The Cambridge Companion to Utopian Literature

Using a combination of historical and thematic approaches, this volume engages with the fascinating and complex genre of utopian literature.

Gregory Claeys (Edited by)

9780521714143, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 5 August 2010

316 pages
22.8 x 14.9 x 1.6 cm, 0.5 kg

Since the publication of Thomas More's genre-defining work Utopia in 1516, the field of utopian literature has evolved into an ever-expanding domain. This Companion presents an extensive historical survey of the development of utopianism, from the publication of Utopia to today's dark and despairing tendency towards dystopian pessimism, epitomised by works such as George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four and Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale. Chapters address the difficult definition of the concept of utopia, and consider its relation to science fiction and other literary genres. The volume takes an innovative approach to the major themes predominating within the utopian and dystopian literary tradition, including feminism, romance and ecology, and explores in detail the vexed question of the purportedly 'western' nature of the concept of utopia. The reader is provided with a balanced overview of the evolution and current state of a long-standing, rich tradition of historical, political and literary scholarship.

Preface Gregory Claeys
Brief chronology of key works of utopian literature and thought
Part I. History: 1. The concept of utopia Fátima Vieira
2. Thomas More's Utopia: sources, legacy and interpretation J. C. Davis
3. Utopianism after More: the Renaissance and Enlightenment Nicole Pohl
4. Varieties of nineteenth-century utopias Kenneth M. Roemer
5. The origins of dystopia: Wells, Huxley and Orwell Gregory Claeys
Part II. Literature: 6. Utopia, dystopia and science fiction Peter Fitting
7. Utopia and Romance Patrick Parrinder
8. Feminism and utopianism Alessa Johns
9. Colonial and post-colonial utopias Lyman Tower Sargent
10. 'Non-western' utopian traditions Jacqueline Dutton
11. Ecology and utopia Brian Stableford
Further reading.

Subject Areas: History of ideas [JFCX], Literary theory [DSA], Literature & literary studies [D]