Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Acknowledgments
- Note on the Translations
- Introduction
- Part I The Great Discourse on the Future
- 1 Utopians and Utopian Thought
- 2 Futurists and Futures Studies
- 3 Utopian/Dystopian Writers and Utopian/Dystopian Fiction
- 4 Science Fiction: The Nexus of Utopianism, Futurism, and Utopian Fiction
- Part II German Science Fiction in the Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries
- 5 Some Preliminary Thoughts on German Science Fiction
- 6 First Contact: Martians, Sentient Plants, and Swarm Intelligences
- 7 The Shock of the New: Mega Cities, Machines, and Rockets
- 8 Utopian Experiments: Island Idylls, Glass Beads, and Eugenic Nightmares
- 9 To the Stars! Cosmic Supermen and Bauhaus in Space
- 10 Visions of the End: Catastrophism and Moral Entropy
- 11 Virtual Realities: Caught in the Matrix
- 12 Alternative Histories: Into the Heart of Darkness
- 13 Big Brother Is Watching Us: Who Is Watching Big Brother?
- 14 Artificial Intelligences: The Rise of the Thinking Machines
- 15 Eternal Life: At What Cost?
- 16 Social Satires: Of Empty Slogans and Empty Hearts
- 17 Critical Posthumanism: Twilight of the Species or a New Dawn?
- 18 High Concept: Time, the Universe, and Everything
- Conclusion
- Appendix 1 Chronological List of German SF Novels—A Selection
- Appendix 2 Chronological List of German SF Films—A Selection
- Notes
- Bibliography
- Index
1 - Utopians and Utopian Thought
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 16 September 2020
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Acknowledgments
- Note on the Translations
- Introduction
- Part I The Great Discourse on the Future
- 1 Utopians and Utopian Thought
- 2 Futurists and Futures Studies
- 3 Utopian/Dystopian Writers and Utopian/Dystopian Fiction
- 4 Science Fiction: The Nexus of Utopianism, Futurism, and Utopian Fiction
- Part II German Science Fiction in the Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries
- 5 Some Preliminary Thoughts on German Science Fiction
- 6 First Contact: Martians, Sentient Plants, and Swarm Intelligences
- 7 The Shock of the New: Mega Cities, Machines, and Rockets
- 8 Utopian Experiments: Island Idylls, Glass Beads, and Eugenic Nightmares
- 9 To the Stars! Cosmic Supermen and Bauhaus in Space
- 10 Visions of the End: Catastrophism and Moral Entropy
- 11 Virtual Realities: Caught in the Matrix
- 12 Alternative Histories: Into the Heart of Darkness
- 13 Big Brother Is Watching Us: Who Is Watching Big Brother?
- 14 Artificial Intelligences: The Rise of the Thinking Machines
- 15 Eternal Life: At What Cost?
- 16 Social Satires: Of Empty Slogans and Empty Hearts
- 17 Critical Posthumanism: Twilight of the Species or a New Dawn?
- 18 High Concept: Time, the Universe, and Everything
- Conclusion
- Appendix 1 Chronological List of German SF Novels—A Selection
- Appendix 2 Chronological List of German SF Films—A Selection
- Notes
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
UTOPIAN THOUGHT HAS a long tradition and has for centuries been both feted and condemned. While the literary manifestations of utopian thinking will be discussed as the third tributary, the visioning of ideal societies (political and social utopias) has escaped its merely literary confines and has provided blueprints for humanity's noblest aspirations (the United Nations, the European Union), as well as its vilest ideologies (fascism, National Socialism). “Being human means having a utopia” declared German theologian Paul Tillich, but we do not always wear this characteristic with pride. Politicians and the media use the term “utopian” to denigrate ideas and proposals for change; and in everyday parlance the term suggests impossible schemes, pipe dreams, and harebrained projects. And yet, despite this, a certain type of person will vehemently defend the right to imagine the world differently, and work to radically change it accordingly. There are “utopians” who plan better, if not ideal, worlds at their desks, and there are those who actively fight for them in the public arena in the attempt to turn them into a lived reality. And there are those who are fascinated by the idea of utopianism, and who study its history and manifestations. The political and social utopias they advocate or study tend to share a holistic perspective, and they are ostensibly oriented toward “happiness.” But what makes people happy depends on context and an individual's perspective. In the 1970s, Frank and Fritzie Manuel laid the groundwork for a systematic study of utopias and utopian thought, and they wrote about the “thinkers and dreamers” who envisaged an ideal social order. As Dan Chodorkoff points out, the focus on the individuals who conceived of utopias was key for their generation of researchers:
Philosophical and literary utopias are the work of individuals and as such tend to reflect their creators’ likes and dislikes. These idiosyncratic approaches have given rise to the cliché that “One man's utopia is another man's hell.”
Sociologists often speak of a “utopian impulse” that drives individuals and groups to envision better worlds and push for their realization when reality becomes unbearable:
The utopian impulse is a response to existing social conditions and an attempt to transcend or transform those conditions to achieve an ideal. It always contains two interrelated elements: a critique of existing conditions and a vision or reconstructive program for a new society.
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- Beyond TomorrowGerman Science Fiction and Utopian Thought in the 20th and 21st Centuries, pp. 17 - 32Publisher: Boydell & BrewerPrint publication year: 2020