{"product_id":"polyphony-of-utopia","title":"Polyphony of Utopia","description":"\u003cp\u003e«Through detailed, elegant interpretations of utopian novels produced in the United States and the Soviet Union, Pavla Veselá casts aside standard commonplaces about East \/ West cultural divergences and reveals the critical function of utopian fiction that is shared in the two national contexts.»\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e(Michael Hardt, Professor of Literature, Duke University)\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e«It is encouraging to read \u003ci\u003eThe Polyphony of Utopia \u003c\/i\u003ein our cynical and desperate time. By discussing a number of Russian and American utopian novels in the light of ‘utopian realism,’ addressing the uncertainty, anxiety and doubt contained in their visions of hope, Pavla Veselá proves the importance and relevance of the transformation of today’s world toward Utopia.»\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e(Thomas Lahusen, Professor Emeritus, University of Toronto)\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eUtopias – literary visions of better, more just and happier communities – have been misconceived as «mere fantasies» on the one hand and «models to implement» on the other. Building on the notion of «critical utopia» and elaborating on interpretations of literary works as contradictory and incomplete, the book analyses selected utopian and dystopian novels by five writers: Edward Bellamy, Alexander Bogdanov, Ivan Yefremov, Marge Piercy and Octavia E. Butler. It argues that departing from the conventions of realism, utopias advance credible visions of more perfect ways of living and being which are nevertheless destabilized through gothic and poetic generic elements. Unresolved issues are further explored in (utopian as well as dystopian) sequels and prequels. The novels analysed in detail include Bellamy’s \u003ci\u003eLooking Backward 2000-1887\u003c\/i\u003e (1888) and \u003ci\u003eEquality \u003c\/i\u003e(1897), Bogdanov’s \u003ci\u003eRed Star: A Utopia \u003c\/i\u003e(1908) and \u003ci\u003eEngineer Menni: A Novel of Fantasy \u003c\/i\u003e(1913), Yefremov’s \u003ci\u003eAndromeda: A Space-Age Tale \u003c\/i\u003e(1957) and \u003ci\u003eThe Hour of the Bull \u003c\/i\u003e(1970), Piercy’s \u003ci\u003eWoman on the Edge\u003c\/i\u003e \u003ci\u003eof Time \u003c\/i\u003e(1976) and \u003ci\u003eHe, She and It \u003c\/i\u003e(1991), and Butler’s \u003ci\u003eParable of the Sower\u003c\/i\u003e (1993) and \u003ci\u003eParable of the Talents \u003c\/i\u003e(1998).\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Peter Lang International Academic Publishers","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54259979190616,"sku":"9781803740553","price":49.99,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0278\/1295\/4195\/files\/9781803740553.jpg?v=1777831237","url":"https:\/\/agendabookshop.com\/products\/polyphony-of-utopia","provider":"Agenda Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}