Atwood’s Speculative Dystopian Imagination: Inequality, Hierarchy, and Warped Ethics as Harbingers of Apocalypse in Oryx and Crake
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Abstract
This article examines Margaret Atwood’s imaginings of a pre-apocalyptic future in Oryx and Crake in order to discuss the root causes of the world’s social and ecological ruination. Applying Murray Bookchin’s theory of social ecology in its analysis, it argues that the major factors constituting a dystopian society and serving as harbingers of the apocalypse are diversiform inequality and deep-seated hierarchy. It specifically demonstrates how environmental destruction is profoundly connected with social problems arising from these two factors. Furthermore, the paper contends that such a society significantly influences the characters’ worldview resulting in warped ethics. Finally, this dystopian landscape and its distorted ethics give birth to two kinds of people: one is Crake, a megalomaniac eugenicist who in his self-righteous attempt to create a better world almost obliterates the whole human race, and the other kind are those who acquiescently allow such incident to happen.
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