William Morris in the Twenty-First Century: (20 Cultural Interactions: Studies in the Relationship between the Arts)

William Morris was one of the outstanding writers, artists and political activists of the nineteenth century. This book examines the significance of his legacy and his continuing influence in the twenty-first century. Currently many of Morris’s primary concerns are once again at the forefront of social, political and academic debate, and his work continues to attract interest across a range of academic disciplines. Now is a particularly apt time for the publication of this collection of new essays, which opens up original areas of debate and encourages innovative ways of approaching and understanding William Morris in a new century. The book contains essays from scholars and professionals researching and working in fields relevant to Morris’s diverse interests. The contributors offer a reappraisal of his achievements and influence in areas such as literature, art, architecture, politics, environmentalism, science and technology. The essays provide a comprehensive introduction for those new to Morris Studies whilst presenting a series of fresh perspectives for those already familiar with Morris’s work.

Table of Contents:
Contents: Regenia Gagnier: Preface – Phillippa Bennett/Rosie Miles: Introduction: Morris in the Twenty-First Century – Maria Isabel Donas Botto: On (Re)Building the City: William Morris and the Regeneration of the British City – Ruth Levitas: After Morris: Warwick Herbert Draper and the Pursuit of Utopia – Jan Marsh: Red House: Past and Future – Hilary Laucks Walter: Another Stitch to the Legacy of William Morris: May Morris’s Designs and Writings on Embroidery – Tony Pinkney: Versions of Ecotopia in News from Nowhere – Piers J. Hale: William Morris, Human Nature and the Biology of Utopia – Peter Smith: Attractive Labour and Social Change: William Morris Now – David Mabb: Hijack: Morris Dialectically – Anna Vaninskaya: William Morris’s Germania: The Roots of Socialism – David Latham: Between Hell and England: Finding Ourselves in the Present Text – Phillippa Bennett: Rejuvenating Our Sense of Wonder: The Last Romances of William Morris – Rosie Miles: Virtual Paradise: Editing Morris for the Twenty-First Century – Thomas J. Tobin: William Morris 2.0: Spreading Socialist Ideals via the Internet – Peter Preston: Afterword.

About the Author :
Phillippa Bennett is Senior Lecturer in English at the University of Northampton. She is Honorary Secretary of the William Morris Society and a member of the Editorial Advisory Board for the Journal of William Morris Studies. She has published a number of articles on William Morris and has a particular interest in his last romances and their relationship to his political and aesthetic ideals. Rosie Miles is Senior Lecturer in English at the University of Wolverhampton. From 2001 to 2007 she was Editor of the Journal of William Morris Studies and she is now a member of the Editorial Advisory Board. She has published a number of articles on Morris’s poetry and the book arts.

Review :
«Philippa Bennett and Rosie Miles have brought together a selection of essays in ‘William Morris in the Twenty-First Century’ (Peter Lang) that examines the significance of Morris’s legacy and continuing influence» (The Guardian, ‘Readers recommend their favourite books of 2010’)