Academic literature on the topic 'Winstanley'

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Sydney, 2005.<br>Title from title screen (viewed 20 May 2008). Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy to the Dept. of English, Faculty of Arts. Includes bibliographical references. Also available in print form.

The period of English history between the second Civil War and the Restoration opened up seemingly unlimited possibilities for shaping the country's future. The period likewise witnessed an unprecedented surge of political imagination, a development which is particularly visible in Interregnum utopianism. More than ever before, utopianism orientates itself to a hopeful and expectant reality. It is no longer fictional or contemplative. Its ambitions and fulfilment are political; there is a drive towards active political participation. Utopianism reshapes its former boundaries and reinvents itself as reality utopianism. Considering this new reality-orientated identity, the utopias of the 1650s are especially useful in providing an insight into the political imagination of this period. This thesis studies three reality utopias of the 1650s: Winstanley's The Law of Freedom, Harrington's Oceana and Hobbes's Leviathan. Each work represents a uniquely different utopian vision: Winstanley imagines an agrarian communism, Harrington revives classical republicanism, and Hobbes stresses absolute sovereignty. These three different utopian visions not only illustrate the range of the political imagination; they provide an opportunity to examine different ways to deal with the existing political and social concerns of the Interregnum and different perspectives for ideal solutions. Interregnum utopianism is shaped by the expectations and violence of the English Revolution and accordingly it is characterised by the heightened hopes and fears of its time. Despite substantial differences in the three utopias, the elemental hopes and fears expressed in these works remain similar. The hope for change and a better future is negotiated textually with a fear of anarchy and violence. In the end a compromise between opportunity and security has to be found. It is this compromise that shapes the face of Interregnum utopianism and reflects a major aspect of the post-revolutionary political imagination in England.

The period of English history between the second Civil War and the Restoration opened up seemingly unlimited possibilities for shaping the country�s future. The period likewise witnessed an unprecedented surge of political imagination, a development which is particularly visible in Interregnum utopianism. More than ever before, utopianism orientates itself to a hopeful and expectant reality. It is no longer fictional or contemplative. Its ambitions and fulfilment are political; there is a drive towards active political participation. Utopianism reshapes its former boundaries and reinvents itself as reality utopianism. Considering this new reality-orientated identity, the utopias of the 1650s are especially useful in providing an insight into the political imagination of this period. This thesis studies three reality utopias of the 1650s: Winstanley�s The Law of Freedom, Harrington�s Oceana and Hobbes�s Leviathan. Each work represents a uniquely different utopian vision: Winstanley imagines an agrarian communism, Harrington revives classical republicanism, and Hobbes stresses absolute sovereignty. These three different utopian visions not only illustrate the range of the political imagination; they provide an opportunity to examine different ways to deal with the existing political and social concerns of the Interregnum and different perspectives for ideal solutions. Interregnum utopianism is shaped by the expectations and violence of the English Revolution and accordingly it is characterised by the heightened hopes and fears of its time. Despite substantial differences in the three utopias, the elemental hopes and fears expressed in these works remain similar. The hope for change and a better future is negotiated textually with a fear of anarchy and violence. In the end a compromise between opportunity and security has to be found. It is this compromise that shapes the face of Interregnum utopianism and reflects a major aspect of the post-revolutionary political imagination in England.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--York University, 2006. Graduate Programme in Political Science.<br>Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 331-345). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&res_dat=xri:pqdiss&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:dissertation&rft_dat=xri:pqdiss:NR19803

Tese de Doutoramento em Literatura na especialidade de Literatura Norte-Americana apresentada à Universidade Aberta<br>O Interregnum Inglês proporcionou inúmeras possibilidades para se orientar e moldar o futuro da nação. Este período caracteriza-se por uma imensa manifestação da imaginação política que veio desencadear uma quantidade produções escritas e visões utópicas nunca dantes presenciada. Mais do que nunca, neste período, o utopismo orienta-se para uma realidade esperançosa. Nesta tese estudamos duas dessas utopias: The Law of Freedom de Gerrard Winstanley e The Christian Commonwealth de John Eliot. As visões utópicas destas duas obras fornecem-nos uma introspecção no imaginário político que vigorou durante o Interregnum inglês. Escritas em dois hemisférios diferentes e dentro do mesmo contexto político-religioso – o Puritanismo – ambas as utopias ilustram o grau da imaginação política dos seus autores e fornecem uma oportunidade de examinar diferentes formas de se lidar com as questões sóciopolíticas bem como diferentes perspectivas de serem encontradas soluções ideais. Apesar das diferenças substanciais, podemos encontrar alguns pontos comuns, tais como a esperança na mudança e num futuro melhor e um receio comum, tanto pelo regresso do poder monárquico quanto pela anarquia ameaçadora. Desta forma, ambas as utopias oferecem um código de leis para organizar e disciplinar a ordem social, através de um discurso retórico sancionado pelas Escrituras, baseando-se cada uma delas no pragmatismo das experiências prévias dos seus autores: As Praying Towns de Eliot e as comunidades Digger de Winstanley. Para além disso, ao examinarmos o objectivo comum e as diferentes estratégias para alcançar as sua utopias, elaboramos um estudo comparativo entre estes dois autores; estudo, esse, que está em falta na história da escrita utópica.<br>The English Interregnum offered unlimited possibilities for shaping the country’s future. This period revealed an unprecedented surge of political imagination which would develop in utopia visions and writings. More than ever, utopianism orientated itself to a hopeful reality. This thesis studies two of these utopias: Winstanley’s Law of Freedom and Eliot’s Christian Commonwealth. These utopian visions are useful in providing an insight into the political imagination of the English Interregnum. Written in two different hemispheres and within the same political and religious context – Puritanism - both utopias illustrate the range of the political imagination of their authors and provide an opportunity to examine different ways to deal with political and social concerns and different perspectives for ideal solutions. Despite the substantial differences, some degree of common ground is to be expected, such as the elemental hopes for change and for a better future and the common fear for a possible return of “kingly power” and for anarchy as well. Both utopias offer models of code laws to organize and discipline the social order through a rhetorical speech sanctioned by the Bible and based on their previous actions: The Praying Towns of Eliot and the Diggers’ community of Winstanley. Furthermore, by examining a common motive and the different methods to accomplish their utopias we provide a comparative study between Eliot and Winstanley, that has been missing in the history of utopian writers.<br>L’Interregnum anglais a fourni d’innombrables possibilités pour s’orienter et modeler le futur de la nation. Cette période se caractérise par une importante manifestation de l’imagination politique, qui vient déclencher de nombreuses productions écrites et des visions utopiques jamais dévoilées. Plus que jamais, à ce stade, l’utopisme se tourne vers une réalité prometteuse. Dans cette thèse, l’étude s’est concentrée sur deux de ces utopies : The Law of Freedom de Gerrard Winstanley et The Christian Commonwealth de John Eliot. Les visions utopiques de ces deux oeuvres offrent une introspection de l’imagination politique, qui s’est affirmée durant l’ Interregnum anglais. Écrits dans deux hémisphères différents et dans un même contexte politique et religieux - le Puritanisme – ces deux utopies démontrent le niveau de l’imagination politique de ses auteurs et offrent une opportunité d’évaluer différentes manières de se confronter face aux questions socio-politiques, ainsi que différentes perspectives de découvrir des solutions idéales. En dépit des différences substantielles, il est possible de déceler des solutions communes, telles que le désir de changement et d’un futur meilleur, mais aussi des craintes communes, telles que la réapparition du pouvoir monarchique et l’anarchie menaçante. De cette façon, ces deux utopies offrent un code de lois qui organise et discipline l’ordre social à travers d’un discours rhétorique sanctionné para les Écritures, chacune d’elles fondées sur le pragmatisme des expériences précédentes de ses auteurs : Les Praying Towns de Eliot et les communautés Digger de Winstanley. Au-delà de ça, en examinant l’objectif commun et les diverses stratégies afin d’atteindre ses utopies, nous réalisons une étude comparative entre ces deux auteurs, étude qui est en manque dans l’histoire de l’écrit utopique.