Butler, Samuel (1835-1902)

English writer. He made his name in 1872 with a satiric attack on contemporary utopianism, Erewhon (an anagram of nowhere). He is now remembered for his unfinished, semi-autobiographical discursive novel, The Way of All Flesh, a study of Victorian conventions, the causes and effects of the clash between generations, and religious hypocrisy (written and frequently revised 1873-84 and posthumously published in 1903).

The Fair Haven (1873) examined the miraculous element in Christianity. Life and Habit (1877) and other works were devoted to a criticism of the theory of natural selection. In The Authoress of the Odyssey (1897) he maintained that Homer's Odyssey was the work of a woman.

Erewhon shows remarkable foresight into the development of some phases of 20th-century society, and has invention, wit, and grace, as well as originality. Its sequel, Erewhon Revisited (1901), is a more polished story, and its dominating theme, the origins of a religious myth, gives it more cohesion, but it lacks the spontaneity of Erewhon.

Butler was born near Bingham, Nottinghamshire, studied at Cambridge University, and in 1859 went to New Zealand and became a sheep farmer. A First Year in Canterbury Settlement (1863), composed of letters home, was his first published work; he returned to England the following year. Butler was unsuccessful as a commercial author, publishing several of his books at his own expense.