practice to America and created a company, Rent for Your ’Rents, that specializes in training fake significant others. 

Once the original concept existed, how did you build a plot around it?

Because I wanted to explore what life was like for a Rent for Your ’Rents operative as well as for a client, this book had to be dual point of view. I also wanted the protagonist/client, Chloe, to fall for the operative, but the real person behind the role, not the persona her parents get to know. And real Drew is not someone Chloe’s parents would approve of.

From there, I worked backward to figure out who Chloe and Drew are. Chloe needed a reason for hiring Drew. Enter Hongbo, the rich, misogynist flagship bachelor of Chloe’s tightknit Asian community. I drew upon my own experiences to create the Asian community that put miànzi/reputation above all else, even their daughter’s happiness. And for Drew, I wanted him and Chloe to understand each other but to be at different points on the journey: Drew has dropped out of college to pursue art and is now estranged from his family because of that choice, and Chloe is still trying to find a way to appease her parents.

Have you ever had the plot firmly in place, only to find it changing as the story moved from your mind to paper?

For all three of my books, I draft with only the big points planned out, and those did not change. However, the path to those points has taken some very surprising (and very fun!) turns. My favorite part of drafting is when you come up with an idea that ties everything together and you suddenly can’t type fast enough.

For Rent a Boyfriend, there’s a big showdown scene that happens in the middle of the book that came to me as I was drafting, and I was worried it was too out there (I remember texting a writer friend and asking her if it was too much), but it became the scene that most of my early readers brought up to me as a memorable, powerful moment. 

Do story ideas come to you often, or is fresh material hard to come by?

When I first started writing, story ideas felt elusive and hard to come by. Now, I have more ideas and it’s getting harder to choose what to focus on next. My debut novel, American Panda, was very much inspired by my experiences and almost everything in that book is from my life or from the life of someone I know. Because of that, coming up with new ideas felt more difficult.

With Our Wayward Fate and Rent a Boyfriend, I finally found the balance of drawing from my own experiences while also having more freedom of story. Once that happened, the ideas started coming easier. I have a notebook I write all my story ideas in that was gifted to me by my husband on our third wedding anniversary (leather anniversary!) soon after I first switched careers from dentist to writer. He wrote inside the front cover that he believed my books would sell and that I would need the notebook for all the books that were to come. I remember not believing him at the time, and the notebook is a wonderful reminder of how far I’ve come from there.

How do you choose which story to write next, if you’ve got more than one percolating?

I talk to my agent about strategizing with my overall career, but at the end of the day, I usually go with the idea I’m most passionate about. I never write for the market, but I do think about which ideas are better follow-ups to my previous books. In general, most of my work fits under the umbrella of Asian American protagonists struggling with their identity, trying to find love, and working through complicated family dynamics. And with humor! 

2020-08-04 21.01.57.jpg

I have 5 cats and one Dalmatian puppy (seriously, check my Instagram feed) and I usually have at least one or two snuggling with me when I write. Do you have a writing buddy, or do you find it distracting? 

I don’t have a writing buddy, but I have some knick-knacks I like to keep on my desk! This little plastic panda was a gift from my brother, and he sits on top of my computer screen. The enamel pins of a panda drinking boba and a soup dumpling are from my PitchWars mentee, Susan Lee. The miniature curling rock is because my husband and I are avid curlers! The Author button is from my first NCTE conference.