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What does dystopia mean?Search the Internet or a dictionary for a definition.Dystopia is the opposite of utopia. Find the definition of utopia.

1 Think about different kinds of dystopias.

a Look at other titles under the keyword DYSTOPIA on this website Have you read any of them? What can you tell about the books from their titles and covers?

b Are there any titles which have been made into film? Have you read any of them?

c List all the important things in your life and environment. How would these things change in a dystopia? Make a list of opposites.

d Think about the following ideas: freedom, love, education, family, friendship and nature. What would happen to these things in a dystopian novel?

2 Describe the setting of the novel you have read.

Use the Setting Expert Role Card worksheet from our Book Club Kit to talk about the setting. Then describe what your hometown would look like in a dystopian novel.

Setting Expert Role Card

Book Club Starter Kit

3 Think about the characters in dystopian novels.

Use the Character Analyzer Role Card worksheet from our Book Club Starter Kit to talk about the different characters in the novel you have read.

Character Analyzer Role Card

a Focus on the qualities of the main heroes/heroines. What makes them special? How are they different from other people?

b Think about the evil characters in the novel you have read. Why have they become bad?

c Do the characters go through any character development in the story?

DYSTOPIA

4 Talk about the plot of the novel you have read.

Use the Plot Expert Role Card worksheet from our Book Club Starter Kit to talk about the plot. Focus on the main conflicts in the story.

Plot Expert Role Card

6 Write a paragraph. Describe a day in your life in a dystopian world.

a How would your life change?

b What would school be like?

c What special qualities would you have?

d How would you try to make the world a better place?

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