News From Nowhere

William Morris (1834 - 1896)

News from Nowhere (1890) is a classic work combining utopian socialism and soft science fiction written by the artist, designer and socialist pioneer William Morris. In the book, the narrator, William Guest, falls asleep after returning from a meeting of the Socialist League and awakes to find himself in a future society based on common ownership and democratic control of the means of production. In this society there is no private property, no big cities, no authority, no monetary system, no divorce, no courts, no prisons, and no class systems. This agrarian society functions simply because the people find pleasure in nature, and therefore they find pleasure in their work. In the novel, Morris tackles one of the most common criticisms of socialism; the supposed lack of incentive to work in a communistic society. Morris' response is that all work should be creative and pleasurable. (Summary by Wikipedia)

Genre(s): Fantastic Fiction, Science Fiction

Language: English

Section Chapter Reader Time
Play 01 Chapter 1, Discussion and Bed Elizabeth Klett
00:06:14
Play 02 Chapter 2, A Morning Bath Elizabeth Klett
00:16:53
Play 03 Chapter 3, The Guest House and Breakfast Therein Elizabeth Klett
00:19:20
Play 04 Chapter 4, A Market By the Way Elizabeth Klett
00:06:37
Play 05 Chapter 5, Children on the Road Elizabeth Klett
00:14:04
Play 06 Chapter 6, A Little Shopping Elizabeth Klett
00:14:55
Play 07 Chapter 7, Trafalgar Square Elizabeth Klett
00:15:21
Play 08 Chapter 8, An Old Friend Elizabeth Klett
00:07:32
Play 09 Chapter 9, Concerning Love Elizabeth Klett
00:24:03
Play 10 Chapter 10, Questions and Answers Elizabeth Klett
00:24:02
Play 11 Chapter 11, Concerning Government Elizabeth Klett
00:08:40
Play 12 Chapter 12, Concerning the Arrangement of Life Elizabeth Klett
00:11:23
Play 13 Chapter 13, Concerning Politics and Chapter 14, How Matters Are Arranged Elizabeth Klett
00:12:00
Play 14 Chapter 15, On the Lack of Incentive to Labour in a Communist Society Elizabeth Klett
00:18:03
Play 15 Chapter 16, Dinner in the Hall of Bloomsbury Market Elizabeth Klett
00:08:36
Play 16 Chapter 17, Part 1, How the Change Came Elizabeth Klett
00:31:11
Play 17 Chapter 17, Part 2, How the Change Came Elizabeth Klett
00:27:38
Play 18 Chapter 18, The Beginning of the New Life Elizabeth Klett
00:11:08
Play 19 Chapter 19, The Drive Back to Hammersmith Elizabeth Klett
00:11:00
Play 20 Chapter 20, The Hammersmith Guest House Again, and Chapter 21, Going Up the River Elizabeth Klett
00:09:13
Play 21 Chapter 22, Hampton Court and a Praiser of Past Times Elizabeth Klett
00:20:46
Play 22 Chapter 23, An Early Morning By Runnymede Elizabeth Klett
00:11:57
Play 23 Chapter 24, Up the Thames: The Second Day Elizabeth Klett
00:18:31
Play 24 Chapter 25, The Third Day on the Thames Elizabeth Klett
00:08:59
Play 25 Chapter 26, The Obstinate Refusers Elizabeth Klett
00:09:08
Play 26 Chapter 27, The Upper Waters Elizabeth Klett
00:22:33
Play 27 Chapter 28, The Little River Elizabeth Klett
00:08:22
Play 28 Chapter 29, A Resting-Place on the Upper Thames Elizabeth Klett
00:10:06
Play 29 Chapter 30, The Journey's End Elizabeth Klett
00:12:04
Play 30 Chapter 31, An Old House Amongst New Folk Elizabeth Klett
00:10:50
Play 31 Chapter 32, The Feast's Beginning - The End Elizabeth Klett
00:13:15