Essential Questions:
Is there such thing as a perfect world?
In a perfect world, is fair equal?
Why are people often resistant to change?
How important is individuality? Is the disappearance of individuality a concern?
When is it best to conform to the wishes of others?
What factors, both positive and negative, come along with conformity?
Do people need choices?
Will technology cause us to redefine what it is to be human?
Why might books be considered dangerous?
Why might television be considered dangerous?
Who controls you?
Is fear the mother of conformity? Is laziness? Is a lack of education?
How dangerous is genetic modification?
How can one person’s utopia be another person’s dystopia?
Companion Texts and Videos:
“The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson
“Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut
Clips from the movie Fahrenheit 451
Clips from I, Robot
Clips from The Hunger Games
The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins
I Robot by Isaac Asimov
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
Clips from the movie Gattica
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
1984 by George Orwell
The Running Man by Stephen King
Feed by M.T. Anderson
Uglies by Scott Westerfield
Brief rundown on Totalitarian governments during WWII
http://fresno.k12.ca.us/divdept/sscience/history/totalitarianism.htm
The Weirdest Urban Ecosystems - inspiration for dystopian creations
http://io9.com/the-weirdest-urban-ecosystems-on-earth-627640274
Clips from Blade Runner
V for Vendetta by Alan Moore
Musings on Future Dystopian possibilities
http://www.thefuturewatch.com/Dystopias.html
Lesson Ideas/Activities:
Future Dystopian Philosophical Chairs
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Our disregard for environmental issues will lead to serious future problems regarding the
inhabitability of our planet.
Our growing tendency to connect with people through the internet will lead to future
problems with face to face communication.
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Technology is outpacing humanity’s ability to responsibly understand / apply it.
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Television is already controlling people.
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Future generations will not read books.
Genetic modification will become common in unborn fetuses. (ex. Controlling for genetic
disease, determining sex, determining eye color, etc.)
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Fear of nuclear war will again rise to the forefront of our consciousness.
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We will be travelling in flying cars.
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The human race will eventually leave the planet earth.
Future Dystopian Projects
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Students will have read their choice of six future dystopian novels:
1984 – George Orwell – Lexile 1090
Brave New World – Aldous Huxley – Lexile 870
Fahrenheit 451 – Ray Bradbury – Lexile 890
Uglies – Scott Westerfeld – Lexile 770
Feed – M.T. Anderson – Lexile 770
The Running Man – Stephen King - Lexile 700
Post-Reading Week One:
Students will first complete a personal analysis of their novel.
This analysis will be centered on three essential questions:
What are the differences between the dystopian society in your novel and today’s society?
What parts of today’s society do these differences build on / react to / serve as comment
about?
We spent the first part of the quarter examining what non-biological factors make us
human. Are these factors still in place despite the dystopian society of your novel? How and
why do they remain, or how and why have they changed?
Students will then partner with their classmates who read the same novel. Each group will
discuss the novel and their answers to the above questions. They will then create a Google
Doc together. This will present their musings in multiple formats – poetry, visuals, pieces of
their analysis, etc.
Post-Reading Week Two:
Students will jigsaw into multi-novel groups. They will share their Google Docs with their jigsaw
mates. These new groups will then create their own future dystopian societies, using elements
from each of the six books, as well as their own imaginings. This new society will also be
documented on a Google Doc.
Following the creation of the society, each student in the group will compose a short story – (13 typed pages) – using the created society as their backdrop. These stories will be linked to the
Google Doc.
All Docs will be linked to my Moodle page.
Future Dystopian Society Creation
In the group’s Google Doc, please include:
*The names of all group members
* At least one dystopian element from each book in your group
* At least four original dystopian elements - from the awesome imaginations of your group
-- Please, write the book title initials next to those dystopian elements collected from the
literature. Write an "O" next to the dystopian elements that are original to your group. ---
Your society must have:
* A well-described setting
* At least three round characters, created by the group
Shoebox Utopias
Directions:
In the space about the size of a shoebox, create your own perfect world. Use the following
questions as a guide. Provide detailed answers to help others understand your unique world.
Vision Statement 15 points
In a statement, explain what you feel is most important in your society. What must exist there
above all else? What will be its center, the thing upon which the entire society is founded?
Religion? Politics? Art? Music? Morals? Science? Technology?
Philosophy 5 points
What is your utopian philosophy?
Materials 15 points
Materials are appropriate and relevant to the society. What materials did you include? What do
they symbolize? How do these reflect the center (see vision statement) your society is founded
upon?
Creativity and Uniqueness 10 points
What makes this utopia unique to you? How do you feel it reflects your individuality and
creativity?
Questions to accompany Totalitarianism article
http://fresno.k12.ca.us/divdept/sscience/history/totalitarianism.htm
How does the dystopian society in your novel compare to the totalitarian regimes described in
the article?
Why do totalitarian governments fall?
What aspects of American government / culture lend themselves to the creation of a “hive
mind”?
Vocabulary families associated with future dystopias:
Totalitarianism
Freedom
Escape
Technology
Control / Power
Rebellion
Architecture
Chemicals
Individuality
Humanity / Humanness
Mutation
Genetics
Science