Thoughtful Thursdays: A First

I would like to introduce something that I will be calling "thoughtful Thursdays." Alliteration aside, I really enjoy the idea of taking quotes from another author or something and applying it to this idea of dystopia.  Along the way, I also get to advertise some of my other favorite books/authors that wouldn't make it here otherwise. Killing two birds with one stone, and spreading my love of books? I'm up for that, and  hope you are too!

So please bear with me as I start in on this process. Hopefully, it'll work out like I plan. And if not... more fun for me to figure out to do with the blog.

Quote for the day:

"Evil doesn't die. It never dies. It just take on a new face. A new name. Just because we've been touched by it once, it doesn't mean we're immune to ever being hurt again." --The Surgeon by Tess Gerritsen 

Ok, I'll admit that I probably shouldn't be advertising these particular books on a blog meant for dystopias and teens. However, I'm a fan, and these books score pretty high on my "Everyone must read" list... if you can get past her nitty gritty storytelling. To put in another way: I love these books and my mom wonders how I put up with them. Then again, my mom barely made it through the Divergent books while Veronica Roth picked off most of her characters.

But back from side wondering. How does this quote go to dystopian futures? As always, I'll try to keep spoilers to a minimum, but no promises.

 

"War, Terrible War" Video from The Hunger Games movie

I'm thinking about how the new societies came to form. The Hunger Games had some sort of civil war, while Divergent was some sort of WWIII deal. (For that information, read Allegiant, book 3). It doesn't start out seeming that way, but book three throws a number of twists into the plot about what you did or didn't think.

I think it (the quote) exemplifies what a Dystopia is, I guess. Everyone rises to the challenge of rebellion because whatever the system was wasn't working. But really one form of evil was traded for another. So you end up with things like the districts or factions, where one is always better than another and everyone still looks down upon each other.

The Laws in Animal Farm, Courtesy of  Deviant Art

Dare I mention Animal Farm? I know it's part social commentary on socialism or whatever and not exactly a normal dystopia, but it fits. Think about it for a minute. The pigs take over, but by the end of the book they're worse than the humans ever were. Plus, they've actually become humans in a sick and twisted sort of way. And like most dystopias, beautiful social commentary.

Did my point come across? I Hope so. As always, feel free to disagree & let me know what you think!

Crossing the Tracks: Picture of the Day

Picture Courtesy of Sandman 

You have got to be wondering what a picture of a deserted train track is doing on my blog about dystopias. Well, I'm thinking the same thing, so I'll see if I can ramble to a point of coherence.

First off all, I see the surroundings. It's deserted. I'm a huge fan of The Hunger Games novels, if my last post didn't let you know that. If you've read the novels, this might make sense. If not, I'll try to not give away too many spoilers.

Imagine Katniss. She is pretty is pretty much, by definition a loner, and most definitely not a people person. She spends her days hunting in the woods. Her only friend is Gale. The scene where Haymitch tries to turn her into something, anything, that the people in the capitol can relate to does not go over well. It takes Cinna for her to even pull it off. Even in books two and three as she becomes the symbol of the rebellion, she still has to overcome her natural persona to become who they need her to be.

And if I'm going to be talking about The Hunger Games, might as well bring up Divergent. As much as I hate comparing the two, they are kind of synonymous with each other. 

Tris is also a loner, although not by choice. She's forced to be one because of where she comes from, which is the faction of Abnegation. Even after she chooses Dauntless, and makes friends, she is still isolated by those who think she isn't worthy. Even after she proves herself time and time again, she remains isolated. Although, that may have more to do with the fact that she's divergent and can't let anyone find out.

Then there's the tracks themselves. I see them as a symbol of crossing a line and never going back. Throughout The Hunger Games, and especially into Catching Fire and Mockingjay, Katniss makes countless choices. She becomes a tribute for her sister, and probably the biggest of them all at the end of book one where she and Peeta would rather swallow the berries and both be killed, instead of killing each other.

Then there's Tris. She takes the saying "Faction before blood" seriously enough to leave her family knowing she'd never see them again. After that, there was no going back and she knew that and she still chose to go. She knew what she wanted.

The tracks  can also be a not so subtle pointer to the fact that trains are very important to both The Hunger Games and Divergent. In The Hunger Games, the train is used as a death knoll for those heading to the arena. While Effie tries to make it sound like a good thing, an honor even, it's not. For Divergent, the trains are used as the Dauntless way of transportation. It's what attracts Tris to dauntless in the first place. It's what gives Tris her first glimpse of how daunting the dauntless will be. Then throughout the series the trains are used as a sign of something important happening.

There you have it, according to me. Is it a bit of a stretch? You bet. Feel free to disagree and let me know what you think.

Oh! and thanks for sticking through this looonnng somewhat rambling post.