1984 And Ray Bradbury's The Year Of The Flood

Literature has a unique ability to maintain its power and resonance through political upheaval and societal change; it is often a reflection of the politics and perspectives of its time. Terry Eagleton suggests in his "Theory of Literature" that literature is considered literature because value is attached to it by society. In studying English Literature at degree level, I hope to improve my understanding of what we value in literature and why, and to understand the different ways that people throughout history have perceived the world. I also studied English Language at A Level, and found that examining a more technical aspect of English complimented my study of English Literature and provided an additional perspective from which to approach the subject.

A particular interest of mine is dystopian literature. At AS level, I completed a creative writing coursework piece inspired by Margaret Atwood's "The Year of the Flood". The task required an in-depth analysis and justification of the techniques used within the creative piece. During this task, I familiarised myself with a range of dystopian literature including Orwell's "1984" and Ray Bradbury's "Fahrenheit 451"; this enabled me to approach the creative piece with a more nuanced understanding of the conventions of dystopian literature. "The Year of the Flood" expresses a future in which neoliberal capitalism and environmental decay have led to a man-made apocalypse: the juxtaposition between a post-apocalyptic scenario and its causes illustrates the existing problems with our society. In this way, the dystopian genre is valuable in its capacity for provoking thought and the potential for societal