The author of this book, the British writer and thinker Samuel Butler, was a proponent of the theory of evolution but rejected the Darwinian idea of the selection of species. As a result of his attempts to unite the theory of evolution with his philosophy of humanity, Butler wrote a series of works from the position of a philosopher who looked for biological foundations for his work. He tried to find a bridge to a philosophy of life that sought a scientific basis for religion and endowed a naturalistically conceived universe with a soul. In this book, we have a chance to try Butler's...

"Erewhon or, Over the Range" is a novel by Samuel Butler which was first published anonymously in 1872. The title of the book refers to the name of a country, supposedly discovered by the protagonist. In the novel, it is not revealed where Erewhon is, but it is clear that it is a fictional country. Butler meant the title to be read as "NOWHERE" backwards even though the letters "h" and "w" are transposed. At first glance, Erewhon appears to be a Utopia, yet it soon becomes clear that this is far from the case. In a 1945 broadcast, George Orwell praised and recommended the book and said that...

"Erewhon" von Samuel Butler, erstmals 1872 veröffentlicht, entführt die Leser in eine fiktive Gesellschaft, deren Moral- und Werteordnung auf den Kopf gestellt scheint. In einer Mischung aus Utopie, Satire und Gesellschaftskritik schildert Butler die Entdeckung eines abgelegenen Landes, in dem Verhältnisse herrschen, die dem viktorianischen England auf paradoxe Weise spiegelverkehrt gegenüberstehen. Mit scharfem Witz, klarer Sprache und einem Hang zur Ironie entfaltet Butler eine kraftvolle Kritik an Industrialisierung, Religiosität und traditionellen Konventionen. Die literarische Form...