Socialism and (the rejection of) utopia

A study of some of the many connections (both conceptual and historical) between socialism and utopia, this article examines the socialist rejection of utopia using the examples of Marxism (Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels) and early Fabianism (Sidney Webb and H.G. Wells). Once the concept of utopia is unpacked (as intentional community, a vision of an ideal society, a detailed description of an ideal society, and a literary genre), the socialist rejection of utopia turns out to be (at most) partial, and not always persuasive.