Introduction

American women’s utopias are also most often urban: they are set closer in time to the writers’ present; and the primary transformation role is not political but social–and these utopias are likewise generally communal rather than national. British emphasis on social evolution over generations is replaced by vigorous individualism which often ascribes the development of utopia to internal change, and which emphasises the social influence of individuals rather than legislated change. The utopias themselves are generally of a small scale–that is, once more communal rather than national. Their writers are aware of the nature/culture debate, and the utopias are models of mediation. As narratives, dystopias are more successful than eutopias, their tensions sustained by the psychological conflict stemming from characters’ realisation of the true nature of their society, and the drama of their subsequent rebellion. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.