The Blazing World is a fanciful depiction of a satirical, utopian kingdom in another world that can be accessed through the North Pole. A young woman enters this other world, becomes the empress of a society composed of various species of talking animals, and organizes an invasion back into her world. The Empress asserts that a peaceful society can only be attained through a lack of societal divisions. Only an absolute sovereignty can maintain social unity and stability because the reliance on one authority eliminates separations of power.

The Blazing World was originally published as a companion piece to Cavendish’s Observations upon Experimental Philosophy. Advances in the field of science and philosophy in the early modern period had a huge influence on Cavendish and were a major component in her work. Cavendish wrote The Blazing World in 1666, a time when utopian literature was dominated by men. She used the genre to discuss feminist issues like female authority and autonomy. The Blazing World gave Cavendish an opportunity to explore ideas that directly conflicted with those in her nonfiction writing

This case laminate collector’s edition includes a Victorian inspired dust-jacket.