Top Five Worlds I'd NEVER Want To Live In
Oh dystopians. I've read so many of them over the past few years and of course I can't think of one that had a world that I would ever want to live in. Not even remotely. The five books above have probably the worst dystopian worlds I've come across so far. It's hard to pick which world is the worst. Let's see, a world in which everyone dies young and most girls end up as prostitutes (Wither)? A world in which you are forced to have surgery to remove every last trace of the capacity to love (Delirium)? A world in which aliens have taken over and wiped out almost the entire population of Earth (The 5th Wave)? A world in which the government forces 24 children to compete to the death every year for their viewing pleasure (The Hunger Games)? But I think The Road takes the cake: only a few people remain on Earth after a catastrophic post-apocalyptic disaster and the survivors have resorted to cannibalism...
Top Five Characters I'd NEVER Want To Trade Places With
Alina Starkov - Karou/Madrigal - Katniss Everdeen - Frodo Baggins - Harry Potter
With great power comes great responsibility, yada yada yada. But seriously, what these five characters have in common is that they are in positions of great power and leadership and thus have some pretty heavy responsibilities and pressures to deal with. I would never want to be in their positions and I could never last in their positions either. In fact, I feel like part of what makes these characters so great is their capacity to deal with a really terrible situation, the weight of other people's lives on their shoulders, and an Evil Dark Overlord or two. And through everything, they endure.
I never would want to be Katniss. Reading the books solidified that for me, but it wasn't until I saw Catching Fire and that little girl told Katniss she wanted to be like her and volunteer when she grew up that I really understood how nauseating this dystopian world is. Nope. I couldn't handle it, especially if I lived in a district.
ReplyDeleteAly @ My Heart Hearts Books
My TTT
Oh, Harry. We love you but You are the Chosen one.
ReplyDeleteGreat list!
Check out our TTT of this week.
Leydy @ OUaT & Redcarpetendings
Love it, Aylee! I totally agree with you. The 5th Wave, Wither, and The Hunger Games are awful worlds to live in. I haven't read Delirium or The Road yet so idk about those. :D As for characters, being Harry would be so so awful! Fighting Voldemort.. yikes. So much pressure! Thanks for sharing, Aylee. :)
ReplyDeleteAs much as I love Harry, Alina, and Frodo I would want to trade place with them, either.I agree about what you said about thier capacity. Now me on the other hand., no way would I be able to carry all that responsibility on my shoulders.
ReplyDeleteTHG, Wither, Delirium: not very attractive places to be in, I agree.
ReplyDeleteWell.. being Alina would bring me close to Sturmhond, haha. Her role is the least tough if I compare it to HP, Frodo or Katniss.
Frodo is a good one. His journey is pretty bleak and it's pretty much suggested that his life after the ring aren't scintillatingly happy. I always imagine him as an outsider looking in, watching Sam and Rose and their family, but never really being able to share in their happiness.
ReplyDeleteThat's an awesome list. The ship on Across the Universe quickly pops into my mind.
ReplyDeleteI like what you've done there. I've been avoiding reading The Road because the world sounds so terrifying! Nice inclusion of Harry Potter. As much as I would want to live in The Wizarding World I would not want to be Harry Potter. Maybe someone unimportant like Hannah Abbott! Great list.
ReplyDeleteCassi @ My Thoughts Literally
http://mythoughtsliterally.blogspot.com/2014/01/top-ten-tuesday.html
This is a great list. I think out of all the characters I wouldn't want to be Frodo the most. I mean, he's sent on this awful journey, kidnapped, nearly devoured by a giant spider, had attempts on his life repeatedly, stabbed several times, watched those he's love be killed, fought off starvation and that's just the tip of the iceberg. Yeah would not want to be Frodo at all.
ReplyDeleteThe Road...*Shudders* I couldn't even finish the book because it was so dark and bleak. The fact that cannibalism is in the book makes me want to put the book in the freezer. Great character choices too! I also wouldn't want to be Violet in the Body Finder series either. The power to detect dead bodies. *Shudders* NO thanks.
ReplyDeleteIf I found myself in the world of The Road or The Hunger Games I would probably pee my pants and then hide behind the nearest tree until someone finds me and kills me. Actually all of these worlds terrify me. And I definitely wouldn't trade places with Harry, Frodo, or Katniss. I guess I might face my fear and step into Karou or Alina's shoes, only because their worlds are so fantastical and beautiful, even if they are scary (plus they get to kiss my book boyfriends, so it would be worth the danger). Great list! :-)
ReplyDeleteohhh The Road. I watched that movie for like 30 minutes and then had to stop, it seriously creeps me out so much. I totally agree about Alina Starkov and Katniss!!! Gosh, the might be awesome heroines but CRAP they have had sucky times to get there! And Harry... I wouldn't want to be him, but I sure would want to be Hermione ;) great list Aylee!!
ReplyDeleteI like how you mixed this week's topic up. I haven't read many dystopians so really all I can say is that I would NOT want to live in the Hunger Games world or switch places with Katniss. I also agree with not wanting to be Harry Potter or Frodo Baggins. They have some tough journey's and I would totally die early if I were them. haha
ReplyDeleteWhat do you mean you don't want to be Katniss Everdeen? I haven't read The Road, and I don't think that I ever will. I have a hard time with dystopian as it. But the 5th Wave, I need that in my life.
ReplyDeleteGreat list Aylee!
Frodo, Harry, and Katniss are on my list too. While I love Hogwarts, I wouldn't want to be in Harry's shoes!
ReplyDeleteI think it's interesting that all the worlds you picked are dystopian/post-apocalyptic, while 4 of your 5 character choices are actually from fantasies. I agree with all your choices, and I think your post kind of illustrates my thinking that fantasy worlds aren't that bad necessarily, as long as you're not "the chosen one."
ReplyDeleteI completely agree....I wouldn't want to live in ANY dystopian society, at all! But, I guess that's kind of the point, right? Their world has major flaws, and if they didn't, there really wouldn't be any plot, but yeah...it would suck to live in any of them, probably because to live their something bad has to happen to our world first. :S
ReplyDeleteAnd I wouldn't want to be a character with that much responsibility either...I'd totally buckle under the pressure. :P Although, their lives after all the bad stuff happens do seem to be pretty great. :) I'd totally be up for being the awesome sidekick to the person with all the responsibility though, they always seem to have more fun. :P
Gah, so many feels looking at your character picks ♥ Akiva...Katniss...Frodo...and then Harry *sobs uncontrollably* But yeah, I've always loved Harry completely and felt like I identified with him most of all but I never would have wanted to carry his burden! :*(
ReplyDeleteAs far as your world picks, I've only read HG but I would so NOT want to live in that world o_O Wonderful picks xx
I know, I know, I know. As much as I admire the bravery of all those characters you've mentioned, I fear being in their place. The torture and pain they go through is unbelievable. A very great and thoughtful list, Aylee!
ReplyDeleteSarika @ The Readdicts
I totes agree with you on these!!! I wouldn't trade places with any of them though it's not all bad for them :)
ReplyDeleteLove it, Aylee.