Keith Taylor (25 March 1949 - 3 January 2006) was a British

political scientist Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

who was an authority on the politics of

Utopian socialism Utopian socialism is the term often used to describe the first current of modern socialism and socialist thought as exemplified by the work of Henri de Saint-Simon, Charles Fourier, Étienne Cabet, and Robert Owen. Utopian socialism is often de ...

, about which he wrote and convened an academic seminar in the 1980s when the area was of little academic interest in Britain. In 2000 he founded Kidney Cancer UK, a support organisation for kidney cancer patients and their carers after he himself was diagnosed with the disease.

Early life

Keith Taylor was born in Manchester on 25 March 1949. He was educated at

Manchester Grammar School The Manchester Grammar School (MGS) is a highly Selective school, selective Private_schools_in_the_United_Kingdom, private day school for boys aged 7-18 in Manchester, England, which was founded in 1515 by Hugh Oldham (then Bishop of Exeter). ...

and read Politics at the

University of Kent The University of Kent (formerly the University of Kent at Canterbury, abbreviated as UKC) is a Collegiate university, collegiate public university, public research university based in Kent, United Kingdom. The university was granted its roya ...

after which he completed his master's degree at the

University of Leicester The University of Leicester ( ) is a public university, public research university based in Leicester, England. The main campus is south of the city centre, adjacent to Victoria Park, Leicester, Victoria Park. The university's predecessor, Univ ...

.Keith Taylor.
Vincent McKee, ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', 2 April 2009. Retrieved 21 November 2015.

Career

Taylor taught first at Ealing Technical College, then at Coventry Polytechnic (now Coventry University) from 1975 to 1991, and finally at the

University of Westminster The University of Westminster is a public university, public university based in London, United Kingdom. Founded in 1838 as the Royal Polytechnic Institution, it was the first Polytechnic (United Kingdom), polytechnic to open in London. The Po ...

until he retired in 2002. He was an authority on the politics of

and in the early 1980s convened a study group on Utopian thought when the area was of little academic interest in Britain. His 1982 book, ''The political ideas of Utopian socialists'', is still regarded as one of the key modern works on the topic. His later book with Barbara Goodwin, ''The politics of Utopia: A study in theory and practice'' (1983), looked at the significance of Utopias for political theory and practiceLevitas, p. 201.
/ref> and argued that the political function of Utopias was to imaginatively transcend "the ubiquitous, seemingly unassailable present."Davis, Laurence, "History, politics, and Utopia: Toward a synthesis of social theory and practice" in

Family

Taylor married twice and had one son. His wife Dinah died in 2003.

Charitable work

In January 2000, Taylor founded Kidney Cancer UK, a support organisation for kidney cancer patients and their carers and the first such organisation in Britain. He founded the organisation after he himself was diagnosed with the disease.

Death

Taylor died in Coventry on 3 January 2006.

Selected publications

*''Henri Saint Simon 1760-1825: Selected writings on science, industry and social organization''. Holmes and Meier, New York, 1975. (Translator and editor) *''The political ideas of Utopian socialists''. Cass, London, 1982. *''The politics of Utopia: A study in theory and practice''.

St. Martin's Press St. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in Manhattan in New York City. It is headquartered in the Equitable Building (New York City), Equitable Building. St. Martin's Press is considered one of the largest English-language publishe ...

, New York, 1982. (With Barbara Goodwin) (Reissued 2009 with new preface) *"The micropolitics of medicine: Doctors, patients and their power relations". 2001. (Journal article)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor, Keith 1949 births 2006 deaths Academics from Greater Manchester Academics of Coventry University Deaths from kidney cancer in England Academics of the University of Westminster Alumni of the University of Kent Alumni of the University of Leicester People educated at Manchester Grammar School 20th-century British political scientists