Addendum to the Arcadian Myth. Science Fiction and Contemporary Utopian Discourse in Architecture

The post-modern disappointment with modern utopia, with the megalopolis as its preferred example, represents the general context of the present study. More particularly, in the context of contemporary re-evaluations of modernity, the paper tries to see whether holding to the validity of the modern paradigm, in respect to the scientific model, may still create space for contemporary utopia. In the realm of architecture, such texts do exist, but a framework of analysis is needed in order to make their evaluation. Addressing the intrinsic relation between myth and utopia, under its various forms (rural – city, nature – culture, domus – megalopolis), the paper borrows from science-fiction criticism considerations on such discourses and proposes a possible set of criteria for their analysis.

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