Arcadia (utopia)

Arcadia refers to a vision of pastoralism and harmony with nature. The term is derived from the Greek province of the same name which dates to antiquity; the province's mountainous topography and sparse population of pastoralists later caused the word Arcadia to develop into a poetic byword for an idyllic vision of unspoiled wilderness. Arcadia is associated with bountiful natural splendor, harmony, and is often inhabited by shepherds. The concept also figures in Renaissance mythology. Commonly thought of as being in line with Utopian ideals, Arcadia differs from that tradition in that it is more often specifically regarded as unattainable. Furthermore, it is seen as a lost, Edenic form of life, contrasting to the progressive nature of Utopian desires.

The inhabitants were often regarded as having continued to live after the manner of the Golden Age, without the pride and avarice that corrupted other regions. It is also sometimes referred to in English poetry as Arcady. The inhabitants of this region bear an obvious connection to the figure of the Noble savage, both being regarded as living close to nature, uncorrupted by civilization, and virtuous.

Arcadia in antiquity
According to Greek mythology, Arcadia of Peloponnesus was the domain of Pan, the virgin wilderness home of the god of the forest and his court of dryads, nymphs and other spirits of nature. It was a version of paradise, though only in the sense of being the abode of supernatural tities, not an afterlife for deceased mortals.

Greek mythology inspired the Roman poet Virgil to write his Eclogues, a series of poems set in Arcadia.

Arcadia in the Renaissance
Arcadia has remained a popular artistic subject since antiquity, both in visual arts and literature. Images of beautiful nymphs frolicking in lush forests have been a frequent source of inspiration for painters and sculptors. As a result of the influence of Virgil in medieval European literature (see, for example, Divine Comedy), Arcadia became a symbol of pastoral simplicity. European Renaissance writers (for instance, the Spanish poet Garcilaso de la Vega) often revisited the theme, and the name came to apply to any idyllic location or paradise. Unlike the word "utopia" (named for Thomas More's book, Utopia), "Arcadia" does not carry the connotation of a human civilization; Arcadia is presented as the spontaneous result of life lived naturally, uncorrupted by civilization.

Of particular note is Et in Arcadia ego by Nicholas Poussin, which has become famous both in its own right and because of its (possible) connection with the gnostic histories of the Rosicrucians (see below). In 1502 Jacopo Sannazaro published his long poem Arcadia that fixed the Early Modern perception of Arcadia as a lost world of idyllic bliss, remembered in regretful dirges. In the 1590s Sir Philip Sidney circulated copies of his influential heroic romance poem The Countess of Pembroke's Arcadia establishing Arcadia as an icon of the Renaissance; although the story is plentifully supplied with shepherds and other pastoral figures, the central characters of the plot are all royalty visiting the countryside.


 * [...] Does not the pleasantness of this place carry in itself sufficient reward for any time lost in it, or for any such danger that might ensue? Do you not see how everything conspires together to make this place a heavenly dwelling? Do you not see the grass, how in color they excel the emeralds [...]? Do not these stately trees seem to maintain their flourishing old age, with the only happiness of their seat being clothed with a continual spring, because no beauty here should ever fade? Doth not the air breathe health which the birds (both delightful both to the ear and eye) do daily solemnize with the sweet consent of their voices? Is not every echo here a perfect music? And these fresh and delightful brooks, how slowly they slide away, as, loath to leave the company of so many things united in perfection, and with how sweet a murmur they lament their forced departure. Certainly, certainly, cousin, it must needs be, that some goddess this desert belongs unto, who is the soul of this soil, for neither is any less than a goddess worthy to be shrined in such a heap of pleasures, nor any less than a goddess could have made it so perfect a model of the heavenly dwellings. [...]

Though depicted as contemporary, this pastoral form is often connected with the Golden Age. It may be suggested that its inhabitants have merely continued to live as people did in the Golden Age, and all other nations have less pleasant lives because they have allowed themselves to depart from the original simplicity.

Arcadia
The sixteenth century Italian explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano applied the name "Arcadia" to the entire North American Atlantic coast north of Virginia. In time, this mutated to Acadia. The Dictionary of Canadian Biography says: "Arcadia, the name Verrazzano gave to Maryland or Virginia 'on account of the beauty of the trees', made its first cartographical appearance in the 1548 Gastaldo map and is the only name on that map to survive in Canadian usage. . . . In the 17th century Champlain fixed its present orthography, with the 'r' omitted, and Ganong has shown its gradual progress northwards, in a succession of maps, to its resting place in the Atlantic Provinces".

Modern usage
Arcadia is now the name of many cities and towns around the world.

In 1945, Evelyn Waugh sub-titled the first part of his novel Brideshead Revisited 'Et in Arcadia ego', referring to his protagonist's blissful and innocent interbellum years as an undergraduate student at Oxford University at the height of the British Empire and his new-found friendship with an eccentric aristocratic family.

In the novel Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy, the character of Judge Holden names his rifle 'Et in Arcadia ego'.

Arcadia was a spin-off musical group formed in 1985 by three of the members of the band Duran Duran.

In 1993, Tom Stoppard wrote Arcadia (originally to have been titled Et in Arcadia ego), a play involving themes of classical beauty and order in nature, associated with the idea of Arcadia, in conjunction with themes of historical change and the evolution of Western understanding of nature.

In fantasy literature, Arcadia has been used as a magical realm, respective to the fictional universe in which the story occurs. A number of role-playing games have also adopted the idea, either using it as a separate realm within the multiverse (à la the Arcadia of the Dungeons & Dragons universe), or even using it as the central focus of an entire game system (as in White Wolf's Changeling: The Dreaming game).

Dragonhaven, a young adult fantasy novel by Robin McKinley, ends with the phrase "Arcadiae vias peregrinentur," which the author has stated roughly translates to "May they walk in Arcadia".

According to the best-selling PC-game The Longest Journey, Arcadia was divided from the primordial original world, and represents fantasy, dreams and magic, while our world, Stark, is the world of science and technology. 'Arkadia' was also a subterranean world in the French cartoon series Spartakus and the Sun Beneath the Sea.

In the game Bioshock, Arcadia is a level in which the protagonist has to navigate through an artificial forest, called Arcadia, created by Andrew Ryan. This forest provides the oxygen for the rest of the city of Rapture, and was used as a peaceful retreat for the citizens.

The name has recently been popularized by its connection to the pseudo-history of the Freemasons - in particular the Latin motto "Et in Arcadia ego" ("Even here, I [Death] exist.") The phrase is used frequently in conspiracy fiction and lore, such as the pseudo-historical work Holy Blood, Holy Grail and the novel The Da Vinci Code, where it is interpreted as an anagram of I! Tego Arcana Dei ("Begone! I know the secrets of God").

Rock band The Libertines have referenced Arcadia as the destination their imaginary ship Albion sails towards.

In the anime series Captain Harlock, the ship in which he travels is known as the Arcadia. He calls it the place "to fight and live for our freedom [and dreams]".

Arcadia University is a college located in Glenside, Pennsylvania, USA.

Arcadia is the theme of album art for progressive rock band Asia's "Alpha" and "Astra" albums. Both were painted by artist Roger Dean.

Arcadia Cinema is a multiplex cinema in Melzo, Italy (a suburb of Milano.)

The metal opera Angel of Babylon by Tobias Sammet's Avantasia ends with Journey to Arcadia.

[Spoiler Alert] In the recent movie Resident Evil: Extinction, the characters seek to travel to Arcadia, Alaska, which is promised to be free of zombies. In Resident Evil: Afterlife 3D, it is revealed that Arcadia refers to the USS Arcadia, a ship that collects survivors for experimentation.