Dystopian New Materialism
Since the purpose of almost all dystopian literature is to serve as a warning, the audience is given the worst scenarios of environmental devastation so that we will feel the need to change how we are treating the environment. A more subtle purpose of this type of literature however, is to bring to attention the relationships that humans have with nature and all materials that come from nature. More specifically, dystopias examine how humans can disrespect those relationships to the point of their own destruction. In popular culture, there is not a strong recognition for the source or impact of the individual materials that make up our environment. This perspective can be devastating if adopted by the entirety of humanity and that is the warning that authors are attempting to portray.
Today’s popular culture supports capitalism and with it, the regular shopping and buying of possessions just to have them. The purchase of new things is most often not out of need, but out of a fear of not having the symbols of status that they represent. In dystopian fiction, the people with many possessions that they do not need are usually the ruling class, who also do not recognize the extent of the poverty that the lower classes face. This group of people is meant to represent the ignorance and selfishness of humanity prior to the apocalyptic event, also known as humanity today. An example of this can be seen in The Hunger Games where the people living inside the Capitol are wealthy and have many possessions, however the districts who do all of the work to support the Capitol’s wealth suffer from varying degrees of poverty.
Materialism amongst the lower classes on the other hand, depicts how humans need very specific things in order to survive. Things like food, water, shelter, clothing, and medical supplies which seem readily available to a lot of people today, are extremely difficult to find when the only resources available are those in pure nature. An audience may not be able to grasp this until it is put in very bleak terms, for example in Cormac McCarthy’s novel, The Road. The protagonists get all of their belongings from scavenging abandoned houses or from areas in nature. The novel does an excellent job at depicting how they get very close to death every few days, but manage to find just enough food to keep going.
The contrast between the wealthy and poor in post-apocalyptic scenarios serves to remind the audience that they are more likely to end up in poverty after an apocalyptic event, however if they are able to recognize how important every material from nature is, humanity may be able to adopt a more respectful approach to nature. New materialism and environmentalism go hand in hand in this way, when taking into account the effects that the production, transportation, and waste of non-essential possessions on the environment currently. If a greater respect for objects became the new norm of popular culture, many aspects of global warming and disposing waste in the environment could be improved.
If anyone needs more of a reason to limit their materialism, psychology research has also shown that less possessions can make people happier in their lives in addition to helping the environment!
Works Cited
Bennett, Jane. Vibrant Matter a Political Ecology of Things. Duke University Press, 2010.
Collins, Suzanne. Hunger Games. New York: Scholastic, 2008. Print.
McCarthy, Cormac. The Road. New York: Vintage Books, 2006. Print.