Fantasy Vs Dystopia: A Comparison of "Girl, Serpent, Thorn" and "Shatter Me"

Fantasy and dystopian fiction, while both speculative genres, approach storytelling through distinctly different lenses. Fantasy draws upon mythology, magic, and ancient traditions to explore timeless human experiences, often through the framework of destiny and cosmic forces. Dystopian fiction, conversely, extrapolates from current societal trends to examine how systems of power and control affect individual humanity. When these genres tackle similar themes, they illuminate different aspects of the human experience, as perfectly demonstrated in Melissa Bashardoust's "Girl, Serpent, Thorn" and Tahereh Mafi's "Shatter Me."

Both novels center around young women cursed with lethal touch, yet their approaches to this shared premise diverge significantly based on their genre frameworks. Bashardoust's Persian mythology-inspired fantasy follows Soraya, a princess whose touch brings death, forcing her into isolation within her family's palace while her twin brother rules as shah. The fantasy setting allows Bashardoust to explore questions of curse and destiny, weaving together elements of cultural mythology with personal identity.

Mafi's dystopian narrative presents Juliette Ferrars, whose lethal touch has led to her imprisonment in an asylum by the authoritarian Reestablishment. After 264 days in isolation, she's recruited as a potential weapon, forcing her to confront whether her power could serve as either a tool of oppression or resistance. Mafi uses innovative textual techniques, including struck-through text, to illustrate Juliette's fractured psyche from prolonged isolation.

The treatment of lethal touch differs significantly between the works. In "Girl, Serpent, Thorn," Soraya's condition is viewed through a mythological lens – a curse that carries implications of divine punishment and familial legacy. Her isolation, while physically restrictive, maintains her royal status, creating a unique tension between privilege and imprisonment. The fantasy setting allows for exploration of whether her power represents true cursedness or misunderstood strength.

"Shatter Me" positions Juliette's touch as a potential military asset, transforming a personal affliction into a societal weapon. Her isolation is more severe and institutional, with her power treated as a mental illness or aberration rather than a mystical curse. The dystopian framework emphasizes themes of dehumanization and the weaponization of individual differences by authoritarian systems.

The choice of lethal touch as a central metaphor proves particularly powerful because it denies characters access to humanity's most basic form of connection. Both protagonists are deprived of fundamental human experiences: comfort, intimacy, casual social interaction, and basic safety. This deprivation creates immediate stakes in every interaction, as even accidental contact could prove fatal. The authors use this tension to explore deeper themes of connection versus isolation, self-acceptance versus self-rejection, and the courage required to seek relationship despite deadly risks.

Isolation emerges as a central theme in both works, though handled differently through their genre lenses. In the fantasy context, Soraya's isolation connects to larger questions of destiny and self-determination, while Juliette's imprisonment represents systematic oppression and control. Both authors suggest that the true weakness lies not in the lethal touch itself, but in the isolation it engenders – whether self-imposed or institutionally enforced.

The genre differences fundamentally shape how these themes resolve. Fantasy provides a framework for breaking curses and defying fate, allowing "Girl, Serpent, Thorn" to explore questions of destiny versus choice. The dystopian setting of "Shatter Me" transforms personal power into potential rebellion, suggesting that individual difference can challenge systemic oppression. Despite these different approaches, both works powerfully argue that true strength lies not in accepting isolation for safety's sake, but in risking connection despite the dangers it presents.

Through their genre-specific approaches to shared themes, both novels ultimately deliver profound messages about the importance of human connection and the courage required to overcome isolation, whether imposed by curse or control.