1st Edition
American Utopia Literature, Society, and the Human Use of Human Beings
Part 1: Utopia, Eutopia, Youtopia
Chapter 1: What If You Could?
Chapter 2: Little Commonwealth
Chapter 3: Defense of Poetry
Part 2: Dischtopia: Thomas M. Disch
Chapter 4: Enter the Chamleleon
Chapter 5: East 11th Street
Chapter 6: The Shape of Things to Come
Part 3: Pantopia: Bernard Malamud
Chapter 7: Earth Abides
Chapter 8: You Tell Me That It's Evolution
Chapter 9: Proverbial Wisdom
Part 4: Uchronia: Kurt Vonnegut
Chapter 10: The Islands of the Day Before
Chapter 11: Do the Chronomotion with Me
Chapter 12: The Imp of the Perverse
Part 5: Biotopia: Margaret Atwood
Chapter 13: Oryx and Crick
Chapter 14: The Advocate's Devil
Chapter 15: Talkin' ‘Bout My Gene-ration
Bibliography
Index
Biography
Peter Swirski is a Canadian scholar and writer who is listed in the Canadian Who’s Who. He is Amazon and Alibris #1 bestseller in American history and criticism, popular culture criticism, and Canadian literary criticism, and author of nineteen award-winning books, including American Utopia and Social Engineering in Literature, Social Thought, and Political History (Routledge, 2011).
"Peter Swirski is one of the original scholars of his generation. American Utopia combines an incredible range of knowledge, wicked humor, and take-no-prisoner attitude to the corruption, exploitation, and political repression that come between us and social justice. Anyone interested in Utopias and Utopian thought, in American literature and American society, and in the future of humanity—and that includes all of us—will find this one-of-a-kind book difficult to put down."
—Arthur Asa Berger, Professor Emeritus, San Francisco State University"This is quintessential Swirski: sharp, exciting, and sophisticated. This is a timely and rewarding read. Don’t miss it!"
—David Livingstone Smith, Professor of Philosophy, University of New England"This book is a major contribution to Utopian studies, an insightful critique of some contemporary utopias, and an important meditation on issues raised by the doomed search for human perfection."
—David Rampton, University of Ottawa
