Utopia And Utopia

Although comparing one society to another does not require them to be different in government or human behavior, it does necessarily weight one’s faults against its victories to render it better or worse than the other. This comparative structure, found between Thomas More’s two books of Utopia, poses the country of Utopia opposite the broader communities of world civilization. Despite the comparison of Utopia as distinct from and morally better than widespread society, in truth Utopia is, at best, an extension.

Sir Thomas More in 1516 first conceived utopia while he served as an ambassador For England on a party expedition to Flanders. In England his vocation was law and he held the position of Under-Sheriff his knowledge in this area is an obvious influence in Utopian society. Utopia is a chronicle of More's fictitious meeting with Raphael Hythlodaeus a traveller who has lived in Island, republic society of Utopia for five years. Almost five hundred years after its writing utopia is still the subject of controversy; it has been claimed by certain political and religious followings to be specific to their ideals and beliefs. Notably both communists and Catholics of the last few centuries have reasoned Utopia to be a statement of their beliefs.

More seems to specifically highlight this when describing his Utopian society. For example, More describes Utopians spending idle time participating in scholarly activities, such as attending public lectures and their natural enjoyment of learning. However, More clearly asserts the significance of reason when describing the religions of Utopia. In Utopia, each religion is fundamentally the same, each guided of nature and what is natural. Doing what nature intends, which is established through reason, is the true way of worshipping God, according to the Utopians (More, 2011, p. 2011). This is consistent with the humanist theory of a higher, absolute natural law created by God and thus must be followed by man. In order discover this natural law, one must use reason. With this in consideration, it apparent that More intentionally created Utopia to represent a society of humanists, one that is adheres to all aspects of Renaissance humanism without fault.

Each person has their own vision of utopia. Utopia means an ideal state, a paradise, a land of enchantment. It has been a central part of the history of ideas in Western Civilization. Philosophers and writers continue to imagine and conceive plans for an ideal state even today. They use models of ideal government to express their ideas on contemporary issues and political conditions. Man has never of comparing the real and ideal, actuality and dream, and the stark facts of human condition and hypothetical versions of optimum life and government.

Dystopia and Utopia can be explored in many forms of media such as artwork, film, music, poetry and even dance. The easiest and most vivid way to depict these genres to the audience is in films. Films specifically incorporate visual symbolism through colors and settings and screenshot width and filters. Films may also incorporate a subliminal message to the reader through background music used in different scenes. Displaying utopian and dystopian societies through film leaves some imagination to the audience while allowing them to visually compare with the real world around them. For the purpose of exploring aspects of utopia and dystopia through films, I have chosen the films Metropolis by Fritz Lang (1927) and the episode Nosedive from

Thomas More'sUtopia and Thomas Hobbes' Leviathan each offer alternatives to the worlds in which they lived.. More's society, viewed through the character Hythloday, is seemingly based on man's nature in society being generally good, and the faults of man emanate from how society itself is set up. Hobbes takes the opposite view of human nature, where man's will to survive makes him unable to act out of goodness and it is man who is responsible for society's ills.

Other criticisms that More makes in Utopia, according to Sommerville, supports and perpetuates the reformation. This source, while being another very objective source, gives information pertaining to the religious aspects of More’s life and personal beliefs. Other sources err on the side of politics, this source, however, is highly religious and intellectual. This source, in tandem with other secondary sources, helps create a complete unit of all pieces of More’s life. This source fits into my research extremely well.

As time goes on, attempts at a utopian society have failed and that means that not only have utopias been created but that dystopias have arrised. Each one is set and planned to be a utopia that only ends up taking another course and turning into a dystopian society. Utopia simply means “an ideal place or state”, where as a dystopia is the opposite (“utopia”). Dystopias is “a society characterized by human misery, as squalor, oppression, disease, and overcrowding” (“dystopia”). Utopias usually end up becoming dystopias because everyone has their own vision of what they want their “perfect” place to be. Somebody’s perfect form of life is different than another person’s form or vision. A utopia is supposed to accommodate to everyone in the

In our lives today, we take advantage of all the luxuries that are presented daily. Freedom alone is one of the greatest luxuries we possess as an American nation. In Death and Life of Great American Cities by Jane Jacobs and Utopia by Thomas Moore, we are presented two life styles, which some might consider very similar in various ways. Both authors focus on a peaceful living lifestyle, to better the people of the nation. Although some of their specific details are different, I believe that Jacobs would definitely approve of the features that More develops in Utopia.

     Sir Thomas More writes, in his book Utopia, about a society that is perfect in practically ever sense. The people all work an equal amount and everything they need for survival is provided. Most importantly is that everyone living in this perfect society is happy and content with their everyday lives. In this society everybody supports everyone. The community is only as strong as its weakest link. For society to progress everyone must work together. Opponents of the Utopian system, however, feel that the strong should not have to look after the weak. Progress would be maximized if all the resources are spent on the people most qualified to help society. A Utopian society, as perfect as the one

In More’s Utopia, everyone does indeed worship different gods, yet they must all believe in one single eternal power. This allows Hythloday the narrator and his comrades to convert some of the Utopians into Christians, for the citizens readily accept the one-god notion and the practice of sharing communal goods (More 517). No one is condemned due to his or her religious beliefs in Utopia. A fanatic who begins condemning other religions is tried on a charge, “not of despising their religion, but of creating a public disorder” and is sent into exile (More 518). Does this reflect a society with utopian religious ideals? In Utopia, there are two sects of religious people – the ascetic sect whose members do not marry or eat meat, and the sect that allows its members to marry and eat meat. The Utopians regard the second as more sensible, but the first holier. They believe that “anyone [who] chose celibacy over marriage and a hard life over a comfortable one on grounds of reason alone” is insane; but “as these men say they are motivated by religion, the Utopians respect and revere them” (More 520). Truly, religion shapes a nation’s identity and beliefs, and in the cases of the Blazing World and Utopia, some aspects of their religion mars their perfect societies.

Thomas More writes Utopia, the comedic, fictional travel log about a “no place” society to discuss the various religious, political, and social ideals influenced by humanism. A medieval classically trained humanist, Thomas More is also influenced by the late medieval social, political, and religious movements developing from the Plague and the Hundred Years’ War. In Utopia, More illustrates a humanist society by discussing agriculture in the economy, religion and happiness, and the structure of the government which was ultimately influenced by the late medieval ideals.

” Most scholars fail to appreciate the significance of Utopian religious freedom because it stands in the shadow of communism, the other great founding principle of More's fictional

The world in any society has two sides, Utopia which is defined as the perfect world and the peaceful life that is free from disasters. This word " Utopia " is derived from Greek roots by Sir Thomas More which means "a good place" (More 37). Merriam Webster defined Utopia as "an imaginary place, all life aspects are perfect, as the world suffers from nothing" (Webster 19). while Dystopia is defined as an imagined universe in which the unequal society controls the fancy of an ideal society which are maintained through technological, moral, corporate or totalitarian control " Beauty of dystopia is that it lets us vicariously experience future worlds but we still have the power to change our own" (Condie 75). in which the genre challenges utopia’s

From its preface, More expends a substantial amount of effort to persuade readers that Utopia is real. He layers facts into the text, with his initial ‘letter’ to Peter Giles, his use of real life references (Amerigo Vespucci (10), John Morton (15), Giles and More himself), and his conversation with Raphael Hythloday amidst an actual visit to Antwerp for diplomatic business. His indefatigable attention to detail, such as when he struggles with the length of a bridge over the Anyder (5), and his microscopic descriptions of Utopian society, serve to reinforce his credibility, and its authenticity. By going to such lengths to create a vivid and realistic Utopia, More wants readers to believe that Utopia can exist, and approach it as a serious piece of work.