Dystopian fiction is a genre that takes place in a state, country, or world that is dysfunctional. It is usually marked by an oppressive political or religious system—or both. While most of these tales are predictive in nature and serve as cautionary tales about what kind of world may result when mankind’s freedoms are curtailed, many take place in the present day.

Frequently, dystopian fiction overlaps with science fiction inasmuch as the plot of these novels unfolds in a world in which societal structures have been twisted or overturned altogether because of advanced mechanization or technology. With the advent of the digital age, for example, dystopian novels about Artificial Intelligence taking over the planet and relegating humans to the status of slaves have been extremely popular.

A few examples of dystopian fiction are as follows:

• The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
• The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
• Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep (basis for the film Blade Runner) by Philip K. Dick
• 1984 by George Orwell
• Lord of the Flies by William Golding
• A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
• Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
• Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
• The Trial by Franz Kafka
• Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut

Dystopian fiction is sought after by publishers large and small. It has always resonated with readers, and the demand for novels written in the genre continues to increase with the publication of books such as Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, which has been made into an Emmy-winning television show on Hulu.

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