More Perfect: Examining Political Unity and Fracture Through Speculative Fiction

This creative project examines a near-future dystopian Arizona in the form of a novella. The story follows Junia, a young woman who is convinced to join the Neighborhood Watch, an organization dedicated to preserving the Union from political violence by protecting Arizona citizens from hearing opposing political points of view. These "Privacy" codes become stricter and stricter as the Watch's relationship with the State deepens. Junia's personal and ideological loyalties are tested to their limits, and her choices will help to construct either, in the words of Alexis Tocqueville, "a formidable circle around thought," or a path to connection in the aftermath of violent polarization.