Dystopian and Post-Apocalyptic Novels

This week’s topic is Dystopian and Post-Apocalyptic novels.  Post-Apocalyptic novels deal with the end of civilization as we know it and the various situations the survivors must cope with while Dystopian novels feature alternative forms of civilization that have extreme imperfections which are the end result of current trends.  Why are these popular among teens?  I align myself with the views of Philip Reeve, a noted author and literary critic.  His views on Dystopian novels are fascinating.   He claims, for example, that it is because when children become teens they also become increasingly aware of the deep injustices that exist in the wider world.  Injustices like child laborers working in scrapyards or forced to serves as cannon fodder in a local despot’s war.  Such scenarios, when reflected in future versions of their own society within a novel, draw their interest.  Some also see themselves in the hero or heroine who survives by relying on his or her own resourcefulness and wit (traits that resonate with increasingly independent teenagers).  As for post-apocalyptic novels I have a few thoughts there as well.  One reason they are so popular is the characters.  Many of these are by necessity independent, ruthless and cunning individuals.  They capture that pioneer spirit that I think still resides in all of us.  The need to explore the unknown free of the restrictions placed on a law-abiding citizen.  Sometimes these characters tweak our ‘freedom’ nerve as they must struggle against a totalitarian regime that has arisen from the ashes of civilization.  Another is that many YA’s, as Reeves points out, chafe under the restrictions of what they view as an ‘Adult’ society.  Those who read such novels may take perverse pleasure in ‘seeing’ this ‘Adult’ society in ruins. 

EPIC

Epic is an entertaining tale the young teenager Erik and his friends who must struggle against the corruption of Central Allocations.  Over a hundred years ago settlers came from the Earth we know and created their own society on New Earth.  They created the global online fantasy game Epic as both a means of entertainment and communication.  However, Epic slowly came under the control of a small elite group, Central Allocations, who use it as an economical and intellectual control mechanism to enforce their rule over the populace.  Erik and his friends buck the traditional conventions surrounding the game in an effort to not only free Erik’s exiled parents but create a world in which the people are free to choose their own fate.

Teens should find a lot to like here.  The main character Erik is very independent and immediately shows it by creating a game character that bucks tradition.  Most players of Epic disdain appearance and ‘fun’ options when creating their characters, choosing instead on the basics such as strength and protection that will allow them to make steady gains in the economy.  Erik creates a beautiful female pirate that is as much entertainer as fighter and begins a series of events that result in the eventual destruction of this restrictive ‘adult creation’. 

Teens will also be exposed to some grim but important social issues that plague our reality as well.  For example, the age old question of who gets what in terms of resources (medical, food, entertainment etc).  Who gets to decide?  Why?  These types of question arose in my mind at least as I read about the many actions of Central Allocations.  For example the decision to cut the number of solar panels a community received due to a lower than expected output of olive oil.  Another decision involves forcing a community to grow a different crop, destroying decades of careful cultivation, simply because the new crop would be more profitable.  Overall, this story just might force its readers to think deeply about what freedom really means and the nature of power.