Even if you have never heard of the word "dystopia," you probably know what it means. It is the post-apocalyptic, devastating world that millennials (among others) seem to be so interested in. In technical terms, it means asocietycharacterizedbyhumanmisery,assqualor,oppression,diseaseandovercrowding. These types of stories often include zombies, diseases, corrupt government and is almost always about "survival of the fittest". We have all seen different types of dystopian stories in today's media as well as literature. For example, we have "The Walking Dead," "The Hunger Games," "The Giver," "World War Z" and "Divergent" just to name a few. We even see dystopias in video games like "BioShock" and "Fallout," for instance. While these examples are fairly recent, post-apocalyptic stories actually date back all the way to the 19th century.

The question is... If the concept is not new, why are dystopian stories so prevalent today? How has this generation become so enthralled with the possibility of a devastating future?

Why have our thoughts drifted from the hopeful and exciting future that looked like this...

To a world that looks like this...

Has our generation given up on the possibility of a happy and beautiful future?

Do we believe that the government is morally corrupt and will eventually lead us into devastation? Do we subconsciously believe that humankind is evil and will destroy the world and the remaining people who inhabit it? Is it the war of religion or science becoming too powerful?

Or is it something else entirely?

Are these stories so vastly different from our own lives, that this can't possibly happen to us? Or does it give us hope to pursue a life worth living for a world worth saving?