"Edward Bellamy: Practical Utopian" is Sept. 29

Stephen R. Jendrysik, president of the Edward Bellamy Memorial Association, will present a lecture, “Edward Bellamy: Practical Utopian” at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 29, in the East Asian Room, Chester Fritz Library. It is free and open to all.

While it is fashionable to claim that utopian political and social ideals are only “castles in the air,” the reality is different. Edward Bellamy (1850-1898) combined utopian dreaming with practical political action in ways that still are evident today.  Jendrysik’s talk will examine how Bellamy combined dreams of a more just world with action to help bring that about.

Stephen R. Jendrysik is chair of the Chicopee (Mass.) Historical Commission. He taught history at Chicopee Comprehensive High School for 40 years and is the author of four books and producer of several documentary films on the history of Chicopee and Western Massachusetts.

The event is sponsored by the Department of Political Science and Public Administration, the Department of History and Pi Sigma Alpha.