Someone Might Be Watching

PART A: Which of the following identifies the author's main claim in the text?

• Dystopian fiction exaggerates existing problems in our reality to show readers what could happen if society continues down a certain path.

• Both utopian and dystopian fiction are used to warn readers about the risks of attempting to alter a society in any way.

• While dystopian fiction is entertaining to read, it doesn't reflect realistic concerns with our current society, or a possible future society.

• Both Utopian and dystopian fiction are used to distort reality to the point in which it is no longer recognizable or realistic.

PART B: Which detail from the text best supports the answer to Part A?

• "Walking through carnivals, we love to laugh at the versions of ourselves that appear in the funhouse mirror." (Paragraph 1)

• "The perfection that More, and other philosophers who wrote about utopias, imagined was never intended to be real." (Paragraph 3)

• "Dystopian authors argued that the pursuit of perfection will inevitably lead not to 'no place' but to a 'bad place', because of flaws within the system." (Paragraph 6)

• "Women are forced to wear outfits that correspond to their class, and no one is given any choice. In some dystopias, the lack of choice is enforced by the government." (Paragraph 11)

How does the author's discussion of George Orwell's 1984 contribute to the text (Paragraph 8)?

• It shows how our society can avoid becoming the world depicted in 1984.

• It proves how unrealistically dystopian fiction portrays social and political issues.

• It stresses how inevitable it is for our society to become the society depicted in 1984.

• It gives examples of how dystopian fiction is based on what the author observed in reality.

How does the description of the 1900s in paragraphs 5-6 help us understand the qualities of dystopian literature?

How does the author use the analogy of "funhouse mirrors" to help readers understand dystopian fiction?

How does dystopian fiction present the power of fear? How could dystopian or utopian fiction be used to manipulate readers?

What are the costs and benefits of technology? Why do you think dystopian fiction focuses on the costs of technology? Do the costs of technology outweigh the benefits?

Can we control our fate? Do you think authors of dystopian fiction believe that their writing has the ability to change the course of human progress?