The Shape of Utopia: The Architecture of Radical Reform in Nineteenth-Century America

In the 19th century, social reformers in the US created radical blueprints for a new society based on geometric designs. These plans included octagonal houses, a hexagonal anarchist city, and circular centers of equitable commerce. Architects used these blueprints as persuasive visual rhetoric to mobilize others to share their aspirations for a better world. The book examines these utopian plans within the context of economic and technological transformation, including movements such as phrenology, anarchism, and spiritualism. It highlights a pivotal moment in American history when ordinary people believed in the potential to reshape society.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 376 pages
Publication date: 03 October 2023
Publisher: University of Minnesota Press

In the mid-nineteenth century, a utopian impulse swept across the United States, fueled by the circulation of architectural and urban plans that envisioned a new society based on geometrically distinct designs. While many of these plans remained unrealized, The Shape of Utopia emphasizes the enduring significance of these radical propositions and their ability to offer alternatives to the emerging capitalist nation.

Architectural utopians drew diagrammatic plans for structures like octagonal houses, hexagonal anarchist cities, and circular centers of equitable commerce. They applied geometric forms to envision a more just and harmonious society. By highlighting the political capacity of architecture, Irene Cheng showcases how these visionary planners used their blueprints as persuasive visual rhetoric to mobilize others toward their aspirations for a better world.

This book offers an extensive and uniquely focused view of the mid-nineteenth-century Americas, examining these utopian plans within the context of significant economic and technological transformation. It encompasses movements such as phrenology, anarchism, and spiritualism. By engaging with architectural history, visual culture studies, and U.S. history, The Shape of Utopia documents a pivotal moment in American history when ordinary people ardently believed in the potential to reshape society.

Weight: 744g
Dimension: 177 x 255 x 23 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781517907464