The best dystopian novels that are more relevant than ever

Aldous Huxley mistrusted human nature, fearing that our drive to find the path of least resistance would ultimately make gods out of our pleasures and desires. Tiktok and Netflix are numbing the masses with trash TV while YouTube shorts and the latest Marvel blockbuster distract us from meaningful connections with those around us. Huxley feared no one would want to read books and that the truth would be drowned in a sea of irrelevance, which is exactly how his novel is written. In Brave New World people were controlled by pleasure which ultimately led to their demise. 

This is probably the most referenced dystopian novel, which is why I didn’t put it first. That being said, it is the most referenced because it is the most obvious as to the fear of the power of government. George Orwell had a genuine mistrust of government and other authoritative organizations simply through his observation of the Spanish Civil War. Orwell feared those who would ban books, concealing the truth from us.

In 1984 people were controlled by government’s pain and fear, aka Big Brother, which is something society runs into on a daily basis in the information age. Not only do people self-censor, but Big Tech is silencing and cancelling opposition and politicians and CEOs are constant threats of becoming tyrants as they grasp for their slice of control.

Although technically a “graphic novel”, Moore’s novel has nonetheless been a relevant warning on both complacency and ignorance. Powerful entities not only use the “shove it under the rug” to their advantage, but they both incentivize and negatively reinforce behavior to promote this kind of mindset.

This is a story about re-empowering the individual, not only for their self-worth and pride, but to have the courage to stand against tyranny in order to choose true freedom over the chains of oppression. People should never be afraid of their governments, but rather the governments should remain fearful of their people.

With the topic of Roe V. Wade in the United States, the chasm between pro-life and pro-choice has grown even more, and in a novel that is solely about a great compromise between the two ideologies, Shusterman’s dystopian saga could not be more relevant. Ultimately, Shusterman seems to have great worry about societies lack of value for human life, taking the choice away from those whose lives are being debated over. 

Unwind is a classic study on the intertwining of personal choice and the value of human life. Who owns our bodies? Do we? Does someone else? Does the government? Does anyone but the individual have the right to determine the value of their life? Because of society’s proximity to abortion, this storyline seems extreme and disturbing. However, The Unwind Dystology is no more extreme and disturbing than other classic dystopian novels such as 1984 and A Brave New World.

While Atwood ultimately feared that theology and religion would be humanity’s downfall, I don’t think she predicted the dogmatic worship of government. From the women’s bodies being used as political instruments and language as a tool of power, to the causes of complacency and complicity, the deeply religious thematic elements are clear. 

Margaret Atwood was right in fearing that religions would ruin us. However, rather than orthodox religions being the cause of totalitarianism, it is the Church of the Woke that is becoming the very evil they deplore. This unorthodox church places a giant stigma on Motherhood, putting those women who do want to rear children into a place of ostracization, and pays tithes through state-sanctioned behavior, utilizing slogans like “my body, my choice” as prayerful phrases of the faithful.