Hey, I'm writing a play about identity and radicalization, but I can't find the appropriate metaphor for it. I don't want to attack it head on and have it literally be terrorism though, I want to focus more on the themes of being persecuted for identity, resorting to a subversive for acceptance and to let out anger, etc. I'm stuck. I don't necessarily want to do a Crucible-esque historical fiction to represent it. Ideas?
I would much prefer real world, maybe with hints of surrealism. I wouldn't immediately discard fantasy or alternate universe, though. I'm open to all ideas.
You could do it as a microcosm. Take a group of people & seal them away from the world. Start to have them break into two groups. Each group believes something different about the reason for their circumstance. As the story is told, arguments ensue over the proper course of action even though neither group can definitively prove they are correct.
Great idea! Thank you! The problem is that the main character needs to be part of a much smaller group, small enough to be persecuted by the larger group.
Not a problem at all, the two groups don't need to be the same size. Add some Romeo & Juliet by having the MC fall in love with someone in the larger group causing him to doubt the correct course of action.
I also like @doggiedude 's idea. It reminds me of a psychology experiment that was once done, where people were given a test and then told which painter they preferred based on the test. Half were told they preferred Klee, and half told Mondrian (or something like that). The thing was, the test hadn't actually measured anything. The people had just been assigned to groups randomly, then told that they had something in common with other members of their group. Later they were asked about traits of people in their group vs. the other group, and there was a significant effect where they rated members of their in-group as smarter, better looking, etc. Anyway. Just shows how powerful in-group/out-group dynamics can be, even when they're completely arbitrary.
Their beliefs harkened back to a time when reason and logic were naught but tools enemies used to subvert the system, creating chaos.