Society has postulated many types of ideal societies, often swayed by the blight of the time. There was prosperity and peace during this time and no shortage of food. Hesiod, a Greek poet, believed there were four stages of existence prior to his day, the oldest one being the Golden Age. The Golden Age in Greek mythology was perhaps the earliest look at a utopian society. The novel describes a horrific totalitarian state, where society is certainly far from ideal. George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-four, published in 1949, conveys the dystopian rather than utopian commentary prevalent in the time period, with the devastation of WWII barely forgotten.
Bellamy was unhappy about the injustice in the socio-economic system and, like other utopian writers, put forth a concept of an ideal world. The well-known science fiction story is said to have influenced the Marxist movement and the intellectual community at the time.
The author, Edward Bellamy, transports his protagonist from a war-ravaged 19th century to a serene, utopian 21st century. In 1888, a utopian book was published which viewed the concept from an economic viewpoint, called Looking Backward, 2000–1887. Francis Bacon published his book New Atlantis in 1627, approaching the concept of utopia with a realistic look at science and a more abstract view on religion and philosophy. Both works reflected More’s model society view. In 1552, author Antonio Francesco Doni published I Mondi, while Francesco Patrizi published La Città felice in 1553. More’s work influenced many writers to follow in the utopian, as well as dystopian, genres. The setting for More’s utopia was on an island, where there are no laws, everyone learns a skill which benefits the community, people work for only six hours a day, no crime exists and there is a tolerance for religion in all forms. In his novel, More criticizes the European way of life through his portrayal of an ideal society. With the Age of Exploration sending explorers and writers further into mysterious foreign lands, the settings for utopian themes became more realistic. Though the term was coined by More in his book Utopia, published in 1516, the concept has existed in literature since as early as the 4th century BC, in the works of a Greek mythographer, Euhemerus. The term was conceived by author and philosopher Thomas More from the Greek ou topos, meaning no place or, essentially, nowhere. It is often viewed as a model society, with an abundance of everything people need to survive and live long, happy lives. Utopia is an ideal place, a paradise where people live in harmony with nature.
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