A utopia of glass: Campanella

David Reisman

Chapter 8 in Economy and Utopia, 2026, pp 113-119 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: Campanella as a Dominican imagined his utopia to be a city of faith and of God. Induction was essential to infer God's will from God's works. Copernicus and Galileo had done right as Christians to seek out the facts. Aristotle had not been a good role model since his science was deductive and conjectural. As More had done, he reconstructs an unknown island-state where the citizens are healthy, follow a common moral code and put (Catholic) community before (Protestant) individualism. They have renounced market economics because money is the cause and effect of greed, social division and invidious consumption. All property is owned by the state on behalf of the people. All people work. They have an entitlement to a moderate standard of living in exchange. Governance is provided by a supreme ruler and a sequence of ministries. Christian statesmen will seek to emancipate themselves from Machiavellian strategies. Doing what is right, they will educate children communally and encourage selective breeding since eugenics upgrades the people.

Keywords: Science; Markets; Religion; Community; Politics; Property (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035368600
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