The book covers the development of socialism from utopia to science - to the emergence of Marxism. The views of the founder of utopian socialism of modern times, Thomas More, the socialist teachings of D. Winstanley, J. Melier, G. Babeuf, the theoretical heritage of A. Saint-Simon, S. Fourier, R. Owen, the development of socialist thought ao in the second half of the 19th century in Russia (N.G. Chernyshevsky, N.A. Dobrolyubov, D.I. Pisarev, M.A. Bakunin, P.L. Lavrov, P.N. Tkachev).