Faculty of Education - Theses
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ItemUtopia, community and education : Robert Owen and the co-operative movement, Britain 1800-1845(University of Melbourne, 1986)Mankind seems to entertain a perennial dissatisfaction with the present. The ideal of a better, even perfected, future is also perennial and equally likely to occur in the individual consciousness as the collective one. In times of turmoil and hardship, the more visionary individuals have articulated schemes for a better future, and these have become known as 'utopias'. This thesis represents an exploration of one episode of utopian thought. Robert Owen's vision for a better world was formed against the background of the industrialization of Britain early in the nineteenth century. In the following analysis of Owen's thinking, three contentions are posited: 1. Owen and the followers of his doctrines saw an inextricable link between education and the community. 2. Owenism can profitably be interpreted within the context of the tradition of utopian thought. 3. The concept of community provides a wholeness and unity in Owen's thinking. The first chapter examines the nature of utopian thought, something which appears necessary to understand Owen's concept of the community. Subsequent chapters deal with Owen's design for the ideal community, the mode of education he felt should attend this, and the links between the two. The conclusion summarizes and draws together the above contentions, considers the possibilities for further research, and argues for the relevance of Owen as a possible theoretical precursor to current educational thinking which emphasizes the role of the community.
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ItemThree visions of Utopia : the educational and social theories of Plato, Bellamy and Morris( 1985)The evidence of early Western literature such as the written version of Homer's oral epic poems and Hesiod's Works and Days suggests that the impulse to speculate about a better time and place in human social experience than a given present is not a recent phenomenon. The early chapters of this thesis postulate a link between recent and ancient examples of the genre of Utopianism and speculate on sociological significance in relevant mythology from Ancient Greece. Reference is made to the conclusions of Carl Jung about the significance of dream and symbol in human psychology and Sir Thomas More's contribution to Ui-opianism. The main part of the thesis incorporates an eximinatiori of the khree selected works compatible with these observations, as a result of which the following contentions are posited and explored: 1 the genre has its genesis in dissatisfaction with a social and political environment, 2 the general concept of Utopia first becomes a specific genre In Western literature as a process involving the exposition of political social, moral, economic and educational philosophies in the hands of Plato in his Republic, 3 exponents of the concept and genre since Plato implicitly acknowledge a debt to him in subject matter, areas of concern, style and technique, 4 a clear educational philosophy is patently central to each social philosophy presented in the three examples under discussion. In each case, analysis of the text is preceded by a summary of relevant contemporary historical and philosophical data and a brief biographical background of the author. Some speculation has been offered about the intentions and aims of the authors and attention has been focused on particular influences which may have affected them. The Conclusion is a summary of the similarities which have corne to light as a result of comparison of the texts, and a comment on the value and importance of the genre. It will be apparent to the reader that this writer could not remain impervious to the literary impact of the texts themselves and, although spasmodic attempts have been made at objectivity, no apology is offered for any residual traces of self-indulgent delight in the study of the primary sources i hold it as a self-evident truth that the richness of the ideas explored is correlative to the quality of the medium in which they are expressed. Note on the spelling of Greek words in translation Since there is some disagreement over the spelling of Greek words in translation 1 have chosen the commonly-used "c" in preference to "k" where applicable and retained it for the sake of consistency except only in the case of references to Lattimore's translation of the Odyssey, where the spelling of some words is central to the argument.
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ItemUtopia, community and education: Robert Owen and the co-operative movement, Britain 1800-1845( 1986)Mankind seems to entertain a perennial dissatisfaction with the present. The ideal of a better, even perfected, future is also perennial and equally likely to occur in the individual consciousness as the collective one. In times of turmoil and hardship, the more visionary individuals have articulated schemes for a better future, and these have become known as 'utopias'. This thesis represents an exploration of one episode of utopian thought. Robert Owen's vision for a better world was formed against the background of the industrialization of Britain early in the nineteenth century. In the following analysis of Owen's thinking, three contentions are posited: 1. Owen and the followers of his doctrines saw an inextricable link between education and the community. 2. Owenism can profitably be interpreted within the context of the tradition of utopian thought. 3. The concept of community provides a wholeness and unity in Owen's thinking. The first chapter examines the nature of utopian thought, something which appears necessary to understand Owen's concept of the community. Subsequent chapters deal with Owen's design for the ideal community, the mode of education he felt should attend this, and the links between the two. The conclusion summarizes and draws together the above contentions, considers the possibilities for further research, and argues for the relevance of Owen as a possible theoretical precursor to current educational thinking which emphasizes the role of the community.