Love, Utopia, and a Social Experiment

Leon and Rose fell in love and ran away on a steamship to Brazil to be together. She was born of a noble family and he was a poor artist. In the boat there was a group of Utopian Socialists. Assisted by the Brazilian Emperor, the French immigrants were given land and money to establish a Phalanstery. Surrounded by oral history and rumors, Monica Ledoux goes on a quest to find out the hidden story about her family's immigration to Brazil. Through online research, and interviews with family members and historians, she uncovers more information. Questions arise about her ancestors and their relationship to Charles Fourier, Dr. Benoit Jules Mure, and the Brazilian Emperor Dom Pedro II. To her surprise, the same social experiment where her ancestors found themselves involved with was also attempted in the US.