In all dystopian societies, there is a struggle between those who believe in the ideology of the governing body and those who choose to exist as individuals. In order for a dystopia to function properly, there must be a considerable effort to eradicate the thoughts of the individual and turn them into a functioning part of a greater society. In the dystopias we studied, there are many examples of characters that showed clearly that they wanted to remain as individuals. In all the examples, the governing body used brutality and violence to control these outsiders. The three characters that best illustrate individualism in the dystopias are Winston from 1984, Bernard from Brave New World and Harrison Burgeron from Harrison Burgeron. In each case, these individuals are confronted by the establishment and brought to conformity through brutality and `the iron fist'.

The character of Winston Smith in George Orwell's 1984 is...