Looking Backward: 2000-1887

Imagine falling asleep in 1887 and waking up in the year 2000 to find that America has been utterly transformed. That is the startling premise of Edward Bellamy's Looking Backward, a novel that captivated readers when it was published in 1888 and inspired a nationwide movement for social reform.

Julian West, a young Bostonian of privilege, is hypnotized to cure his insomnia and awakens more than a century later in a society without poverty, competition, or class conflict. Guided by Dr. Leete and his daughter Edith, Julian explores a world of cooperation and equality, and must decide whether this future is a dream or a reality.

Part romance, part social vision, Looking Backward remains a key text for understanding nineteenth-century American hopes and anxieties. It will appeal to readers interested in utopian fiction, political history, and the enduring question of how to build a just society.

This edition contains the complete text of the novel, a new introduction, a character guide, a summary, a list of themes, a glossary of period terms, and discussion questions for readers and book clubs.