Historical Dictionary of Socialism (2nd edition)

My spirits sank on first seeing the device adorning the front cover of this revised work. The upraised clenched fist of workers' determination to achieve freedom from capitalist exploitation is laid down, prostrate, grasping a pinkish flower. Conceivably an English rose? Do not judge a book by its cover! Exploration revealed a galaxy of articles on writers, activists, ideas, political parties, institutions and movements that sought (or still seek) “to change the social and political order”.

The term socialism has been variously construed. In the nineteenth century by such as Robert Owen, H.M. Hyndman, William Morris, Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels,...