Thomas More's Utopia... Essay

I apologize for the long read but I figured I would post my essay I wrote about Thomas More's Utopia. He was a philosopher in the 1400's who did not agree with the government system during his life era. With this being said he created two books about "Utopia" and it is pretty creepy how he writes.

Thomas More’s Utopia Throughout history there were thoughts about what created a perfect society in which everyone coexisted in euphoric harmony. It is not wrong to say that one philosopher’s utopia is better than another. Thomas More mapped out a habitual society that if followed would be a complete paradise to visit but more of a slave camp to live in.

Utopia by Thomas More was a moderately difficult read due to the grammar and sentence structure that is used. There is definably a need of understanding past history and language used in the time period of the 1500’s to completely grasp the events and hierarchy of the "government". I enjoyed how he wrote and organized the different levels of society that is still used today. He addresses many aspects including but not limited to demographics, jobs, clothing, slavery and religion. In More's second book of Utopia, he has outlined the society's details and how it should be run to make it “perfect”. He goes into great detail of how the structures of the society and their lives are to be laid out. The word "Utopia" is a Latin word meaning, "that can be translated “nowhere.” To call a scheme “utopian” is to suggest that it cannot actually be implemented." (Deininger 1). He describes Utopia being an island of 200 miles wide and in the shape of crescent that is surrounded by water. The island has no high winds or dangerous sea currents. On one side of the island there are dangerous rocks that only the natives can steer around on their boats and on the other side there is open water for trading. This was designed so that people can't sneak onto the island. On the island he states that there are fifty-four different cities which are twenty-four miles apart. This will allow travel by foot between cities in a day's time therefore creating no need for vehicles. Each city had 6000 households which held between ten to fifteen adults. Located in the middle of the island, the city of Amaurot contained upper-class council members. It is considered to be the most divine since it is surrounded by walls to keep enemies out. Each city has three "wise" Senators which meet at Amaurot, "for that is the chief town of the island, being situated near the centre of it, so that it is the most convenient place for their assemblies." (More Utopia 2). The housing structure is simple but in my opinion has one major flaw, there were no locks on any doors. Each house has two doors, one for the street and one for the garden (agriculture was the main job on the island). Another downfall is that none of the houses has any property in it so anyone can enter any home at any time. Since the citizens did not own any property (houses, land, and goods), the Utopians relied on merchandise stored in warehouses. This was because every ten years, citizens were rotated throughout the city to keep an even population. They all learned how to live in the country-side setting due to their work functions. All Utopians had to learn gardening and at least one other trade. The trades were sewing, masonry, carpentry and working with metals. The work day consisted of six hours, but some preferred to work longer. During laboring hours both genders wore the same kind of clothes. They wore leather which lasted for seven years, but when going into the public they wore an upper garment to cover their excess skin. These garments were all the same color and texture- wool. Each man had one vest of fine silk and colorful thread. This was decided since having more does not make a person happier so by having one everyone is equal in labor therefore, it does not show “social status”. During their leisure time it was strongly recommended that they engage in education, religion and other activities to stay occupied.

The citizens of Utopia were treated equally since discrimination and racism was not permitted. Even though all Utopians were equal, they did still have slaves. There were two types of slaves. Poor people from neighboring countries who willingly decided that Utopia was a better fit since they were treated as equal rather than starving on the streets in their homeland. The poor worked hard and were treated well by the native Utopians. They have an option to stay or to leave. The other type of slaves were people who committed crimes, and in punishment they were to be forever enslaved or punished with death. The slaves were brought onto the island by merchants who either bought them or they were given to them before they were condemned to death in their homeland. These slaves however were treated better in Utopia, but worse than the poor. Only difference was they were constantly chained and had no freedom. Utopia had many religions and the citizens were all accepting of each other. There were people who worshiped such as the sun, earth, and water. People who did not believe in any religion (atheists) were considered as a threat since they were seen as to act on impulse in the "moment" to gain immediate satisfaction. More himself was a devout Christian, and he wrote that people were allowed their choice of religion but most converted their faith after hearing about God. Similarly, today in the United States there are many religions just as Utopia.

I have found that More's utopia correlates to everyday life. For instance, since Utopians had no privacy, they were basically watched all the time to make sure they stayed in compliance. To this day in the United States there are trillions of surveillance systems to keep track or to be able to easily find a person. Furthermore, More’s work on Utopia relates to Plato’s work of the Republic since both are expressing what would make a perfect society in their eyes. The main difference is that More considered all citizens as equal while Plato stated that men were superior over women. Overall, I enjoyed reading More’s work even though it was a bit difficult to understand in many parts, especially when describing the hierarchy of ranking officials in the cities. I had to read a few pages per chapter to compile key points since the work is very detailed about the subjects mentioned. There were many areas that I disagreed with due to human nature and tendency of greed. Logically speaking humans would not be able to conform into such of a lifestyle. This idea is completely farfetched if you agree, as I do with Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (psychological, safety, love, esteem and self- actualization). Also I think that people would become bored with this lifestyle since it is completely laid out, on a time schedule of what happens when and being treated as a robot. I personally agreed with the treatment of slavery because this benefited the society and the lives of the slaves.

Deininger, Whitaker T., and John K. Roth. "Utopia." World Philosophers & Their Works (2000): 1-4. Literary Reference Center Plus. Web. 18 July 2016. "Thomas More: Utopia: Book II." Thomas More: Utopia: Book II. Ed. Jon Roland. The Constitution Society, n.d. Web. 18 July 2016.

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