Humanity constantly seeks change to improve itself, whether through economic restructuring, political reforms or educational programs. When a set of these changes towards progress integrate well together, while possessing a common and all-encompassing goal, an author is able to construct his version of utopia: a futuristic and ideal society that appears significantly more attractive and desirable than that current. Often, this new society will be radically different, eliminating long-standing political and economic structures, sometimes replacing them, other times leaving them out of the picture. However, such radical changes often encounter skeptical minds: that is, readers are so far from the current society that the new one is inconceivable and therefore lacks the full charm or proper consideration desired by the author. This is why many utopians are forced to make some concessions in their writings, which sometimes leads to a lack of completeness in the represented utopia. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayThis lack of completeness is one of the crucial problems that Edward Bellamy encounters even though he paints a rather detailed and broad picture of his version of utopia throughout the novel Looking Backward. In his book he outlines a futuristic utopia set in the 20th century in which humanity lives in a much more collaborative and unified way. Concepts such as money or laws no longer exist, while the motivation to steal or cheat has simply dissolved. The general public, as opposed to private institutions, now has control over capital, viewing it as a collective entity. Furthermore, militaristic armies have dissipated and in their place has arisen a cohesive workforce, which Bellamy calls the “industrial army” (118). All these innovative concepts are connected largely through the dialogue of the narrator, Julian West, who, through a rather bizarre and long sleep, finds himself in the nineteenth century one day and the twentieth century the next, and Doctor Leete, an inhabitant of Bellamy's twentieth-century utopia. However, even with such radical changes, Bellamy is forced to make concessions and leave some questions unanswered to ease the minds of his readers, circumvent conflicting aspects, and increase the appeal of his utopia. While these episodes of retraction are limited and few, they still remain crucial, as they prevent Bellamy from presenting the full scope of his utopian vision. In Looking Backward, most strikingly, there are two main aspects that generate this sense of incompleteness along with contradiction and tension for Bellamy's utopian society. One is the character portrait of the Leete family, which is depicted using the blueprint of a stereotypical Victorian era family. The other is isolationism, both socially and internationally, since the Leete family interacts very little with other members of this society and since Bellamy pays very little attention to international concerns. First, Edith Leete's conventional, Victorian female personality is a front on which Bellamy's concessions emerge subtly but significantly. Kenneth Roemer, in his essay "Literary Domestication of Utopia", analyzes the role that Edith, the daughter of the Leete family rather fond of Julian West, plays in ingratiating herself with nineteenth-century readers. Roemer notes how Edith is characterized by still maintaining those characteristics and interests that are believed to be kept in the foreground by women, such as shopping and particular concern for the style ofclothing. He even points to her crying episodes as manifestations of typically feminine qualities. Furthermore, Roemer refers to Edith's understanding and caring personality, as she supports Julian as he sinks into a state of consternation at the thought of how his life turned out so well. She quickly transformed upon entering a totally different society (110-111). With this portrayal of Edith's character, Bellamy is able to maintain the long-standing and conventional qualities that separate the sexes, which further allows the audience to hold on to something familiar to their own society. This return to typical gender distinction seems trivial, however, until one views Edith's contradictory behavior when placed in light of Dr. Leete's description of women in this utopian society. When asked how 20th century women behave in times of love, Dr. Leete replies: "There is no more pretense of hiding feelings on their part than on the part of their lovers. Coquetry would be just as despised in a girl as in a man" (Bellamy 201). However, Edith does not live up to this description; immediately after Julian professes his love for her, Edith's face is marked by shyness and timidity (220). Furthermore, when Edith finally gains enough confidence to tell Julian her love for him, she professes it in the most roundabout way: “Are you sure it's not you who's blind” (221)? Therefore, Edith's actions in this situation contradict the description given by Doctor Leete, which indicates the tension Bellamy is under. He appears to be pushing towards a more egalitarian perspective between the sexes in this society, but he makes concessions on some grounds so that his audience - upper-middle class Americans of the late nineteenth century - continues to understand this society on the basis of the relationship to the familiarity of stereotypical Victorian characters. On similar ground, no reference is ever made to Edith or Mrs Leete's profession in society, whereas it is clear what Doctor Leete does. Bellamy, in an attempt to return to the stereotypical and conventional family structure, underlines the dependence on the patriarchal figure. This concept of dependence on the father, however, seems highly incongruous with Dr. Leete's statement in response to Julian's hypothesis that wives are dependent on their husbands: "Of course they are not, nor are children on their parents, that is, for means of subsistence..." (199). Bellamy favors this compromise so that the audience can continue to better relate to the society he is describing. For example, the plot once again leads the reader to see clear boundaries in gender relations: "That evening I lay awake for a while after the ladies had retired, talking to Dr. Leete about the effects of the plan..." (159 ). Although this is such a subtle incident, it reveals a lot about the air of superiority possessed by men in this society, demonstrating that conversations about such intellectual or political matters would not concern or have much value for women. Once again, one must ask which gender path Bellamy is truly following: the proclaimed egalitarian one or the one that still retains distinct boundaries, characteristic of the Victorian era? In addition to this pressing tension that creates a dichotomy between the sexes, Bellamy is eager to create certain that reveals Doctor Leete's profession. In a community where everyone is equal, everyone is happy, and everyone is rich, why choose a doctor as the person who represents such a society? Bellamy's logic in this case most likely comes from the idea that he needs to show to his audience, most of whom possess similar types of positionsprestigious or vocations in society, that these same upper class people are still happy in a society where they are considered equal to their neighbors, who may be garbage collectors or some profession conventionally labeled as inferior. If Bellamy had chosen to portray this utopia through someone else, such as a coal miner, his readers would have been very skeptical that the rich still maintained their standard of living, despite the marked difference in quality of life among miners of 19th century coal. century and those of the twentieth century may have been very effective in demonstrating the change in the quality of life. Nonetheless, it must be remembered that the majority of the public will be primarily interested in maintaining their own luxurious position in society, and only secondarily pursue the aggrandizement of other members of the lower classes. However, it could be argued that the reason Bellamy chose a doctor is to provide someone who has a higher education, thus possessing greater knowledge of the structure of society. While this may allow the reader to better understand the full scope of utopian society, Bellamy's decision to choose a doctor, at least, partly serves to target this book at a specific audience characterized by high class and affluence. The portrayal of characters in this novel is not the only aspect that hinders the complete and coherent presentation of Bellamy's utopia; the concept of isolationism, both socially and internationally, also contributes to this tension that Bellamy deals with. First, isolation on a social level, that is, within the city of Boston, is very evident throughout the novel. Merritt Abrash, in her essay "Looking Backward: Marxism Americanized," points out that there is very little interaction with other citizens, and Bellamy does not include many references to relatives, family friends, neighbors, or even acquaintances of the Leete family. . In situations where it would be appropriate to describe the social interactions between the citizens of this utopian society, such as in the schools (Abrash 238), Julian states, "I will not describe in detail what I saw in the schools that day," which seems rather evasive to part of Bellamy (Bellamy 175). Additionally, much of the novel is set in the Leete family home, with minimal travel around the city or enjoyment of the statues and parks that have been built for the public's enjoyment. Why does Bellamy choose to isolate the Leete family to such an extent? Is this utopian society truly characterized by dullness and little human interaction, or is Bellamy once again caught in the tangled threads of this tension and forced to provide yet another concession? Perhaps, Bellamy faced a durability issue, which led him to limit social interaction simply between Julian and the Leete family; however, his lack of virtually any interaction between other members of society indicates a different motive. By observing how radical and extreme Bellamy presents this concept of "brotherhood" and common unity, one can discern that Bellamy realized that it would be strategic to isolate the Leete family while maintaining and emphasizing their individual identity as a family (Bellamy 122) . The concept of family has been rooted in almost every type of culture throughout history, and to tamper with it, or even to propose the idea of ​​dissolving it, would mean losing the interest and respect of many readers (Roemer, “Utopia and Victorian Cultures,” 322). In addition to this social isolation, little attention is paid to international concerns. Bellamy assumes that all other nations would easily fall right behind America in transforming.