Jyotsna Sreenivasan | Akateeminen Kirjakauppa

An insightful look at the long tradition of communal societies in the United States from colonial times to the present, examining their ideological foundations, daily life, and relationships to mainstream American society.

With this volume, a fascinating, yet often overlooked, part of the American story is brought to the forefront. In Utopias in American History, independent scholar Jyotsna Sreenivasan makes the case that from the founding of the American colonies to the hippie communes of the 1960s to the cohousing movement, which started in the 1990s, the United States has the most sustained tradition of utopianism of any modern country.



Accessible yet authoritative and highly informative, Utopias in American History offers dozens of alphabetically organized entries covering all aspects of communal societies from colonial times to the present. Featured are descriptions of over 40 major utopian communities, both religious and secular. Entries are organized in terms of their histories, belief systems, leadership, economics, daily life, and the reactions they drew from mainstream society.









40 entries on specific utopian communal movements in American history, from the Puritans to the Amish to single-tax movement communities



45 entries on special topics related to utopian life, including socialism, Bible-based communism, family roles, and leadership



25 entries on important figures, including Robert Owen and Eberhard Arnold, and events such as the Branch Davidian disaster



A comparative chronology detailing the dates of existence of the utopias covered



Bibliographical listings with each entry, leading to further investigations in print and online