The Garden of Paradise, Unknown Rhenish Painter [circa 1410] (Public Domain Image)

The Story of Utopias

by Lewis Mumford

[1922]

This is a survey of the development of the concept of Utopia, by one of the foremost urban planning theorists of the 20th century. This was Mumford's first book. He starts with a survey of the major utopias, some well-known, others less so. We look at Plato's Republic, More's Utopia, Andreæ's Christanopolis, Bacon's New Atlantis, Campanella's City of the Sun, Fourier's Phalanxes, Cabet's Icaria, Bellamy's Looking Backward, Morris' News from Nowhere, and finally H.G. Wells' utopian fiction. In the final portion of the book Mumford explores the prospects for Utopia and relates it to the realities of urban planning. Mumford's prose style is engaging and this is a great introduction to this fascinating subject.

Title Page
Acknowledgements
Contents
Introduction
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Bibliography