Bugonia

In episode 44 of Dystopian Fiction Has Been Moved to Current Affairs, Clare and Masha are delving into the recent Yorgos Lanthimos film, Bugonia.

In this more than usually complex and surprising dystopian narrative, we consider the depiction of vulnerable young white male characters both as victims and villains, and the role played by conspiracy theory and internet rabbit-holes. In particular, we challenge our views of the academy and mainstream research when faced with a story in which the conspiracy theorist is proved right.

We look at corporate responsibility and the power of pharmaceutical companies, including medical testing, opioid addiction, and the role of consent in trials and treatments. We compare the ethics of actions by the rich and powerful with those of the disenfranchised individual, and ask who is the real villain of this story.

Clare gives a short speech on bees, and we discuss bugonia and CCD as allegories for humanity and/or the planet. We also look at the bar set for humanity's redemption and whether the species' annihilation can be justified, along with whether a higher intelligence and/or colonial power has the right to decide Earth's future.

We make a number of specific references to other material in this episode, as follows.

• Louis Theroux's Inside the Manosphere documentary
• Drama series Adolescence
• Barbara Kingsolver's novel Demon Copperhead*
• Donna Zuckerberg's book Not All Dead White Men*

*affiliate link

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