Law, literature and cinema: an essay on dystopic movies

Authors

  • Andityas Soares de Moura Costa Matos Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.4013/rechtd.2012.41.04

Abstract

Based on five paradigmatic novels – and their respective film adaptations – presenting dystopic future societies where law presents itself as a mere instrument of control and social planning, without any ethical-humanist foundation, the present paper intends to discuss the relations between power, law, ideology and control of consciences. In the first section, of historical-theoretical character, the juridical-philosophical meanings of the words “utopia” and “dystopia” in literature and philosophy are analyzed. The second section contains the synopses and data of the books and their respective dystopian movies, 1984, Brave New World, Fahrenheit 451, A clockwork orange and A scanner darkly.
These are used in the third section, that has a critical nature, in order to support and illustrate the analysis of present society and its juridical alienating project. The article concludes with a reflection on the need to humanize juridical orders. 

Key words: utopia, dystopia, literature, cinema and law, contemporaneity, critique.

Author Biography

Andityas Soares de Moura Costa Matos, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais

Philosophy of Law Msc. and Law and Justice Ph.D. at Faculdade de Direito da Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais – UFMG (Federal University of Minas Gerais State, Brazil). Philosophy of Law Professor and related disciplines at Faculdade de Direito da UFMG (Belo Horizonte, Brazil). Philosophy of Law Full Professor at Undergraduate Degree in Law at FEAD (Belo Horizonte, Brazil). Director of the Brazilian Journal of Political Studies. Author of essays on Philosophy of Law, such as Philosophy of law and justice in the work of Hans Kelsen (Filosofia do direito e justiça na obra de Hans Kelsen, Belo Horizonte, Del Rey, 2006) and The idea of justice in the imperial stoicism: universalism, freedom and equality in the roman Stoa’s speech (O estoicismo imperial como momento da ideia de justiça: universalismo, liberdade e igualdade  no discurso da Stoá em Roma, Rio de Janeiro, Lumen Juris, 2009).

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Published

2012-06-25

Issue

Vol. 4 No. 1 (2012): January/June

Section

Articles

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