Rethinking Utopia: Interdisciplinary Approaches ed. by Ebru Deniz Ozan (review)

Reviewed by: Rethinking Utopia: Interdisciplinary Approachesed. by Ebru Deniz Ozan Emrah Atasoy Is Another World Possible? Rethinking Utopia: Interdisciplinary Approaches. Ebru Deniz Ozan, ed. Lexington, 2022. 122 pp. 90. 00 hc, 45. 00 ebk. In a world in crisis, it has become crucial to rethink utopia. The search for alternative world systems has gained particular significance under the strong influence of the COVID-19 pandemic, the climate crisis, and the ongoing wars in different parts of today's world. Amid such despair, Ozan's Rethinking Utopia: Interdisciplinary Approachesdraws particular attention to the urgent need to think again about utopias that are "expressions of our desire for being otherwise or being better" (1). The book is divided into two parts and consists of six chapters. It brings together researchers from Türkiye working in such disciplines as political science and public administration, international relations, and law. These researchers, many based at Kütahya Dumlupýnar University, discuss the concept of utopia in politics, law, and literature, engaging critically with both canonical works by Thomas More and Ursula K. Le Guin and lesser-known texts by the Turkish authors Necip Fazýl Kýsakürek, Sezai Karakoç, and İsmet Özel. This collection contributes novel insights to utopian and dystopian studies through its in-depth analyses of utopia in relation to concepts such as populism, redemptive politics, modernism, modernity, political theory, international humanitarian law, the classless society, ownership, unalienated society, and Turkish Islamism. Its chapters are well written and well researched, with many End Page 123to-the-point references to influential literary and theoretical works and figures. There are at times repetitive remarks about utopia, utopianism, and dystopia, however, and while such repetition may be useful for those new to the field, it will be less so for specialists. Ozan's brief introduction successfully outlines the objectives of the volume, that is, to demonstrate how "utopian thinking as discussed in this book can be a means to envisage a world beyond the crisis, rather than trying to develop resilience and coping strategies" and "the value of seeing utopias in different ways rather than creating a working model of utopian thinking" (2). Ozan emphasizes the "multidimensional and dynamic" characteristics of utopia (2), rightly accentuating the intricate entangled relationship between utopia and dystopia: "The history of dystopias or anti-utopias can be traced back as long as the utopia tradition" (3). She then briefly explains the main characteristics of utopia with special reference to social change and Karl Mannheim's understanding of ideology and utopia. Ozan then engages with the conventional claim that utopias or utopian thinking may result in totalitarianism and totalitarian world systems. Her explanation of the structure of the book is also helpful: "The first part of the book is more theory oriented while the second part is more applied" (7). The introduction may not offer novel information to those specializing in the field, but it can be useful for interested and informed readers. Chapter 1, "Utopia as a Free Play" by Hayrettin Özler, investigates the intricate connection between political theory and utopian thinking. Özler concludes that "the utopian reason is somewhere between pure reason and practical reason whereby we can free play" (26). Özler explains (Kantian) pure reason and practical reason in relation to utopian thinking with clarity and brevity. I find Özler's emphasis here on the function of imagination for future transformation and social change particularly important. Özler also argues that utopia is "a betweennessor a linkage between different dualities" as an "intermediary faculty of mind" (16-17; emphasis in original). This is particularly useful to demonstrate that utopias and dystopias are not antonyms but might be synonyms depending on one's perspective. Özler's arguments at times seem overgeneralized, tending not to allow for alternative interpretations. In his last section, Özler draws on Derrida's definition of free play, linking it to utopia. Chapter 2, "The Search for a Better Place: Populist and Utopian Redemption" by Volkan Gül, presents a novel insight into utopian and dystopian studies. Utopia and populism may not come to mind as interconnected, but Gül successfully draws a correlation between these two concepts with a focus on populist. . .