I suspect that the popularity of dystopian fiction is not primarily because of ecological fears or the like, but rather because they provide a setting that cont

I suspect that the popularity of dystopian fiction is not primarily because of ecological fears or the like, but rather because they provide a setting that contains many elements that we miss in our society. So it's more about unfulfilled current needs and wish fulfillment. Even in horrible zombie apocalypse stories. For one, in many of these stories people are forced 'back into nature and self-reliance', which we like because many of us, especially in urban environments, try to get out of the artificiality we feel is all around us (this might also explain the 'hipster' phenomenon of carefully-crafted illusions of dive bars, and the love for self-made products and art). Second, we have a fear of increasingly global, powerful and murky institutions. We 'confront' these fears through dystopian fiction. Third, and perhaps most importantly, I have noticed a rather shockingly high level of loneliness among my urban-setting peers (mid-twenties to late thirties). Even with a decent amount of individual friends, it seems that people miss 'community', a desire that I suppose used to be satisfied through churches, smaller towns, and more traditional 'extended family' structures. Our friendships and lives in general are much more fragmented then they used to be. What fascinates me about most popular dystopian fiction is that there is a very strong emphasis on small groups of people banding together, forming strong bonds in the light of adversity, learning to trust each other, and basically spending all their time together, in a tribal fashion. I think more than the dystopia, it is this effect of a dystopian setting that we love. Perhaps in the past the 'need' for satisfying that desire of being part of a small, tight group just wasn't as strong. Or perhaps they were more easily expressed in more conventional ways (consider a progression from The Cosby Show, to Friends, to New Girl; a move away from families to friends-from-back-home to somewhat random people in a loft because they can't afford their own place). I'm well aware of the fact that these are just some thoughts, and I haven't done much research yet on the subject. I could be quite wrong. But it's my two cents and something I've been thinking about a lot lately.