Novels with the common theme of dystopian societies were a huge hit during the childhood of Gen Z in the 2010s, and while these novels dealt with serious issues; the influences they had on current day teens’ political views and government views are obvious.
Now, dystopian comes from the word dystopia which according to Oxford Languages means “an imagined state or society in which there is great suffering or injustice…”. Societies like this can be seen in well-known novels such as The Hunger Games, The Giver, and Divergent. These novels all have had very strong-minded young characters in them, which possibly have had an impact on teens’ political views, while also shaping them into a politically driven generation that they have become known for.
It is a very common theme within these novels to include characters that are often silenced for being different from the others. Such as in Divergent when the main character finds out that she is “divergent” and is told to never tell anyone about it. Seeing things like this happen to these characters taught them that no one should be silenced when it comes to their identity and that everyone should be accepted for who they are. Especially since most of these characters end up being the solution to a huge problem that usually is connected to the government of the dystopia they live in.
As a result of these characters standing up against their government, teens were taught that their voices are effective. That they can make a difference in what happens in the world, especially since they are the new generation. They learned that things didn’t have to be a certain way, and that old traditions or ways of thinking can be changed. This applies to several beliefs that could have been taught to them by their guardians, such as sexuality, gender expression, gender roles, and even racism.
Another result of these characters going against their governments is that it taught teens that they have the right to overthrow and protest if they are being mistreated or if they are experiencing injustice. This can be seen with current day events, including the Black Lives Matter movement, women’s marches, and many LGBT movements. Teens are as vocal as ever in protests in current days because of their drive to have the equality that everyone deserves.
But all of these teen’s opinions could also be on the skeptical or fearful side. Seeing governments in these novels have complete control over these teen’s lives could make current day teens fear a government having too much power, to the point where you can’t overthrow it. When interviewed Liberty High School student Angelina Fojas, grade 10 stated that when reading the Hunger Games she realized that “These novels showed that when the government is allowed too much power they can do unthinkable things and no one can change that…if the people don’t have enough power the government will always win because they won’t be physically strong enough to fight back”.
Fojas has realized that a government that is too strong is dangerous, even for its own citizens. That puts their trust and safety in the government they live under.
Most teens that read these books can say that the characters have set examples of using the right amount of force to get justice for not only themselves, but for the rest of society as well. It can be seen in many political movements right now, how teens have learned from these books Such as how vocal they are on social media about current injustice in our system, and how they have become much more involved in protesting for what they believe is right. Proving how these novels taught them not only to be open-minded but how to use their voices to help fight for the justice that is deserved.
Cover photo by Gabriella Munoz.
About the writer:
Gabriella Munoz is a staff writer for The Lion's Roar. You can learn more about her by clicking here.
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