ABSTRACT
The history of utopias in the nineteenth century is closely linked with the creation of the socialist movement, and it is sometimes difficult to distinguish between schemes which belong to the realm of utopian thought and those which come within the province of practical social reform. At the beginning of the nineteenth century events of similar magnitude infused it with new life: these included the after-effects of the French Revolution, the rapid development of industry and the elaboration of socialist systems. The idea that the governing of men must be replaced by the administration of things, and that all the problems of society resolve themselves into that of production, became current dining the nineteenth century. There are few utopias of the nineteenth century which can be read to-day without a feeling of utter boredom, unless they succeed in amusing us by the obvious conceit of their authors in thinking themselves the saviours of mankind.
