Why is it that there are so many failed utopias in juvenile literature? I am perhaps being too generous in my description, they are really stories of controlled societies. Rarely do the authors put forth the communities as utopias. A Brave New World, Lois Lowry's The Giver and Gathering Blue are some examples that came to mind. I have it on hand but haven't read it yet, but City of Ember is a similar story.
Those more familiar with the academics of literature I am sure have a name to refer to this genre of story. I just wonder why so many of us are exposed to this material in school. Is it the juvenile resistance to rules and order? A veiled attempt to prepare us for the world of adults?
Reading some of these books as an adult I enjoy them as well written stories. I can see some of the failings in the principles that these communities were based on. Perhaps this is the purpose for sharing them to young adults studying literature. In the Messenger by Lois Lowry we find a village where freedom, kindness, and acceptance are the guiding principles. I think that Messenger does an excellent job of introducing the difficulties of such an ideal society.
Perhaps the enjoyment of these and similar stories lies in their focus on a small number elements of our complicated reality. We can consider and digest the ideas and how we feel about them more easily than dealing with the world around us. We can then take these thoughts and lessons to help guide us in our daily actions.
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