Dystopian vs. Apocalyptic Fiction: What’s the difference?
Much has been written that crosses the boundaries between dystopian and post-apocalyptic fiction. To me, the biggest distinction is the conflict. Remember back to your high school English literature days… Remember when the teacher would ask you to identify whether a story was “man vs. man” or “man vs. nature”?
Dystopian fiction tends to focus on character vs. society, whereas post-apoc often leans toward character vs. nature or character vs. character.
Dystopia
Common Themes in Dystopian Stories
- what it means to be human
- corruption
- abuse of power
- authority
- injustice
- class system
- freedom and the price of freedom
- oppression
