The Pattern Of Expectation: 1644-2001
Condition: SECONDHAND
This is a secondhand book. The jacket image is a photograph of the exact copy we have in stock. This image shows the condition of this book. Further condition remarks are below.
Condition remarks:
Condition: Good. Jacket: Worn/faded, no tears. Page Condition: Good. Markings: Previous owner. Binding: Intact. No stickers or library stamps visible.
A rich and authoritative work of intellectual history, The Pattern of Expectation: 1644–2001 chronicles over three centuries of humanity's attempts to imagine and predict the future. I.F. Clarke argues that the tradition of futuristic speculation — from early utopian writings to the golden age of science fiction — reflects the social anxieties, technological ambitions, and political dreams of each era. The book presents a sweeping survey of prophetic literature, tracing how writers, thinkers, and visionaries from the seventeenth century onward shaped and were shaped by the possibilities of progress and catastrophe. Clarke illustrates how the art of forecasting the future is itself a cultural mirror, revealing as much about the present moment as about any imagined tomorrow. Scholarly yet engaging in tone, this is an essential text for anyone interested in the history of ideas, the origins of speculative fiction, and the enduring human impulse to look ahead.
Author: I.F. Clarke
Format: Hardback
Published: 1979, Basic Books, Inc., Publishers
Genre: History
Condition remarks:
Condition: Good. Jacket: Worn/faded, no tears. Page Condition: Good. Markings: Previous owner. Binding: Intact. No stickers or library stamps visible.
A rich and authoritative work of intellectual history, The Pattern of Expectation: 1644–2001 chronicles over three centuries of humanity's attempts to imagine and predict the future. I.F. Clarke argues that the tradition of futuristic speculation — from early utopian writings to the golden age of science fiction — reflects the social anxieties, technological ambitions, and political dreams of each era. The book presents a sweeping survey of prophetic literature, tracing how writers, thinkers, and visionaries from the seventeenth century onward shaped and were shaped by the possibilities of progress and catastrophe. Clarke illustrates how the art of forecasting the future is itself a cultural mirror, revealing as much about the present moment as about any imagined tomorrow. Scholarly yet engaging in tone, this is an essential text for anyone interested in the history of ideas, the origins of speculative fiction, and the enduring human impulse to look ahead.