Utopia: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia

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[[Image:Hieronymus Bosch - The Garden of Earthly Delights - The Earthly Paradise (Garden of Eden).jpg|thumbnail|right|200px|Left panel (''The Earthly Paradise'', Garden of Eden), from [[Hieronymus Bosch]]'s ''[[The Garden of Earthly Delights]]''.]]

'''Utopia''' is a term for an ideal society. It has been used to describe both [[intentional community|intentional communities]] that attempted to create an ideal society, and fictional societies portrayed in [[utopian and dystopian fiction|literature]]. The term is sometimes used pejoratively, in reference to an unrealistic ideal that is impossible to achieve, and has spawned other concepts, most prominently [[dystopia]]. The term was taken a fictional [[island]] in the [[Atlantic Ocean]], written about by [[Sir Thomas More]] as the fictional character Raphael Hythloday (translated from the Greek as "knowing in trifles") as possessing a perfect [[social system|socio]]-[[politics|politico]]-[[legal system]].

The word comes from [[Greek language|Greek]]: οὐ, "not", and τόπος, "place", indicating that More was utilizing the concept as [[allegory]] and did not consider such an ideal place to be realistically possible. It is worth noting that the [[homophone]] ''Eutopia'', derived from the Greek εὖ, "good" or "well", and τόπος, "place", signifies a [[double meaning]] that was probably intended. Most modern usage of the term "Utopia" incorrectly assumes this latter meaning.

~~== FILTHY SKANK~~

==Related terms==

*'''[[Dystopia]]''' is a ''negative'' utopia: a totalitarian and repressive world. Examples: [[Jack London]]'s ''[[The Iron Heel]]'', [[George Orwell]]'s ''[[Nineteen Eighty-Four|1984]]''; [[Aldous Huxley]]'s ''[[Brave New World]]''; [[Anthony Burgess]]'s ''[[A Clockwork Orange]]''; [[Alan Moore]]'s ''[[V for Vendetta]]''; [[Margaret Atwood]]'s ''[[The Handmaid's Tale]]''; [[Yevgeny Zamyatin|Evgenii Zamiatin]]'s ''[[We (novel)|We]]''; [[Ayn Rand]]'s ''[[Anthem (novella)|Anthem]]''; [[Lois Lowry]]'s ''[[The Giver]]''; [[Samuel Butler (novelist)|Samuel Butler]]'s ''[[Erewhon]]''; [[Chuck Palahniuk]]'s ''[[Rant (novel)|Rant]]''; and [[Cormac McCarthy]]'s ''[[The Road]]''.

*'''Eutopia''' is a ''positive'' utopia, different in that it means "perfect" but not "fictional".

*'''Outopia''' derived from the Greek 'ou' for "no" and '-topos' for "place," a fictional, this means unrealistic or directly translated "Nothing, Nowhere" This is the other half from Eutopia, and the two together combine to Utopia.

*'''Heterotopia''', the "other place", with its real and imagined possibilities (a mix of "utopian" [[escapism]] and turning virtual possibilities into reality) — example: [[cyberspace]]. [[Samuel R. Delany]]'s novel ''[[Trouble on Triton]]'' is subtitled ''An Ambiguous Heterotopia'' to highlight that it is not strictly utopian (though not dystopian). The novel offers several conflicting perspectives on the concept of utopia.

Some questions have arisen about the fact that writers and people in history have used ''utopia'' to define a perfect place, as utopia is a perfect but unreal place. A proper definition of a perfect and real place is ''eutopia''.

More's ''utopia'' is largely based on [[Plato]]'s ''[[Republic (Plato)|Republic]]''. It is a perfect version of ''Republic'' wherein the beauties of society reign (eg: [[equalism]] and a general [[pacifism|pacifist]] attitude), although its citizens are all ready to fight if need be. The evils of society, eg: poverty and misery, are all removed. It has few laws, no [[lawyer]]s and rarely sends its citizens to war, but hires [[mercenary|mercenaries]] from among its war-prone neighbors (these mercenaries were deliberately sent into dangerous situations in the hope that the more warlike populations of all surrounding countries will be weeded out, leaving peaceful peoples). The society encourages tolerance of all religions. Some readers have chosen to accept this imaginary society as the realistic blueprint for a working nation, while others have postulated More intended nothing of the sort. Some maintain the position that More's ''Utopia'' functions only on the level of a satire, a work intended to reveal more about the [[England]] of his time than about an idealistic society. This interpretation is bolstered by the title of the book and nation, and its apparent equivocation between the Greek for "no place" and "good place": "Utopia" is a compound of the syllable ou-, meaning "no", and topos, meaning place. But the [[homonym]]ous prefix eu-, meaning "good," also resonates in the word, with the implication that the perfectly "good place" is really "no place."'''

===Economic utopia===

These utopias are based on economics. Most [[intentional community|intentional communities]] attempting to create an economic utopia were formed in response to the harsh economic conditions of the 19th century.

Particularly in the early nineteenth century, several utopian ideas arose, often in response to the social disruption created by the development of [[commercialism]] and [[capitalism]]. These are often grouped in a greater "[[utopian socialism|utopian socialist]]" movement, due to their shared characteristics: an [[egalitarian]] distribution of goods, frequently with the total abolition of [[money]], and citizens only doing [[labour (economics)|work]] which they enjoy and which is for the [[common good]], leaving them with ample time for the cultivation of the arts and sciences. One classic example of such a utopia was [[Edward Bellamy]]'s ''[[Looking Backward]]''. Another socialist utopia is [[William Morris]]' ''[[News from Nowhere]]'', written partially in response to the top-down ([[bureaucratic]]) nature of Bellamy's utopia, which Morris criticized. However, as the socialist movement developed it moved away from utopianism; [[Marx]] in particular became a harsh critic of earlier socialism he described as utopian. (For more information see the [[History of Socialism]] article.) Also consider [[Eric Frank Russell]]'s book ''[[The Great Explosion]]'' (1963) whose last section details an economic and social utopia. This forms the first mention of the idea of [[Local Exchange Trading Systems]] (LETS).

Utopias have also been imagined by the opposite side of the political spectrum. For example, [[Robert A. Heinlein]]'s ''[[The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress]]'' portrays an [[individualism|individualistic]] and [[Libertarianism|libertarian]] utopia. [[Capitalism|Capitalist]] utopias of this sort are generally based on [[free market]] economies, in which the presupposition is that private enterprise and personal initiative without an institution of coercion, [[government]], provides the greatest opportunity for achievement and progress of both the individual and society as a whole.

There is another view that capitalist utopias do not address the issue of [[market failure]], any more than socialist utopias address the issue of planning failure. Thus a blend of [[socialism]] and [[capitalism]] is seen by few as the type of economy in a utopia. It talks about the idea of small community owned enterprises working under the capitalist model of economy.

===Political and historical utopia===

Political utopias are ones in which the government establishes a society that is striving toward perfection.

A global utopia of [[world peace]] is often seen as one of the possible inevitable [[end of history|endings of history]].

[[Sparta]] was a [[militarism|militaristic]] utopia founded by [[Lycurgus]] (though some, especially [[Athens|Athenians]], may have considered it a [[dystopia]]). It was a Greek [[Power in international relations|power]] until its defeat by the [[Thebes (Greece)|Thebans]] at the [[battle of Leuctra]].

===Religious utopia===

These utopias are based on [[religion|religious]] ideals, and are to date those most commonly found in human society. Their members are usually required to follow and believe in the particular religious tradition that established the utopia. Some permit non-believers or non-adherents to take up residence within them; others (such as the Community at [[Qumran]]) do not.

The [[Islam]]ic, [[Judaism|Jewish]], and [[Christianity|Christian]] ideas of the [[Garden of Eden]] and [[Heaven]] may be interpreted as forms of [[utopianism]], especially in their [[folk religion|folk-religious]] forms. Such religious "utopias" are often described as "gardens of delight", implying an existence free from worry in a state of bliss or enlightenment. They postulate existences free from sin, pain, poverty and death, and often assume communion with beings such as [[angel]]s or the [[houri]]. In a similar sense the [[Hinduism|Hindu]] concept of [[Moksha]] and the [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] concept of [[Nirvana]] may be thought of as a kind of utopia. In Hinduism or Buddhism, however, utopia is not a place but a state of mind. A belief that if we are able to practice meditation without continuous stream of thoughts, we are able to reach enlightenment. This enlightenment promises exit from the cycle of life and death, relating back to the concept of utopia.

However, the usual idea of Utopia, which is normally created by human effort, is more clearly evident in the use of these ideas as the bases ''for'' religious utopias, as members attempt to establish/reestablish on Earth a society which reflects the virtues and values they believe have been lost or which await them in the [[Afterlife]].

In the [[United States]] and [[Europe]] during the [[Second Great Awakening]] of the nineteenth century and thereafter, many radical religious groups formed utopian societies. They sought to form communities where all aspects of people's lives could be governed by their faith. Among the best-known of these utopian societies was the [[Shakers|Shaker]] movement, which originated in England in the 18th century but moved to America shortly after its founding. Other good examples are Fountain Grove, Riker's Holy City and 15 other Californian utopian colonies between 1855 and 1955 (Hine), as well as {{PDFlink|[http://www.sosiomedia.fi/utopia/na_settlements.pdf Sointula]|198 [[Kibibyte|KiB]]}} in B.C., Canada and 15 other socialist and religious communities round the world, including Finnish "kolkhozes".

{{see also|End of the world (religion)|Eschatology|Millennialism}}

===Scientific and technological utopia===

{{see also|hedonistic imperative|transhumanism|technological singularity|abolitionist society|techno-utopia|Technocracy movement}}

[[Image:Early flight 02561u (2).jpg|thumb|Utopian flying machines of the previous century, France, 1890-1900 (chromolithograph [[trading card]]).]]

These are set in the future, when it is believed that advanced [[science]] and [[technology]] will allow utopian [[living standards]]; for example, the absence of [[death]] and [[suffering]]; changes in [[human nature]] and the [[human condition]]. These utopian societies tend to change what "human" is all about. Technology has affected the way humans have lived to such an extent that normal functions, like sleep, eating or even reproduction, has been replaced by an artificial means. Other kinds of this utopia envisioned, include a society where humans have struck a balance with technology and it is merely used to enhance the human living condition (e.g. [[Star Trek]]). In place of the static perfection of a utopia, [[libertarian transhumanist]]s envision an "[[extropianism|extropia]]", an open, evolving society allowing individuals and voluntary groupings to form the institutions and social forms they prefer.

[[Garrett Jones]] published "[[Ourtopia]]" in 2004, arguing that, instead of a 'no place' we need to use all the resources at our command to make 'our place' proof against [[climate change]] and obsolete [[tribalism]]s. [[Buckminster Fuller]] presented a theoretical basis for technological utopianism and set out to develop a variety of technologies ranging from maps to designs for cars and houses which might lead to the development of such a utopia.

One notable example of a technological and [[libertarian socialist]] utopia is Scottish author [[Iain Banks|Iain M. Bank's]] ''[[The Culture|Culture]]''.

A variation on this theme was found earlier in the theories of [[eugenics]]. Believing that many traits were hereditary in nature, the eugenists believed that not only healthier, more intelligent race could be bred, but many other traits could be selected for, including "talent", or against, including drunkness and criminality. This called for "positive eugenics" encouraging those with good genes to have children, and "negative eugenics" discouraging those with bad genes, or preventing them altogether by confinement or forcible sterilization.

Opposing this [[optimism]] is the prediction that advanced science and technology will, through deliberate misuse or accident, cause environmental damage or even humanity's [[extinction]]. Critics advocate [[precautionary principle|precautions]] against the premature embrace of new technologies.

==Utopianism==

Utopianism refers to various social and political movements.

In many cultures, societies, religions, and [[cosmogony|cosmogonies]], there is some myth or memory of a distant past when humankind lived in a primitive and simple state, but at the same time one of perfect happiness and fulfillment. In those days, the various [[mythology|myth]]s tell us, there was an instinctive harmony between man and nature. Men's needs were few and their desires limited. Both were easily satisfied by the abundance provided by nature. Accordingly, there were no motives whatsoever for war or oppression. Nor was there any need for hard and painful work. Humans were simple and [[piety|pious]], and felt themselves close to the gods. The Casey effect was one of the worlds greatest Utopian leader in the world.

These mythical or religious archetypes are inscribed in all the cultures and resurge with special vitality when people are in difficult and critical times. However, the projection of the myth does not take place towards the remote past, but either towards the future or towards distant and fictional places, imagining that at some time of the future, at some point of the space or beyond the death must exist the possibility of living happily.

These myths of the earliest stage of humankind have been referred to by various names:

[[Image:Goldenes-Zeitalter-1530-2.jpg|thumbnail|right|200px|''The Golden Age'' by Lucas Cranach the Elder.]]

'''Golden Age'''

The [[Ancient Greek|Greek]] poet [[Hesiod]], around the [[8th Century BC|8th century BC]], in his compilation of the mythological tradition (the poem ''[[Works and Days]]''), explained that, prior to [[Ages of Man|the present era]], there were other four progressively more perfect ones, the oldest of which was the [[Golden age]].

[[Plutarch]], the Greek historian and biographer of the [[1st Century|1st century]], dealt with the blissful and mythic past of the humanity.

'''Arcadia'''

[[Arcadia (utopia)|Arcadia]], e.g. in [[Sir Philip Sidney]]'s prose romance ''[[Countess of Pembroke's Arcadia|The Old Arcadia]]'' (1580). Originally a region in the [[Peloponnesus]], Arcadia became a [[synonym]] for any rural area that serves as a [[pastoral]] setting, as a ''locus amoenus'' ("delightful place"):

'''The Biblical Garden of Eden'''

The [[Hebrew Bible|Biblical]] [[Garden of Eden]] as depicted in [[Genesis]] 2 ([[King James Version of the Bible|Authorized Version of 1611]]):

<blockquote>"And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. [...]

And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. [...]

And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; [...] And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; and the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man."</blockquote>

'''The Land of Cokaygne'''

The Land of [[Cockaigne|Cokaygne]] [also spelled ''Cockaygne'' or ''Cockaigne''] (in the German tradition referred to as ''"Schlaraffenland"[http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schlaraffenland]'') has been aptly called the "poor man's heaven", being a popular fantasy of pure [[hedonism]] and thus a foil for the innocent and instinctively [[virtue|virtuous]] life that is depicted in all the other accounts mentioned above. Cockaygne is a land of extravagance and excess rather than simplicity and piety. There is freedom from work, and every material thing is free and available. Cooked larks fly straight into one's mouth; the rivers run with wine; sexual [[promiscuity]] is the norm; and there is a [[Fountain of Youth|fountain of youth]] which keeps everyone young and active.

There is a medieval poem (c. 1315) written in rhyming [[couplet]]s which is entitled "The Land of Cokaygne":

<blockquote>"Far in the sea, to the west of Spain,

Is a country called Cokaygne.

There's no land not anywhere,

In goods or riches to compare.

Though Paradise be merry and bright

Cokaygne is of far fairer sight...."</blockquote>

===Finding utopia===

All these myths also express some hope that the [[idyll]]ic state of affairs they describe is not irretrievably and irrevocably lost to mankind, that it can be regained in some way or other.

One way would be to look for the '''earthly paradise''' -- for a place like [[Shangri-La]], hidden in the [[Tibet]]an mountains and described by [[James Hilton]] in his Utopian novel ''[[Lost Horizon (novel)|Lost Horizon]]'' (1933). Such paradise on earth must be somewhere if only man were able to find it. [[Christopher Columbus]] followed directly in this tradition in his belief that he had found the Garden of Eden when, towards the end of the 15th century, he first encountered the [[New World]] and its peoples.

Another way of regaining the lost paradise (or ''[[Paradise Lost]]'', as 17th century English poet [[John Milton]] calls it) would be to wait for the future, for the return of the Golden Age. According to [[Christianity|Christian theology]], the Fall from Paradise, caused by Man alone when he disobeyed God ("but of the [[tree of knowledge|tree of the knowledge]] of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it"), has resulted in the wickedness of character that all human beings have been born with since ([[original sin]]).

In a scientific approach to finding utopia, the [[Global Scenario Group]], an international group of scientists founded by [[Paul Raskin]], used [[scenario analysis]] and [[backcasting]] to map out a path to an environmentally sustainable and socially equitable future. Its findings suggest that a global citizens' movement is necessary to steer political, economic, and corporate entities toward this new [[sustainability]] paradigm.

==Examples of utopia==

''See also [[utopian and dystopian fiction]]''

* [[Observe & Control]]'s Debut Album "Utopia" is a musical project that serves as a homage for the rise and fall of Utopian Projects.

*''[[New Australia]]''

*''[[Plato's Republic]]'' (400 BC) was, at least on one level, a description of a political utopia ruled by an elite of [[philosopher king]]s, conceived by [[Plato]]. (Compare to his [[Laws (dialogue)|Laws]], discussing laws for a real city.)

*''[[The City of God]]'' (written 413–426) by [[Augustine of Hippo]], describes an ideal city, the "eternal" Jerusalem, the archetype of all Christian utopias.

*''[[Utopia (book)|Utopia]]'' (1516) by [[Thomas More]] [http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/2130 a Gutenberg text of the book]

*''[[Christianopolis|Reipublicae Christianopolitanae descriptio (Beschreibung des Staates Christenstadt)]]'' (1619) by [[Johann Valentin Andrea|Johann Valentin Andreæ]], describes a Christian utopia inhabited by a community of scholar-artisans and run as a democracy.

*''[[The Anatomy of Melancholy]]'' (1621) by [[Robert Burton (scholar)|Robert Burton]], a utopian society is described in the preface.

*''[[The City of the Sun]]'' (1623) by [[Tommaso Campanella]] depicts a theocratic and communist society.

*''[[The New Atlantis]]'' (1627) by [[Francis Bacon (philosopher)|Francis Bacon]].

*''[[Zwaanendael Colony]]'' (1631) by [[Pieter Corneliszoon Plockhoy]] in [[Delaware]].

*''[[News from Nowhere]]'' by [[William Morris]] (1892), ... Pardon me Who strive to build a shadowy isle of bliss Midmost the beating of the steely sea. Shows "Nowhere", a place without politics, a future society based on common ownership and democratic control of the means of production.

*''Gloriana, or the Revolution of 1900'' (1890) by [[Lady Florence Dixie]]. The female protagonist poses as a man, Hector l'Estrange, is elected to the [[British House of Commons|House of Commons]], and [[suffragette|wins women the vote]]. The book ends in the year 1999, with a description of a prosperous and peaceful Britain governed by women.<ref name=gates>Gates, Barbara T. (ed.), ''In Nature's Name: An Anthology of Women's Writing and Illustration, 1780-1930'' ([[University of Chicago Press]], 2002)</ref>

*[[Aldous Huxley]]'s ''[[Brave New World]]'' (1932), a pseudo-utopian [[satire]] (see also [[dystopia]]).

*[[Shangri-La]] described in the novel ''[[Lost Horizon (novel)|Lost Horizon]]'' by [[James Hilton]] (1933)

*''[[Islandia]]'' (1942), by [[Austin Tappan Wright]], an imaginary island in the Southern Hemisphere, a utopian containing many [[Arcadia (utopia)|Arcadian]] elements, including a rejection of technology.

*[[Hermann Hesse]]'s ''[[The Glass Bead Game]]'' (1943) shows Castalia, a utopian society for the intellectual elite.

*[[B. F. Skinner]]'s ''[[Walden Two]]'' (1948)

*''[[The Cloud of Magellan]]'' (1955) by [[Stanisław Lem]]

*''[[Andromeda (novel)|Andromeda Nebula]]'' (1957) is a classic communist utopia by [[Ivan Efremov]]

*''[[Island (novel)]]'' (1962) by [[Aldous Huxley]] follows the story of Will Farnaby, a cynical journalist, who shipwrecks on the fictional island of Pala and experiences their unique culture and traditions which create a utopian society. Often considered his antithesis to ''[[Brave New World]].''

* [[The Great Explosion]], [[Eric Frank Russell]] (1963) In the last section setting out a workable utopian economic system leading to a different social and political reality.

*''[[The Corridors of Time]]'' by [[Poul Anderson]] (1965) features a protagonist recruited by a woman from a future society to go back in time to help her fight her [[dystopia]]n, time-traveling foes, who dominate half the world in her time. The utopian claims of her society are undermined, especially by time-travelers from a more distant, actually utopian future who plunge him into aspects of it hidden from him, and hint that their future must be brought about by his actions.

*''[[The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas]]'' (1969), by [[Ursula K. Le Guin]], about the costs of utopia

*''[[Imagine (song)]]'' (1971) by [[John Lennon]], prays for "brotherhood of man", which would exist in a utopia without hell or heaven.

*''[[The Probability Broach]]'' (1980), by [[L. Neil Smith]], presents both utopian and dysutopian views of present day North America, through alternative outcomes of the American War for Independence.

*''[[Always Coming Home]]'' (1985), by [[Ursula K. Le Guin]], a combination of fiction and fictional [[anthropology]] about a society in California in the distant future

*''The [[Kingdom of Zeal]] in [[Chrono Trigger]]'' (1995)

*''[[Hedonistic imperative|The Hedonistic Imperative]]'' (1996), an [[online]] [[manifesto]] by [[David Pearce]], outlines how [[genetic engineering]] and [[nanotechnology]] will abolish [[suffering]] in all [[Sentience|sentient]] life.

*''[[The Kin of Ata Are Waiting for You]]'' (1976) by [[Dorothy Bryant]]

*''[[The Matrix]]'' (1999), a film by the [[Wachowski brothers]], describes a [[virtual reality]] controlled by [[artificial intelligence]] such as [[Agent Smith]]. Smith says that the first Matrix was a utopia, but humans rejected it because they "define their reality through misery and suffering." Therefore, the Matrix was redesigned to simulate human civilization with all its suffering.

*''[[K-PAX (film)|K-PAX]]'' (2001), a film based on the book of the same name, is about a man who calls himself prot, an alien from a "utopian planet" K-PAX.

*''[[Equilibrium (film)|Equilibrium]]'' (2002), a film about an utopia where all emotion is forbidden, which is considered the only way to peace and balance.

*''[[Xen: Ancient English Edition]]'' (2004) presents a utopia with a bias toward [[matriarchy]], in the distant future of Earth, "translated" by D.J. Solomon

*''[[Ourtopia]]'', (2004) is Garrett Jones's projection of an ideal planet towards which to work.

*''[[Ensaio sobre a Lucidez]]'' ("Treatise on Lucidity") by [[José Saramago]] (2004), describes a city where there is 83% of blank votes at an election.

*''[[Globus Cassus]]'' (2004), is a project for the transformation of the Earth into a large, hollow structure inhabited on the inside, which would be organised by new types of societies and political systems.

*''[[Celebration, Florida]]'', a city developed by The Walt Disney Company.

*The first story arc in the seventh season (2004–2005) of the supernatural [[dramedy]] series [[Charmed]] involves the transformation of the world into an utopia through the fear of a common enemy.

*[[Lois Lowry|Lois Lowry's]] ''[[The Giver]]''

*[[Doris Lessing]]'s ''[[Shikasta]]'', ''[[Memoirs of a Survivor]]''

*[[Elisabeth Vonarburg]]'s ''Reluctant Voyagers'' (''Les Voyageurs malgre eux'', 1994)

*[[Octavia Butler]]'s [[Xenogenesis Trilogy]]

*[[Muriel Jaeger]]'s 1920s novels ''The Question Mark'', ''The Man with Six Senses''

*[[Sheri S. Tepper]]'s ''Beauty'', ''Grass''

*[[Joanna Russ]]'s ''[[The Female Man]]''

*[[Suzette Haden Elgin]]'s ''Native Tongue''

*[[Charlotte Perkins Gilman]]'s ''[[Herland (novel)|Herland]]''

*[[Scott Westerfeld]]'s ''[[Uglies]]'' shows a futuristic society where one transforms greatly aesthetically at the age of 16, through intense plastic surgery, to live in a society where all is peaceful and beautiful.

*''[[Bioshock]]'' (2007) is a video game by [[2K Boston/2K Australia]] is set in a gruesome collapsed utopia underwater named Rapture during the 1960s (It was created after WWII 1946 and collapsed after its peak in the early 1960's).

*German power metal band Domain's concept album Last Days of Utopia tells the story of a man who, after finding his life ruined due to an incident we are not told about, goes across the sea to seek a perfect life, and finds an island called Utopia, where all his dreams are answered. Unfortunately, after telling the people of Utopia his tragic past, they begin to question and even rebel against their gods, ultimately resulting in the destruction of the perfect land.

*[[Doctor Who]] has had an episode titled utopia, involving the concept of escaping to utopia, during the [[Doctor (Doctor Who)|Doctor]]'s final showdown with the [[Master]].

==Related terms and concepts==

* [[Abolitionism (bioethics)]]

* [[Bioregionalism]]

* [[Christian anarchism]]

* [[Dystopia]]

* [[EcoCommunalism]]

* [[Ecotopia]]

* [[El Dorado (legend)|El Dorado]]

* [[Garden of Eden]]

* [[Heaven]]

* [[Intentional Community]]

* [[Kibbutz]]

* [[Marxism]]

* [[Millennialism]]

* [[Paradise]]

* [[Peace]]

* [[Phalanstère]]

* [[Regional planning]]

* [[Simple living]]

* [[Speculative fiction]] and [[science fiction]]

* [[Techno-utopianism]]

* [[Urban planning]]

* [[Utopia Planitia]]

* [[Utopian and dystopian fiction]]

==References==

*[[Krishan Kumar|Kumar, Krishan]] (1991) ''Utopianism'' (Milton Keynes: Open University Press) ISBN 0-335-15361-5

*[[Frank Manuel|Manuel, Frank]] & [[Fritzie Manuel|Manuel, Fritzie]] (1979) ''Utopian Thought in the Western World'' (Oxford: Blackwell) ISBN 0-674-93185-8

*Hine, Robert V. (1983) ''California's Utopian Colonies'' (University of California Press) ISBN 0-520-04885-7

*Kumar, K (1987) ''Utopia and Anti-utopia in Modern Times'' (Oxford: Blackwell) ISBN 0-631-16714-5

*Shadurski, Maxim I. (2007) ''Literary Utopias from More to Huxley: The Issues of Genre Poetics and Semiosphere. Finding an Island'' (Moscow: URSS) ISBN 978-5-382-00362-7

==External links==

*[http://www.gutenberg.net/etext/2130 Thomas More's Utopia] full text from [[Project Gutenberg]] (English translation)

*[http://thelatinlibrary.com/more.html Thomas More's Utopia] the original text from [[The Latin Library]]

*[http://www.bartleby.com/65/ut/Utopia.html Utopia - The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, 2001]

*[http://www.utoronto.ca/utopia/ Society for Utopian Studies] - an international, interdisciplinary association devoted to the study of utopianism, with a particular emphasis on literary and experimental utopias.

*[http://www.utopias.info History of 15 Finnish] utopian settlements in Africa, the Americas, Asia, Australia and Europe.

*[http://www.stadtbaukunst.com/uploads//2_1_Towards_Another_Utopia_of_The_City.pdf Towards Another Utopia of The City] Institute of Urban Design, Bremen, Germany

*[http://www.bl.uk/learning/histcitizen/21cc/utopia/utopia.html Utopias] - a learning resource from the [[British Library]]

*[http://www.utopiaandutopianism.com Utopia and Utopianism] - an academic journal

*[http://caius-ebook.com/Utopias.htm Utopia of the GOOD] An essay on Utopias and their nature.

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[[ja:ユートピア]]

[[no:Utopi]]

[[pl:Utopia (termin)]]

[[pt:Utopia]]

[[ru:Утопия]]

[[sq:Utopia]]

[[sk:Utópia]]

[[sr:Утопија]]

[[fi:Utopia]]

[[sv:Utopi]]

[[tr:Ütopya]]

[[uk:Утопія]]

[[bat-smg:Utuopėjė]]

[[zh:乌托邦]]