Dystopian Time Line

1890-1914: Late Victorian/Early Modern Period

Industrial Revolution aftermath, scientific advancement, class division

Key anxieties: dehumanisation, social inequality, misuse of science

THE TIME MACHINE - 1895

1918-1939: Interwar Period

Aftermath of WW1, economic instability , rise of fascism and communism

Key anxieties: Mass conformity, state control, loss of individuality

Brave New World - 1932

1945-1955: Immediate Post-WWII Era

End of WWII (1945), exposure of Nazi and Soviet totalitarianism

Key anxieties: Surveillance, propaganda, censorship, abuse of power

1984-1949

Animal Farm - 1945

1950-1965: Early Cold War Period

Cold War escalation, nuclear threat, McCartyhism

Key anxieties: censorship, fear-driven conformity, intellectual suppression

Fahrenheit 451 - 1953

1970-1989: Late Cold War/Conservative Shift

Thatcherism (UK from 1979), Reagan era (US, from 1981)

Key anxieties: Patriarchy, religious extremism, erosion of rights

Key texts and dates: The Handmaid’s Tale - 1985

2000-2010: Early 21st Century

Post - 9/11 surveillance (2001), climate change awareness, global instability

Key anxieties: Environmental collapse, state monitoring,moral decay

The Road - 2006

2008-Present: Digital and Climate Age

Financial crash (2008), social media rise (2010s) AI and data surveillance

Key anxieties: Loss of privacy, identity erosion, algorithmic control

The Hunger Games - 2008

Divergent - 2011