Les Icariens
The Utopian Dream in Europe and America
A utopian movement's struggles and achievements
Cloth – $32
978-0-252-02067-4
Publication Date
Cloth: 06/01/1994
About the Book
A utopian movement's struggles and achievementsSeeking to build a utopia free of money or property, the Icarians moved from France to the United States in 1848. Their social and economic theories emerged from the thought of French author Etienne Cabet and his novel Voyage en Icarie, an allegory seized upon by thousands as a blueprint for societal advancement. Though the Icarian movement disbanded in 1898, it lasted long enough to become one of America's longest-lived experiments in secular communal living.
Robert P. Sutton tells the story of the Icarians and explores the ideas behind their dream. Originating in the French political milieu of the 1840s, Icarianism led immigrants to create six communal societies in Illinois, Missouri, Iowa, and California. Sutton blends a look at Cabot's life and influences with the history of French socialism while detailing the Icarians' efforts, their difficulties living their ideas, and the movement's fractious internal disputes.
A story of America as a land of possibility, Les Icariens remains the best available account of the Icarian movement and its times.
About the Author
Robert P. Sutton (d. 2009) was a professor of history at Western Illinois University. He is the author of Heartland Utopias.Awards
• Winner, Choice: Outstanding Academic Titles, 1996Related Titles
