Blog 4: Dystopian 10th grade

            One of my all-time favorite genres of reading are dystopian fiction novels. I do not know what the lure is of them. Since I read Fahrenheit 451 and 1984 in the seventh grade I have been obsessed. So I can see how Goodread’s “Dystopian Timeline to the Hunger Games” makes sense for the rise in dystopian readers. It starts with students having to read these types of books in school and with all the excitement of the Hunger Games it is no surprise that the trend is increasing. Harrison Bergeron is like the short story version of the Hunger Games or any other dystopian novel really, and there is no happy ending per se. But with dystopian novels, there tends not to be a fairy-tale happy ending.

            So what do dystopian novels have to do with zombies? Well in dystopian novels the government is controlling its people and in some zombie movies it is usually the government’s fault for a zombie apocalypse by some outbreak of secret formula they are trying to produce like in the Resident Evil movies for example. I enjoyed how in the “Why do we love zombies?” youtube video that the guy says we like them because we see ourselves as the protagonist overcoming the odds. Also looking from that perspective, I could see overcoming the odds as overcoming a zombie apocalypse or overcoming a totalitarian government. I seriously love dystopian books and movies but I don’t know what I compare myself to them as described in the video. I am not totally anti-government but I’m not for everything the government does either. I think I personally like the idea of overcoming something way bigger than oneself like in the Hunger Games, Divergent, or even in the book like The Giver. Another thing I’ve noticed in almost ALL zombie and/or dystopian movies and books is that the protagonist has to face someone they know well or love who has either been brainwashed and turned against them or turned into a zombie. I noticed this in The Night Of The Living Dead and the guy having to shoot two people who I assumed friends by his reaction. In a zombie situation the protagonist either has to kill their friend or be killed by them. You see this in the Hunger Games with Katniss and Gale, and in Divergent with Tris and Four: both lovers in the books.

            Also in like Night of the Living Dead, we sometimes do not see a resolution for the protagonist and even through everything becoming resolved, they still die. This happens also in the Hunger Games and Divergent in the ends of the series.

            Finally, with the “Night Vale” podcast we see many of those things all wrapped in one: government secrets, “angels”, zombies. After reading about the podcasts I found how they incorporate all of the conspiracy theories in one. I also found it was one of the top listened to and purchased podcasts on Itunes. This just goes to show how much these topics interest people nowadays: what with the current hype of the Hunger Games, (newest movie coming out later this year is very anticipated…especially by me), and possibly a new craze with the Divergent series first movie coming to theaters this spring. It is such an exciting and fascinating genre.