Educated Fear and Educated Hope: Dystopia, Utopia and the Plasticity of Humanity

TLDR: The role of dystopia in radicalizing educational demands for systemic change is explored in this paper, where the authors argue that education is not just an institution of unrefl ective socialization, if it is about futurity, it has to renegotiate utopian thought.

Abstract: Educated fear, i.e., a critical awareness of dystopian realities, and educated hope, i.e., a critical awareness of the possibility of human perfectibility cohabit a theoretical space that breaks with utopianist modern theoretical underpinnings and becomes historically and spatially more inclusive, while retaining the motivational and justifi catory force of ethical imagery. If education is not just an institution of unrefl ective socialization, if it is about futurity, it has to renegotiate utopian thought. As the interest in utopia is being renewed both in general philosophy and philosophy of education and as dystopia is still neglected, a book that re-defi nes utopianism and explores for the fi rst time the role of dystopia in radicalizing educational demands for systemic change is indispensable for Utopian Studies, Philosophy and Philosophy of Education academics and students alike.