Utopia as Method The Imaginary Reconstitution of Society [Paperback]

Utopia should be understood as a method rather than a goal. This book rehabilitates utopia as a repressed dimension of the sociological and in the process produces the Imaginary Reconstitution of Society, a provisional, reflexive and dialogic method for exploring alternative possible futures.Introduction PART I 1. From Terror to Grace 2. Riff on Blue 3. Echoes of Elsewhere PART II 4. Between Sociology and Utopia 5. Utopia Denied 6. Utopia Revised 7. The Return of the Repressed PART III 8. Utopia as Archaeology 9. Utopia as Ontology 10. Utopia as Architecture

'Levitas's Utopia as Method is a crucial and necessary book. In the face of global ecological and economic crises, she offers utopianism as a robust and realistic method that encompasses both a critique of the existing world and alternatives for a better one that can be mobilized in the process of transforming, indeed redeeming, the dark times in which we live.' - Tom Moylan, Professor Emeritus and Co-Director of the Ralahine Centre for Utopian Studies at the University of Limerick, Ireland

'Author of the path-breaking The Concept of Utopia Ruth Levitas has produced a new powerful reflection on the protean nature of the utopian. It is a very fine work, theoretically innovative, truly interdisciplinary, and combining scholarly integrity with a distinctive political voice. The meditations of a lifetime.' - Vincent Geoghegan, Professor of Political Theory, Queen's University Belfast, UK

'Ruth Levitas' Utopia as Method is a profound and deeply original exploration of the connection between utopian thinking and social theory, and an urgent call for sociologists to place the imaginary reconstruction of society at the centre of their work. It is a wonderful, inspiring book.' - Erik Olin Wright, Vilas Distinguished Professor, University of Wisconsin, USA

'This book is an indispensable support for deep change in trivial times, a testimonial to the transformatil]