I got
really excited about reading Thomas More’s Utopia, because I had read this book
before, it became one of the reasons why I wanted to take this class. I love
More’s Utopia because I feel like the ideas that he proposes in his Utopia
work. I’m not saying that everything in Utopia is great there are some things
that are a little on the crazy side( such as advising the sick to end their
lives and killing off another group of people and having them fight their
battles for them because they believe these other people are inhumane and
barbaric). But I think that the solutions that he proposes work because it
solves the problems in his society during his time and although many of his
solutions might not feel very probable for our time I think that the solutions
that he comes up with solve the issues of his time. One of the things that I
love about More’s Utopia is that nobody wants for anything because everything
is taken care of. Yes, one would have to give up their individuality and
possessions but wouldn’t that be worth
it to not have to worry about where your next meal would come from or worrying
about how you were going to pay the bills this month? Wouldn’t it be nice to
live in a place where no one is jealous of what anyone else has because
everyone would have the same thing? I
know slavery isn’t a great idea but I’ll be a brave soul and say that I
wouldn’t mind being a slave in More’s Utopia. Not only do you get a chance to
return to society but all you do is hard labor which a lot of people in Utopia
do anyway and the slaves are taken care of just like all other Utopians(fed,
clothed, sheltered) and aren’t treated horribly. I mean, it’s better than
death, which would have been a penalty in More’s time. More’s Utopia is a place
where other religions are tolerated (except atheism) and everyone helps each
other and cares about each other. I think that is great regardless of whether
they are doing it for recognition or not. That’s just human nature. As human
beings we mostly operate on reward and punishment. I’m not saying that More’s Utopia is the best
or perfect I just think that it works. It functions well as a Utopia. Given that I feel like More's utopia can be best describe through this video. (the words are more important than the claymation).
One point that didn't come up in class discussion that I was interested in hearing feedback on was how the land for Utopia was acquired. More states that "it was conquered by somebody called Utopos, who gave it its present name"(50). For me, the idea of conquering, or essentially stealing, land does not go hand in hand with the idea of utopia. If these people are so kind, generous, and peaceful then why are they morally okay with this method of acquiring land? Why doesn't this taint their utopia from the start?
ReplyDeleteI also like More's *Utopia* for many of the same reasons you do. Even the slaves live more of a "high life" than some people in our modern society. Like you, I wouldn't mind giving up a few things to make sure everyone is taken care of.
ReplyDeleteI know many contemporary people really like this utopian plan, especially with our hindsight. I wonder how More's sixteenth-century readers reacted. How would the "common man" have felt if he read it (if he could read)? Would they have liked it just as much as us?
Hey Gwen, I took liked reading More’s utopia, but I had some issue with the fact that More doesn’t particularly think that slavery is a bad thing. I wonder, if More had to be one of the slaves he refers to, then would his ideals still be the same. I think not. I have a hard time even entertaining the idea that slavery in any capacity could be a good thing, but for the purposes of this class, it never hurts to take a look at things from the other side. -Jesus
ReplyDeleteI like the video - definitely applicable!! ;-)
ReplyDelete