Charles Fourier (1772-1837)

This page has not been fully translated,but here follows a resume and some sources:

Communities of desire
Whereas Newton had discoveret gravity, it was Fouriers aim to reveal the laws of mutual attraction. In a rich and sprawling authorship he describes his ideas for a new community based on the unfolding of the multitude of desires of men and women on equal terms. He believed passionately that no society could be free if not based in the equality of the sexes.

part of the plan for a phanstere

The Phalanster -the name for the community building had between 800 and 1800 inhabitants, the size should warrent that enough desires was present for creating a new social dynamics. Rarer desires like for instance footfetiches or orchidgrowing would have to team up with members of other Phalansteres, which in turn would create a network between what Fourier imagined would be a global web of communities.

The desires as well as all the tasks that had to be done, would be negotiatet at the Beurs, which would become a very lively place where people would team up for the comming day and share tasks and ideas. No one were to do the same work for a whole day, and the layout of the phalanstere was such that changing between tasks was easy, with covered internal streets, and different functions mixed inbetween each other.

Fourier was not fond of institutions and the allways changing groupings that would be formed for work and pleasure, would prevent relations from institutionalizing, but allso prevent that serious conflict took place as there would inevitably be mutual connections between persons of all groups. Fouriers talk of group marriage was thus probably more hinted towards the multitude of relations between persons than at the actualization as such.

The reserach was based on a collection of writings translated to danish in "Stammefællesskabet" forlaget Rhodos.
Read more on Charles Fourier here