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Bibliography by Brittany Choi

Page history last edited by Brittany Choi 9 years, 4 months ago

Annotated Bibliography Assignment

 

By Brittany Choi, Dystopian Novel Project 

 

 1. Ames, Melissa. "Engaging 'Apolitical' Adolescents: Analyzing the Popularity and Educational Potential of a Dystopian Literature Post 9/11." The High School Journal. Volume 97, Number 1. (2013): pp 3-20. Print. 

 

Ames makes an argument for the rise of dystopian literature as a popular genre post 9-11. She connects this to the belief young people are now becoming apolitical. Ames argues that the rise of dystopian literature actually nullifies this belief. It shows that young people are actually interested in politics. Young people are even thinking about and shaping their own opinion concerning politics as they read these novels. Ames argues that this popular genre could actually be used as an educational tool for young adults in order to engage them in political activity. 

 

Post-9-11 there has actually been an increase in young people's concern and involvement with politics. There has been a change in both the way people talk about and act towards political events. Young people are far more engaged with current events, even more passionately expressing their own opinions on these things through social media. 

 

Ames concludes that there is hope for this current generation to become educated, passionate, and active people in politics. 


2. Ferris, Harley. "A Study in Dystopian Fiction." Ed. Clines. (n.d.): n. pag. Jacksonville University. Web. 17 Nov. 2014.

 

In this research paper, Ferris first defines dystopian literature, giving a brief history of its origin. Ferris states that although this genre is highly entertaining, its real worth is its "ability to speak into one's relationship to God, country, humankind and one's own self." He points out the major characteristics of this genre. His also writes about the major themes of this genre. He is unable to discuss each theme in major detail, but gives a good bird's eye view point of five reoccurring themes: pluralism versus individualism, chaos versus order, precision of language, war versus peace, humanity. 

 

Ferris also discusses two types of dystopia: external and internal. An example of external dystopia is 9/11 and the aftermath of government infringements on personal privacy. Beyond the government, external dystopia includes culture, religion, advertising, and media. In certain cases, each of these are included in and paralleled in dystopian literature. 

 

Internal dystopia is the control of one's own mind. This is the idea that one's mind can be brainwashed, manipulated, and controlled. Political parties or other ruling powers can use manipulation of people's minds to control the people. The greatest goal is to make people come to a collective agreement that "things are the way they should be." Once this goal is reached, there is no telling how great one's power can be. The theme between collectivism and individualism is one of the main battles within internal dystopia. In between these two extremes is interdependence, where humans must rely on one another and no person or people is more important than another. Things like fear and manipulation of the truth are used to keep people under submission and collectivism. 

 

In the conclusion of his paper, Ferris discusses the protagonists of these works of literature. The protagonists first discover that there is more than what they know and that life must be different than it is. They become heroes because they ultimately decide to sacrifice and make hard choices for the sake of the human race. Ferris again provides parallelism of this kind of character to real life situations. People like Martin Luther King Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi sacrificed themselves for the hope of a better future for those who followed them. To conclude, Ferris points to the ultimate success of a dystopian hero as freedom. 

 

Ferris also includes an appendix of "signs and portents". He connects specific dystopian novels to current events as "possible hints of things to come." It is an interesting case study of parallelism of dystopian literature to our everyday life. 


3. Kitto, Michael. "Dystopian Fiction; A Brief History." Literary Exploration, 12 September 2012. Web. 17 Nov 2014.

 

Dystopian literature stemmed from utopian literature. Tying the genre to historical events and trends, Kitto argues that dystopian literature provides an even worse substitute of the reality of the world's problems as a means of escape. Some of the highlights of this article are the short summaries of several key novels. 

 

The timeline of novels includes those from the 1920s up until 2010. Dystopian fiction is typically associated with only a few popular novels, especially pointing to the trend that started in the 1950-60s. However, this article include novels often overlooked that came before the first spike in dystopian literature. The novels chosen are also directed towards adults and show a contrast from the typical and popular young adult dystopian fiction. 

 

Kitto concludes the article by discussing the change of dystopian literature over time. Whereas at first its focus was placed on looking at and representing the problems of the world through parallelism and satire, dystopian literature now include "lighter stories of love and friendships." It is not as dark and hopeless of a genre as it used to be. Other aspects of romance, love triangles, and friendships have begun to overplay topics of corrupt government and freedom. They are still included but less emphasized. It seems to have become a genre largely overtaken by young adult appeal, and inevitably transformed to include these other aspects. 


4. Miller, Laura. "Fresh Hell." The New Yorker. The New Yorker, 14 June 2010. Web. 17 Nov. 2014.

 

Laura Miller provides commentary on the phenomenon of dystopian literature among young adults. She points to several highly popular examples - Hunger Games specifically - and discusses how the current young generation is attracted to its appeal of adventure. She then compares and contrasts current young adult and past adult dystopian literature. Adult dystopian novels are typically less hopeful than young adult novels. They both serve to warn readers of how current conditions could lead to bad consequences. However, young adult literature focuses less on the warning to turn away from this path and more on the portrayal of what is happening right now. It’s a different representation of reality. 

 

Miller argues that Hunger Games is a portrayal of the reality of high school. The games are representative of the social hierarchy, stress, worry, and unfairness of high school. Even the contemporary young adult culture is often included in these young adult novels. They include aspects such as settings from video games – maze from maze runner – and from action movies – showdown as the climax of the story. Even paranoia of adults shows up in these novels as constant surveillance cameras. These novels address real and contemporary concerns of young people, presenting an alternative representation of reality. 


5. Timeline JS. Northwestern University, 2013. Web. 17 Nov. 2014.

 

This tool is used to create timelines that are interactive and that provide visual appeal. It provides a space for all users - from novices to experts. It allows users to include media from outside sources like YouTube, Vine, Wikipedia, SoundCloud and so much more. This allows the timelines to cover many aspects. It allows for visuals, audio, social media, and even articles. Within one clean and well-organized timeline, the creator can include a bounty of information to educate themselves and others. It can be included on any website or blog. 

 

For beginners, the simplest way to create a timeline is to use the Google Spreadsheet template provided on the site. After inputting the dates and events for the timeline, the creator follows a few easy steps of publishing and then posting the URL for his or timeline. It is a quick and easy way to include a timeline on one's website. 

 

There are some examples of timelines included on the site's home page. One example is a timeline created by Time World about Nelson Mandel's life. Photos from outside sources, such as Associated Press, are included and cited in this timeline. There are easy ways to include photos and videos in any timeline, making it more appealing and interesting to the audience. 

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