ABSTRACT
Utopia(nism) cannot just operate within and beyond the here-and-now, but must operate against it too. Indeed, it must operate against any here-and-now, even one (re)produced in ways that are far more in accordance with the common good than our current world is. In this chapter the author wants to explore the operation of this against by thinking through the 'no' of utopia's etymology and its intra-actions with the good and place. Accordingly, it is not enough to celebrate the goodness internal to any given utopia: we must amplify the dissonance between that goodness and the world as is. It is important to consider identities that are (re)produced not through their being oppressed, but through their complicity in oppression: heterosexuality, masculinity and whiteness, in particular. Thus, utopia(nism) begins in this world, but opens us up to worlds we cannot even dream of.
