The end of utopia

David Reisman

Chapter 12 in Economy and Utopia, 2026, pp 193-197 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: The concept of a true and final utopia filled a need and a niche in the period when feudalism was going out and modernism was coming in. It anchored the rootless and the dissatisfied in a sea of possibilities. As a genre, the quest for utopia flourished in the four centuries between More and Morris. After that it declined in favour of the dystopias of Orwell and Huxley until in the end little-thinking and problem-solving technique took its place in the popular imagination. There were too many utopias. They did not cater to the plurality of opinion. They were seen as authoritarian, humourless and static. Yet some people miss the certainty, the purposefulness and the idealism which they impart to political and economic debate. It is conceivable that a future generation will return to the search for unified visions, total systems and high ideals to fill a gap.

Keywords: Ideology; Diversity; Social Integration; Authoritarianism; History (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035368600
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