The Last Utopians: Four Late Nineteenth-Century Visionaries and Their Legacy

In this timely analysis of late-19th-century utopian writings, Robertson (Worshipping Walt), an English professor at the College of New Jersey, presents a gallery of ideas with relevance for the present. The four writers under consideration each envisioned a more equitable society: Edward Bellamy (whose 1888 novel Looking Backwards led the trend) emphasized strict regimentation and economic equality; artist, designer, and writer William Morris was informed by his love of the medieval period, with its tradition of artisan craftsmanship and preindustrial sensibility; poet Edward Carpenter believed the “noblest instincts” of same-sex love could dissolve social hierarchies; and author Charlotte Perkins Gilman argued that female economic independence was key to social progress. Inevitably, all four had their flaws and blinders, and, in some cases, outright prejudices. Robertson smartly puts the philosophies in dialogue with each other and with larger social movements of the time, such as socialism. Ending with a survey of several modern-day self-contained communities that echo some of the earlier visionaries’ ideas, Robertson leaves readers with nourishing food for thought from another era. (June)