On the 19th Century American Utopian Reform Movements

邱若云

The origin of Utopia can be traced back to ancient Greek wisdom： Plato first proposed his ideally equal realm in The Republic in 350 BC. Thomas More first coined the term from Greek which meant no-place. Projecting the social impulse towards a better world， Utopian socialism， led by socialists like Owen and Fourier， flourished in Old World Europe in the 17th and 18th century. With the founding of European colonies in America， the New World proved a rich breeding ground for experimental settlements. Regarding the current American society as repressive， more than 100， 000 people in the early 1800s joined the utopian movement that reached its climax in the antebellum era.

It is worth discussing to what extent did European ideology shape the appearance of 19th century American utopias. The relationship between America and Europe was always intertwined and complicated：on the one hand， America was largely an extension of European society since it followed and benefited from tons of European traditions and ideology? on the other hand， America gradually developed a sense of identity and a strong desire to separate from the bondage of old Europe. The appearance of utopias actually demonstrated both traditional and experimental aspects. Resulting from the conflicts accumulated in Europe overtime， utopian ideology outflow to America religiously， economically and practically.

At the beginning of 19th century， religious utopian communities prevailed：European purge and persecutions sent pious preachers to America to implement absolute religious purity， which attracted devout Americans who were spiritually aroused by the Second Great Awakening. One of the most enduring communities was the Rappite Community that settled in Pennsylvania and Indiana from 1805 to 1905. Religious devoutness served as the only key to unite people and build a harmonious society. Although the emphasis on withdrawal from mundane society and preservation of pure religious observance left the communities self-contained and limited their wider impact on American society， the appearance of religious utopias revealed how European idealism took roots in North America where religious tolerance provided a shelter. Generally， American economic traits paved the way for self-sustaining utopian experiments but strong European characteristics inevitably met with a certain extent of obstacles in transplanting ideology.

Focusing back on America， domestic climate of economic distress triggered the surge of social reform， or in other words， social protest. The economic panic of 1837 greatly depressed citizens and stimulated the idea of “back to the rural land”1. Simultaneously， industrial revolution started to transform every facet of daily life and factory system emerged. Increasing number of people felt abandoned by the new trend， therefore they turned to utopian experiments to fulfill the demand for a more perfect society and escape the chains contemporary society had enclosed them in. The burgeoning of industrialization and capitalism made the society begin to discard the importance of individual in favor of economic prosperity. Thus especially working people would look to restructure a society that addressed the needs of all people concerned via cooperative utopias.

Ideologically， the essence of utopia from the starting point accorded with Americans innovative， democratic and progressive doctrines that encouraged exemplary attempts for a better social system. Creating the nation from the brave and glorious War of Independence， America carried forward traditional defiant and progressive spirits， political freedom， anti?authoritarianism and constitutional defense of private property and human rights， which ensured a diverse but peaceful and orderly platform for utopian reforms.

Looking back to the concentrated appearance of utopian reforms in America in 19th century， we see how characteristics of the era and the American soil contributed to the trend. The phenomenon can be interpreted as protests， experiments， escapes， religious pursuits or isolation. But above all， utopian reforms in a cooperative and collaborative form projected peoples perpetual desire for a better-off society that covered the needs of all people and emphasized each individual. As responses to this desire of all eras， the 19th century American utopian reforms threw lights on the future road of social evolution and vividly reflected how people take control of their own lives in pursuit of a more satisfactory society.

References：

[1]“Rural Utopian Movements，1820s?1850s，” in Encyclopedia of American Social Movements，3：971.