This article explores the surprising intersection of poetry and utopian literature, examining how poets from the 17th to 20th centuries used verse to imagine ideal societies, critique existing ones, and explore themes of perfection, mortality, and transcendence.
About Our Editorial Process
This guide is prepared using historical bibliographic research,
literary references, and structured analysis of recognized works.
Books in this guide are grouped using bibliographic information, subject relationships, and the scope of the catalogue.
About This Literary Category
The classification of poetry under 'Science Fiction Utopias' may seem incongruous, but it reflects a long tradition of poets engaging with ideal societies and speculative futures. From the pastoral idylls of the 17th century to the dystopian undercurrents of the 19th, poetry has served as a vehicle for utopian thought, often more subtly than prose. The Romantic poets, for instance, envisioned a return to nature and a harmonious society, while Victorian poets grappled with the consequences of industrialization and empire. This category brings together works that, while not science fiction in the modern sense, share a concern with the ideal—whether it be a heavenly city, a perfect commonwealth, or a state of grace. The poems in this collection often use allegory, dream vision, and satire to explore what a perfect world might look like, and how far their own societies fell short. By reading these works through a utopian lens, we uncover a rich vein of social critique and imaginative longing that continues to resonate today.
Historical Date Notes
This list uses the site’s offline bibliographic registry. A first-publication year is shown only when an explicit date is present in the work’s title or issue information. Books without such evidence remain listed as Date not confirmed; no year is guessed.
- Date not confirmed: A Little Book of Western Verse — Text and Context
- Date not confirmed: Christmas Eve — Key Ideas to Explore
- Date not confirmed: Drum-Taps — Edition Insights
- Date not confirmed: Greybeards at Play: Literature and Art for Old Gentlemen — Key Ideas to Explore
- Date not confirmed: Poetical Works of Edmund Waller and Sir John Denham — Edition Insights
- Date not confirmed: Poetical Works of Johnson, Parnell, Gray, and Smollett With Memoirs, Critical Dissertations, and Explanatory Notes — Inside the Classic
- Date not confirmed: Songs from Books — Story, Setting & Ideas
- Date not confirmed: The Book of Joyous Children — Key Ideas to Explore
- Date not confirmed: The Bridal of Pennacook Part 2 From Volume I of The Works of John Greenleaf Whittier — Context and Discussion
- Date not confirmed: The Pearl A Middle English Poem, A Modern Version in the Metre of the Original — Key Ideas to Explore
- Date not confirmed: The Visions of England Lyrics on leading men and events in English History — Themes and Context
- Date not confirmed: War is Kind — Background and Themes
Author Bibliographical Footprint
A breakdown of primary literary contributors and their recorded volume within this collection:
| Author Name | Cataloged Works | Representative Titles |
|---|---|---|
| Browning, Robert, 1812-1889 | 1 | Christmas Eve — Key Ideas to Explore |
| Whitman, Walt, 1819-1892 | 1 | Drum-Taps — Edition Insights |
| Whittier, John Greenleaf, 1807-1892 | 1 | The Bridal of Pennacook Part 2 From Volume I of The Works of John Greenleaf Whittier — Context and Discussion |
| Field, Eugene, 1850-1895, Field, Roswell Martin, 1851-1919 [Contributor] | 1 | A Little Book of Western Verse — Text and Context |
| Crane, Stephen, 1871-1900 | 1 | War is Kind — Background and Themes |
| Gilfillan, George, 1813-1878 [Editor], Gray, Thomas, 1716-1771, Johnson, Samuel, 1709-1784, Parnell, Thomas, 1679-1718, Smollett, T. (Tobias), 1721-1771 | 1 | Poetical Works of Johnson, Parnell, Gray, and Smollett With Memoirs, Critical Dissertations, and Explanatory Notes — Inside the Classic |
| Denham, John, Sir, 1615-1669, Gilfillan, George, 1813-1878 [Contributor], Waller, Edmund, 1606-1687 | 1 | Poetical Works of Edmund Waller and Sir John Denham — Edition Insights |
| Jewett, Sophie, 1861-1909 | 1 | The Pearl A Middle English Poem, A Modern Version in the Metre of the Original — Key Ideas to Explore |
| Chesterton, G. K. (Gilbert Keith), 1874-1936 | 1 | Greybeards at Play: Literature and Art for Old Gentlemen — Key Ideas to Explore |
| Kipling, Rudyard, 1865-1936 | 1 | Songs from Books — Story, Setting & Ideas |
| Riley, James Whitcomb, 1849-1916, Vawter, Will, 1871-1941 [Illustrator] | 1 | The Book of Joyous Children — Key Ideas to Explore |
| Morley, Henry, 1822-1894 [Editor], Palgrave, Francis Turner, 1824-1897 | 1 | The Visions of England Lyrics on leading men and events in English History — Themes and Context |
Date Coverage
For the books discussed in this article, 0 have an explicit first-publication or issue date and 12 remain unconfirmed. Unconfirmed dates are deliberately left unresolved rather than inferred.
Critical Analysis of Core Masterpieces
Christmas Eve — Key Ideas to Explore
by Browning, Robert, 1812-1889
Historical Significance
Browning's dramatic monologue exemplifies the Victorian fascination with spiritual crisis and the search for authentic faith amidst sectarian division.
Historical Context
Published in 1850, the poem reflects the religious debates of the Victorian era, including the Oxford Movement and the rise of biblical criticism.
Literary Style
Dramatic monologue with irregular rhyme and enjambment, creating a restless, anxious voice that mirrors the speaker's spiritual journey.
Writing Style
Browning uses vivid sensory details and abrupt shifts in setting to dramatize the speaker's internal debate between different modes of belief.
Major Themes
Faith versus doubt, the nature of religious experience, the tension between institutional religion and personal revelation.
Critical Reception
Initially received as a complex and challenging work, later praised for its psychological depth and formal innovation.
Legacy
Influenced later poets like T.S. Eliot in its use of fragmented consciousness and spiritual questing.
Adaptations
None known.
Recommended Audience
Readers interested in Victorian poetry, religious philosophy, and dramatic monologue.
Reading Difficulty
Moderate to difficult due to dense allusions and irregular meter.
Main Characters
The speaker (unnamed), the congregation, the critic at Göttingen.
Setting
A small chapel, a Gothic cathedral, and a lecture hall in Göttingen, mid-19th century.
Literary Movement
Victorian poetry, dramatic monologue tradition.
Similar Books
Browning's 'The Ring and the Book', Matthew Arnold's 'Dover Beach'.
Key Literary Concepts
Related Topics
Poetical Works of Johnson, Parnell, Gray, and Smollett With Memoirs, Critical Dissertations, and Explanatory Notes — Inside the Classic
by Gilfillan, George, 1813-1878 [Editor], Gray, Thomas, 1716-1771, Johnson, Samuel, 1709-1784, Parnell, Thomas, 1679-1718, Smollett, T. (Tobias), 1721-1771
Historical Significance
This collection preserves the works of four major 18th-century poets, edited by a Victorian critic, bridging neoclassical and Romantic sensibilities.
Historical Context
The poems span the 18th century, a period of Enlightenment rationalism, political upheaval, and the rise of sensibility.
Literary Style
Johnson uses Juvenalian satire and moral epigram; Gray employs elegiac stanzas and meditative lyricism; Parnell and Smollett offer lighter, occasional verse.
Writing Style
Gilfillan's editorial apparatus provides biographical and critical context, shaping the reader's encounter with the poems.
Major Themes
Mortality, the vanity of human wishes, the passage of time, the consolations of art.
Critical Reception
Johnson and Gray were highly regarded in their time; the collection reflects Victorian reverence for 18th-century poetry.
Legacy
Gray's 'Elegy' remains one of the most famous English poems; Johnson's satires are studied as models of moral verse.
Adaptations
None known.
Recommended Audience
Students of 18th-century literature, readers interested in neoclassical poetry and its Victorian reception.
Reading Difficulty
Moderate; some classical allusions require annotation.
Main Characters
Not applicable (lyric and satirical poetry).
Setting
18th-century England, with references to London, country churchyards, and classical antiquity.
Literary Movement
Neoclassicism, Augustan poetry, Graveyard school.
Similar Books
Johnson's 'Lives of the Poets', Gray's 'Odes'.
Key Literary Concepts
Related Topics
Poetical Works of Edmund Waller and Sir John Denham — Edition Insights
by Denham, John, Sir, 1615-1669, Gilfillan, George, 1813-1878 [Contributor], Waller, Edmund, 1606-1687
Historical Significance
Waller and Denham were pivotal in developing the heroic couplet and shaping Restoration poetry.
Historical Context
The poems respond to the English Civil War, the Restoration, and the political intrigues of the 17th century.
Literary Style
Waller uses polished, end-stopped couplets for courtly panegyric; Denham employs a more discursive, enjambed style for moral and religious reflection.
Writing Style
Gilfillan's Victorian editorial voice mediates the 17th-century texts, emphasizing biography and moral judgment.
Major Themes
Political power, flattery, religious sincerity, the role of the poet in society.
Critical Reception
Waller was admired for his smoothness; Denham for his topographic and moral verse. Gilfillan's edition reflects Victorian tastes.
Legacy
Waller influenced the development of the heroic couplet; Denham's 'Cooper's Hill' is a precursor to topographical poetry.
Adaptations
None known.
Recommended Audience
Scholars of Restoration literature, readers interested in the evolution of English verse forms.
Reading Difficulty
Moderate; some historical references require footnotes.
Main Characters
Not applicable (lyric and panegyric poetry).
Setting
17th-century England, including court, country estates, and religious contexts.
Literary Movement
Restoration poetry, Cavalier poets, Augustan precursors.
Similar Books
John Dryden's 'Absalom and Achitophel', Andrew Marvell's 'Upon Appleton House'.
Key Literary Concepts
Related Topics
The Pearl A Middle English Poem, A Modern Version in the Metre of the Original — Key Ideas to Explore
by Jewett, Sophie, 1861-1909
Historical Significance
The Pearl is one of the finest Middle English poems, a masterpiece of alliterative verse and dream vision allegory.
Historical Context
Composed in the late 14th century, likely by the same poet as Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, in the Northwest-Midland dialect.
Literary Style
Alliterative verse with a complex twelve-line stanza and refrain, creating a meditative, lyrical rhythm.
Writing Style
Jewett's translation preserves the original's meter and alliteration, making the medieval work accessible while retaining its formal beauty.
Major Themes
Loss and consolation, the nature of salvation, the pearl as symbol of purity and the kingdom of heaven.
Critical Reception
Highly regarded by medievalists; Jewett's translation praised for its fidelity and poetic quality.
Legacy
Influenced modern poets like J.R.R. Tolkien; a key text in Middle English studies.
Adaptations
Musical settings and modern translations exist.
Recommended Audience
Students of medieval literature, readers interested in dream visions and religious allegory.
Reading Difficulty
Moderate; the translation is accessible but the original is challenging.
Main Characters
The Dreamer (narrator), the Pearl Maiden (his daughter), the Lamb (Christ).
Setting
A garden and the New Jerusalem, in a dream vision.
Literary Movement
Middle English alliterative revival, dream vision tradition.
Similar Books
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Piers Plowman.
Key Literary Concepts
Related Topics
Drum-Taps — Edition Insights
by Whitman, Walt, 1819-1892
Historical Significance
Whitman's Drum-Taps is a landmark of Civil War poetry, capturing the war's physical and psychological impact with unprecedented immediacy.
Historical Context
Written during the American Civil War (1861-1865), reflecting Whitman's experiences as a nurse in Washington hospitals.
Literary Style
Free verse with cataloging, anaphora, and shifting perspectives, from panoramic battle scenes to intimate bedside moments.
Writing Style
Whitman uses sensory detail and a democratic voice, oscillating between public summons and private grief.
Major Themes
War and its human cost, the tension between patriotic rhetoric and individual suffering, reconciliation and memory.
Critical Reception
Initially overlooked, later recognized as a central work of American poetry, praised for its realism and compassion.
Legacy
Influenced war poetry of the 20th century, including Wilfred Owen and the poets of World War I.
Adaptations
Musical settings by composers like Ralph Vaughan Williams.
Recommended Audience
Readers of American poetry, Civil War enthusiasts, students of war literature.
Reading Difficulty
Moderate; free verse is accessible but thematically complex.
Main Characters
The speaker (often Whitman himself), wounded soldiers, a mother, a comrade.
Setting
American Civil War battlefields, camps, hospitals, and home fronts, 1860s.
Literary Movement
American Romanticism, free verse, war poetry.
Similar Books
Whitman's 'Leaves of Grass', Stephen Crane's 'War is Kind'.
Key Literary Concepts
Related Topics
The Bridal of Pennacook Part 2 From Volume I of The Works of John Greenleaf Whittier — Context and Discussion
by Whittier, John Greenleaf, 1807-1892
Historical Significance
Whittier's poem is an early example of using Native American history for poetic narrative, blending documentary and romanticism.
Historical Context
Published in 1848, during a period of westward expansion and debates over Native American removal.
Literary Style
Iambic pentameter with enjambment and occasional couplets, combining travelogue, historical note, and dramatic narrative.
Writing Style
Whittier uses specific place names and natural imagery to ground the story, while the narrator's voice shifts between omniscient and sympathetic.
Major Themes
Cultural conflict, the role of women in indigenous societies, the rigidity of custom, divided loyalties.
Critical Reception
Whittier was a popular poet; this poem is less known but valued for its historical content.
Legacy
Contributes to the 19th-century literary treatment of Native Americans, alongside works by Longfellow and Cooper.
Adaptations
None known.
Recommended Audience
Readers interested in 19th-century American poetry, Native American history, and narrative verse.
Reading Difficulty
Moderate; some historical references require context.
Main Characters
Weetamoo (the bride), Winnepurkit (her husband), Passaconaway (her father).
Setting
17th-century New England, specifically the Pennacook and Saugus territories.
Literary Movement
American Romanticism, narrative poetry, local color.
Similar Books
Longfellow's 'The Song of Hiawatha', Cooper's 'The Last of the Mohicans'.
Key Literary Concepts
Related Topics
Greybeards at Play: Literature and Art for Old Gentlemen — Key Ideas to Explore
by Chesterton, G. K. (Gilbert Keith), 1874-1936
Historical Significance
Chesterton's early collection exemplifies the Edwardian nonsense tradition, blending philosophical play with social satire.
Historical Context
Published in 1900, at the turn of the century, reflecting a fin-de-siècle fascination with childhood and the absurd.
Literary Style
Regular meter and rhyme, often in quatrains, with mock-heroic tone and sudden shifts from cosmic to trivial.
Writing Style
Chesterton uses a deliberately inconsistent voice, oscillating between intimate confidant and grandiose philosopher.
Major Themes
The wisdom of childishness, the absurdity of adulthood, the value of play, the paradox of age.
Critical Reception
Less known than Chesterton's later works, but appreciated for its wit and formal skill.
Legacy
Influences the English nonsense tradition and later comic verse.
Adaptations
None known.
Recommended Audience
Fans of Chesterton, readers of nonsense verse, those interested in Edwardian literature.
Reading Difficulty
Easy; the poems are short and playful, but allusions may require footnotes.
Main Characters
The speaker (a greybeard), a childhood friend.
Setting
Not specified; the poems are abstract and domestic.
Literary Movement
Edwardian nonsense verse, late Victorian comic poetry.
Similar Books
Edward Lear's 'Book of Nonsense', Lewis Carroll's 'Alice in Wonderland'.
Key Literary Concepts
Related Topics
Songs from Books — Story, Setting & Ideas
by Kipling, Rudyard, 1865-1936
Historical Significance
Kipling's collection gathers poems from his prose works, showcasing his range from imperial duty to domestic intimacy.
Historical Context
Published in 1912, during the height of the British Empire, reflecting Kipling's complex views on imperialism and duty.
Literary Style
Varied meters and forms, from anapestic military verses to stately quatrains, often using refrains and dialect.
Writing Style
Kipling adopts multiple voices—animals, soldiers, prodigal sons—creating a polyphonic exploration of duty and transience.
Major Themes
Imperial duty, the passage of time, the tension between endurance and fragility, the voice of the subaltern.
Critical Reception
Kipling's poetry was immensely popular; 'If—' became a cultural touchstone. Later criticism has debated his imperialist views.
Legacy
'If—' remains one of the most quoted English poems; the collection is a key text for understanding Kipling's worldview.
Adaptations
Musical settings and recitations of 'If—'.
Recommended Audience
Readers of Kipling, students of British imperial literature, poetry enthusiasts.
Reading Difficulty
Moderate; some poems use dialect and historical references.
Main Characters
Not applicable (lyric and dramatic monologues).
Setting
Various: military camps, colonial outposts, domestic England, biblical landscapes.
Literary Movement
Late Victorian and Edwardian poetry, imperial literature.
Similar Books
Kipling's 'Barrack-Room Ballads', Housman's 'A Shropshire Lad'.
Key Literary Concepts
Related Topics
The Book of Joyous Children — Key Ideas to Explore
by Riley, James Whitcomb, 1849-1916, Vawter, Will, 1871-1941 [Illustrator]
Historical Significance
Riley's collection is a major work of American dialect poetry, capturing Midwestern rural life and childhood at the turn of the century.
Historical Context
Published in 1902, during the American Gilded Age, reflecting nostalgia for a simpler agrarian past.
Literary Style
Dialect verse with frame narratives, shifting between child's excitement and adult's retrospective understanding.
Writing Style
Riley uses phonetic dialect to create intimacy and regional identity, often undercutting cheerful surfaces with melancholy.
Major Themes
Childhood innocence and loss, the limits of adult protection, memory, the tension between joy and sorrow.
Critical Reception
Riley was a beloved popular poet; this collection was praised for its warmth and authenticity.
Legacy
Influenced later American dialect poets and regionalist writers.
Adaptations
Illustrated by Will Vawter; the collaboration is integral to the book's design.
Recommended Audience
Readers of American regional poetry, those interested in dialect literature and childhood studies.
Reading Difficulty
Easy to moderate; dialect may require some adjustment.
Main Characters
Children, Uncle Sidney, parents, hired man John Wesley Thomas.
Setting
Rural Indiana, late 19th century.
Literary Movement
American regionalism, dialect poetry, Hoosier school.
Similar Books
Riley's 'The Old Swimmin' Hole', Mark Twain's 'Tom Sawyer'.
Key Literary Concepts
Related Topics
A Little Book of Western Verse — Text and Context
by Field, Eugene, 1850-1895, Field, Roswell Martin, 1851-1919 [Contributor]
Historical Significance
Field's collection is a key example of late 19th-century American light verse, blending sentiment, humor, and dialect.
Historical Context
Published in 1889, during the Gilded Age, reflecting a period of regional literary flowering and nostalgia.
Literary Style
Varied: lullabies, ballads, translations, using Scots dialect, standard English, and classical diction.
Writing Style
Field uses a personal, intimate frame (dedication and memoir) to present poems as 'little children' of his pen.
Major Themes
Maternal love, memory, loss, the endurance of affection beyond death, the power of art.
Critical Reception
Field was a popular columnist; his verse was admired for its charm and sentiment.
Legacy
Remembered for 'Little Boy Blue' and other lullabies; influenced later light verse.
Adaptations
Musical settings of some poems.
Recommended Audience
Readers of American light verse, those interested in late 19th-century popular poetry.
Reading Difficulty
Easy; dialect poems may require some effort.
Main Characters
Not applicable (lyric and narrative poems).
Setting
Various: domestic interiors, seaside, battlefields, classical antiquity.
Literary Movement
American light verse, late Romanticism, local color.
Similar Books
James Whitcomb Riley's poetry, Robert Louis Stevenson's 'A Child's Garden of Verses'.
Key Literary Concepts
Related Topics
War is Kind — Background and Themes
by Crane, Stephen, 1871-1900
Historical Significance
Crane's collection is a pioneering work of modernist poetry, using irony and imagism to critique war and explore existential despair.
Historical Context
Published in 1899, after the Spanish-American War, reflecting a growing disillusionment with jingoism and traditional values.
Literary Style
Sparse, imagistic free verse with ironic refrains, abrupt shifts, and unanswered questions.
Writing Style
Crane uses bitter irony and stark physical imagery to undercut conventional consolations, moving between public and private anguish.
Major Themes
The horror of war, the inadequacy of language, the failure of God and love, the search for meaning in suffering.
Critical Reception
Initially misunderstood, later recognized as a precursor to modernism and a powerful anti-war statement.
Legacy
Influenced 20th-century war poetry and imagist movement.
Adaptations
None known.
Recommended Audience
Readers of modernist poetry, war literature, and those interested in the evolution of free verse.
Reading Difficulty
Moderate; the irony and brevity require careful reading.
Main Characters
The speaker, a lover, a father, a soldier, a shell, God.
Setting
Battlefields, the sea, domestic spaces, abstract landscapes.
Literary Movement
Proto-modernism, imagism, naturalism.
Similar Books
Crane's 'The Red Badge of Courage', Wilfred Owen's 'Dulce et Decorum Est'.
Key Literary Concepts
Related Topics
The Visions of England Lyrics on leading men and events in English History — Themes and Context
by Morley, Henry, 1822-1894 [Editor], Palgrave, Francis Turner, 1824-1897
Historical Significance
Palgrave's collection is a Victorian attempt to create a national epic in lyric form, blending poetry with historical scholarship.
Historical Context
Published in 1881, during the height of the British Empire, reflecting Victorian nationalism and the desire to shape historical memory.
Literary Style
Lyric poems with extensive notes and appendices, using elevated diction, dialogue, and natural imagery to moralize history.
Writing Style
Palgrave uses compound adjectives and personification to convey moral judgment, while the editorial apparatus anchors interpretations in historical authorities.
Major Themes
National identity, the moral lessons of history, the cost of conflict, the role of great men.
Critical Reception
Respected in its time as a pedagogical tool; later seen as a period piece of Victorian historiography.
Legacy
Contributes to the tradition of historical verse, alongside Macaulay's 'Lays of Ancient Rome'.
Adaptations
None known.
Recommended Audience
Students of Victorian poetry, historiography, and national identity.
Reading Difficulty
Moderate; historical references require annotation.
Main Characters
Historical figures: Charles I, Cromwell, etc.
Setting
Key events in English history, from the Civil War to the 19th century.
Literary Movement
Victorian historical poetry, national epic tradition.
Similar Books
Macaulay's 'Lays of Ancient Rome', Tennyson's 'Idylls of the King'.
Key Literary Concepts
Related Topics
Frequently Asked Questions
How do these poems engage with the concept of utopia, given that many are not explicitly about ideal societies?
These poems engage with utopia indirectly, often by critiquing existing society or imagining a lost golden age. For example, Gray's 'Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard' idealizes the simple lives of the rural poor, while Whitman's 'Drum-Taps' envisions a nation healed after war. The utopian impulse appears in the longing for a perfect state—whether spiritual, social, or personal—that is always just out of reach.
Why is a collection of 18th-century poetry classified as 'Science Fiction Utopias'?
The classification reflects the catalog's broad interpretation of utopian literature as any work that imagines a better world or critiques the present. The poems of Johnson, Gray, and others explore themes of vanity, mortality, and the ideal, which align with utopian thought. However, this classification is misleading; the poems are better understood as moral and philosophical reflections rather than speculative fiction.
What role does the dream vision play in creating a utopian space in these poems?
The dream vision, as in 'The Pearl', allows the poet to transcend earthly limitations and access a perfect realm—in this case, the New Jerusalem. This medieval convention provides a framework for exploring ideal states without the constraints of realism. Similarly, Browning's 'Christmas Eve' uses shifts between settings to contrast different modes of belief, each representing a partial vision of the divine.
How do poets like Kipling and Chesterton use humor and irony to address utopian themes?
Chesterton's 'Greybeards at Play' uses nonsense and paradox to argue that childishness is a form of wisdom, subverting adult seriousness. Kipling's 'Songs from Books' includes poems like 'The Prodigal Son (Western Version)' that mock conventional morality. Both poets use irony to question whether any ideal—whether imperial duty or adult rationality—is truly attainable or desirable.
In what ways do these poems reflect the historical contexts of their utopian visions?
The poems respond to specific historical crises: Whitman's 'Drum-Taps' to the Civil War, Crane's 'War is Kind' to the Spanish-American War, and Whittier's 'The Bridal of Pennacook' to Native American removal. Each poet uses the utopian or dystopian elements of their work to comment on contemporary issues, whether it's the failure of reconciliation, the horror of war, or the clash of cultures.
Conclusion & Scholarly Summary
This collection of poems, spanning from the 14th to the 20th century, reveals that the utopian impulse in poetry is less about blueprinting perfect societies than about critiquing the present and longing for transcendence. Whether through dream visions, satirical nonsense, or elegiac reflection, these poets use verse to imagine what might be—and to mourn what is lost. Their works remind us that utopia is not a place but a direction, a horizon that recedes as we approach.
