Christchurch Ping (Translated Classics)

Author: (German) Andrea von Andrea, translated by Huang Zonghan
Publisher:
Publishing Date:
Features: Like Utopia and City of the Sun, The Christ City also adopts the genre of a literary travelogue to describe a new socialist system of public ownership of productive forces on a mythical overseas island. However, the specific writing style differs. This book was written by Johann von Andrea (1586–1654), a 17th-century German theologian and Christian abbott, and together with More's Utopia and Campanella's City of the Sun, it is known as one of the three earliest pearls in the history of Western utopian socialism. The book uses the genre of a literary travelogue to depict an ideal nation—the Christ City—on an island in Antarctica. In this small city with a small population, a three-person government is in place, implementing a socialist system of public ownership of productive forces. Everyone participates in labor, with no exploitation or oppression. As a result, handicrafts and agriculture are highly developed, science and culture flourish, and the people not only enjoy abundant material lives but also rich spiritual lives.