The Fiction of Dread: Dystopia, Monstrosity, and Apocalypse

The emergence of dystopia as a dominant genre in literature and social thought after the World Wars, with examples such as Brave New World and Nineteen-Eighty-Four, confirms the 21st century as a dystopian one. Robert T. Tally Jr.'s book explores the landscape of angst created by the monstrous accumulation of dystopian material and offers an alternative vision for critical theory and practice.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 184 pages
Publication date: 11 January 2024
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

A comprehensive exploration of dystopia and angst in popular culture, reflecting our current climate of dread.

In the early 20th century, a pervasive utopianism permeated popular and intellectual cultures across Europe and America. However, the aftermath of the World Wars witnessed the emergence of dystopia as a dominant genre in literature and social thought. The persistent presence and eventual dominance of dystopian themes in popular culture—including dismal authoritarian future states, sinister global conspiracies, post-apocalyptic landscapes, a proliferation of horrific monsters, and end-of-the-world fantasies—have solidified the notion that the 21st century is also a dystopian era.

Drawing from a diverse range of literature, including H.G. Wells' The Time Machine, Neil Gaiman's American Gods, and Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games, as well as television and film series such as The Walking Dead, Black Mirror, and The Last of Us, Robert T. Tally Jr. delves into the landscape of angst created by the monstrous accumulation of dystopian material.

The Fiction of Dread offers a fresh perspective on contemporary culture, presenting an alternative vision for critical theory and practice in a time when it has become easier to imagine the end of the world than the end of capitalism.

Weight: 242g
Dimension: 140 x 216 x 18 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781501375842