The novel Erewhon; or, Beyond the Mountains (1872) is the most famous work of the British writer, translator, and philosopher Samuel Butler (1835–1902), a classic of Victorian literature and a critic of Victorian society, author of distinctive works on evolutionary theory, art history, and theology. Although his works were not particularly successful during his lifetime, and his critique of religion and views on evolution alienated both the church and Darwinists, his major works have remained in print since their publication, and his translations of the Iliad and the Odyssey are still used by readers and researchers. Erewhon is considered one of the first literary treatments of artificial intelligence. Butler's prose was highly praised by contemporaries E. M. Forster and George Bernard Shaw, and his influence was later acknowledged by Aldous Huxley, Frank Herbert, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and others. As a thinker, Butler was valued by philosophers Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari.