In Erewhon, an anagram for "nowhere," sickness is a punishable crime, criminals receive compassionate medical treatment, and machines are banned, lest they evolve and take over. Originally published in 1872, the proto-steampunk novel
Erewhon won its author immediate recognition as a satirist. Samuel
Butler followed in the tradition of Voltaire and Swift in creating
Erewhon and
Erewhon Revisited, which are widely recognized as the nineteenth century's most important works of their kind.
Entertaining and provocative, these books are unsparing in their treatment of the hypocrisies of Victorian society, taking aim at the family, church, and mechanical "progress." George Orwell, no stranger to the depiction of futuristic societies, noted that at the time of
Erewhon's writing the author needed "imagination of a very high order to see that machinery could be dangerous as well as useful." Today's readers will also find the book remarkably prescient in its anticipation of future sociological trends.
Reprint of the Grant Richards, London, 1901 editions.
Availability | Instant |
ISBN 10 | 0486805123 |
ISBN 13 | 9780486805122 |
Author/Editor | Samuel Butler |
Format | eBook |
Page Count | 400 |
Dimensions | 5 x 8 |