The Utopian Dilemma in the Western Political Imagination

In this volume, John Farrell shows that political utopias—societies with laws and customs designed to short-circuit the foibles of human nature for the benefit of our collective existence—have a perennial opponent, the honor-based culture of aristocracy that dominated most of the world from ancient...

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Príomhchruthaitheoir: Farrell, John
Formáid: Online
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Foilsithe / Cruthaithe: Taylor & Francis 2023
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Rochtain ar líne:OCN: 1353921013
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author Farrell, John
author_browse Farrell, John
author_facet Farrell, John
author_sort Farrell, John
collection Directory of Open Access Books
description In this volume, John Farrell shows that political utopias—societies with laws and customs designed to short-circuit the foibles of human nature for the benefit of our collective existence—have a perennial opponent, the honor-based culture of aristocracy that dominated most of the world from ancient times into early modernity and whose status-based competitive psychology persists to the present day. While utopias aim at equality, the heroic imperative defends the need for personal and collective dignity. It asks the utopian, Do we really want to live in a world without struggle, without heroes, and without the stories they create? Because the utopian dilemma pits essential values against each other—equity versus freedom, dignity versus justice—few who confront it can simply take sides. Rather, the dilemma itself has been a generative stimulus for classic authors from Plato and Thomas More to George Orwell and Aldous Huxley. Farrell follows their struggles with the utopian dilemma and with each other, providing a deepened understanding of the moral and emotional dynamics of the western political imagination.
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spelling doab-20.500.12854ir-1220482025-03-21T03:26:27Z The Utopian Dilemma in the Western Political Imagination Farrell, John Utopia, Dystopia, Dostoevsky, Huxley, Orwell In this volume, John Farrell shows that political utopias—societies with laws and customs designed to short-circuit the foibles of human nature for the benefit of our collective existence—have a perennial opponent, the honor-based culture of aristocracy that dominated most of the world from ancient times into early modernity and whose status-based competitive psychology persists to the present day. While utopias aim at equality, the heroic imperative defends the need for personal and collective dignity. It asks the utopian, Do we really want to live in a world without struggle, without heroes, and without the stories they create? Because the utopian dilemma pits essential values against each other—equity versus freedom, dignity versus justice—few who confront it can simply take sides. Rather, the dilemma itself has been a generative stimulus for classic authors from Plato and Thomas More to George Orwell and Aldous Huxley. Farrell follows their struggles with the utopian dilemma and with each other, providing a deepened understanding of the moral and emotional dynamics of the western political imagination. 2023-11-17T09:21:36Z 2023-11-17T09:21:36Z 2023-08-28T14:45:04Z 2023 book OCN: 1353921013 https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/75850 9781003365945 9781032431574 9781032431581 https://directory.doabooks.org/handle/20.500.12854/122048 eng open access Taylor & Francis Routledge 10.4324/9781003365945 10.4324/9781003365945 fa69b019-f4ee-4979-8d42-c6b6c476b5f0 Chapter 8 Karl Marx and the Heroic Revolution Chapter 9 Fyodor Dostoevsky and the Ungrateful Biped Chapter 15 Aldous Huxley and the Rebels against Happiness Chapter 16 George Orwell’s Dystopian Socialism Chapter Introduction Chapter Conclusion 9781003365945 9781032431574 9781032431581 Routledge open access
spellingShingle Utopia, Dystopia, Dostoevsky, Huxley, Orwell
Farrell, John
The Utopian Dilemma in the Western Political Imagination
title The Utopian Dilemma in the Western Political Imagination
title_full The Utopian Dilemma in the Western Political Imagination
title_fullStr The Utopian Dilemma in the Western Political Imagination
title_full_unstemmed The Utopian Dilemma in the Western Political Imagination
title_short The Utopian Dilemma in the Western Political Imagination
title_sort utopian dilemma in the western political imagination
topic Utopia, Dystopia, Dostoevsky, Huxley, Orwell
topic_facet Utopia, Dystopia, Dostoevsky, Huxley, Orwell
url OCN: 1353921013
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