This book explores a strand of utopianism in the modern west since the 17^th century. It is one of three books I have written on the topic, the others being The Great Year  and Astrology and Popular Religion in the Modern West. Utopianism teaches that there is such a thing as a perfect society. It overlaps with what we know as Millennial or Millenarian beliefs, in which it is thought that the world is about to enter a new phase of history which will represent a significant improvement on current conditions. They are part of the same family of ideas. I explore a range of utopian beliefs, beginning with the 18^th century European Enlightenment, in which it was believed that the end of organised Christianity and the rise of rationalism would lead to a new and better world; the theory of Progress, which assumes that history is driven by a deep mechanism in which the world inevitably moves towards western style science, atheism and democracy; Theosophy and the belief that the world is about to enter a spiritual New Age, the astrological belief in the coming Aquarian Age; and the counter-culture and hippy movement of the 1960s and the optimism of 1970s punk. The book closes with an exploration of American Neoconservatism, the belief that the whole world is destined to become like the USA, with a similar democratic system and free-market capitalism.

The three terms, millenarianism, utopianism and New Age all embody future-based perspectives in history, but all have different emphases. I see millenarianism and utopianism as embedded in modern New Age theory. My decision to include Neoconservatism was taken in the grounds that, while not conventionally included as part of New Age culture as narrowly defined as concerning spiritual renewal, it did depend on a sense of moral renewal, and therefore should be considered as a kind of what I call New-Ageism.

My conclusion is that, while such grand theories, or meta-narratives as they are sometimes known, are usually well-meaning, they ignore counter-evidence, complexity and local realities. For example, the theory of progress assumes that the advanced state of the modern west (which was represented in the 19^th century by Germany, France, Britain and the USA) necessarily pointed to the future of the rest of the world; inconvenient facts such as the way in which Progress theory underpinned the worst excesses of European imperialism were ignored; the Theosophical belief that evolution began with, and would return to, pure spirit, lacked any evidence; the prophecy of that the whole world will enter the Aquarian Age at the same time reduces the diversity of human history and culture to a few headlines; and Neoconservatism led to the chaotic and ultimately disastrous invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq.

My conclusion, though, is that beliefs that the world can be a better place can actually encourage people to make it better. There can be beneficial consequences: the Enlightenment provided a framework for emerging ideas of human rights and scientific inquiry; belief in the spiritual New Age provided a stimulus for radical art movements; and the 1960s counter-culture stimulated the emergence of second-wave feminism and the environmental movement. However, the downside is the belief that history must follow a single trajectory, ignoring different opinions, beliefs, practices and cultures. This then tends to authoritarianism. The alternative is pluralism and democracy.