Is Utopia Possible? A Dive into Thomas More’s Revolutionary Vision
Is Utopia Possible? A Dive into Thomas More’s Revolutionary Vision
Utopia - Book Overview and Thoughts
“Without a shared vision, we run the risk of losing our way and surrendering control over our future.”-Beyond Thought
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How would a perfect society look like?
This question has intrigued philosophers, politicians, and even fiction writers for ages; and Thomas More’s book “Utopia” was one of the most prominent works on the subject, having a huge impact on political philosophy and literature.
As a fan of science fiction, I believe we should discuss this book because, while it is not technically classified as science fiction, it is a fantastic piece of speculative fiction that was used to critique and offer alternatives to situations that occurred during the author’s lifetime and may still be relevant today.
The most interesting part of this book is that it does not have a storyline as we would expect in a novel; rather, it is a narration of the discovery of an island called Utopia, in which Thomas More himself appears as a character.
Utopia is a real island within the story, and the book is mostly an explanation of how it is organized. Raphael Hythloday, a traveler, makes the exciting discovery of this society, which, remember, exists only within the context of the story.
Raphael, a fictional character with strong opinions about society, pulls from his extensive travels to present many criticisms and thoughts about how society functioned during the time the book was written. The arguments he presents tend to have a satirical tone and serve as a vehicle for the author, More, to express himself without fear of repercussions for the ideas presented in the story. In fact, the fictional Thomas More in the novel is extremely critical of the island, putting himself in an appropriate position. As a result, Raphael may be seen as a more accurate representation of the author’s beliefs than his fictional self.
Interesting, but what does Utopia look like? You may ask.
After More takes us through the account of how Utopia was discovered, primarily in the form of a conversation between three men - Thomas, Peter, and Raphael - the author takes us through a detailed description of how “the most civilized nation of the world” works, as claimed by Raphael.
Several aspects of Utopia are discussed in the book, but I’ll focus on the most significant ones that describe the community’s structure, laws, philosophy, and belief system.
But first, here are the highlights:
Utopia is a community that resembles Plato’s republic, which could be described as a communist society, where money and, in general, a market-based economy is not existent.
Life in Utopia is well balanced between work and leisure. A typical day for an adult is a workday of six hours only, and then time is used to engage in recreation, further education or personal interests.
All cities in Utopia are organized and distributed the same way so that everyone can have what they need; if a city has a surplus of people and/or goods, they are moved to another city that has less of these, so that everyone gets their fair portion.
The way they manage to have all they need with reduced work hours is due to several factors, one of them being that they all wear almost the same type of clothes, with small variations depending on the sex or marital status of the person. The clothes are comfortable and can be used in many different situations, making Utopians less likely to need more clothes. Fashion is kept the same and no one attempts to feel or pretends to be of a higher status.
Thomas More criticizes his time’s feudal society, which emphasized class distinctions and hierarchical structures. More’s ideal society is one in which everyone works for the common good. This is similar to Karl Marx’s critique of his time’s capitalist system, which focused on private property and the bourgeoisie’s exploitation of the working class.
Communal life was not new when Thomas More wrote the book. It was something that monks did in their religious lives. More saw this as ideal, mainly because it contrasted with his reality and the problems that were prominent throughout his lifetime.
We could think that Thomas was executed for his book, but that isn’t the case. More was executed in 1535 for refusing to recognize Henry VIII as the supreme head of the Church in England, because it implied a rejection of papal supremacy. However, his writings, including “Utopia,” were seen as a threat to the established order and were banned by the Catholic Church for many years.
Communal Living in Utopia
Utopia is a community that resembles Plato’s Republic, which could be described as a communist society where money and, in general, a market-based economy are nonexistent.
This means that common ownership is a rule, and people share everything, including meals, and goods. In fact, houses have a front door and a back door, both which have swing doors that can be opened easily so anyone can go in and out whenever they need.
All cities in Utopia are organized and distributed the same way so that everyone can have what they need; if a city has a surplus of people and/or goods, they are moved to another city that has less of these, so that everyone gets their fair portion.
The surplus idea is taken to the extreme with people. Families cannot have more than sixteen members. When there is a surplus of babies, what happens is that they get adopted by other families that are sometimes in other cities. Kids are also free to move around, and get adopted by other families if they are interested in learning certain activities that their current families do not practice.
This idea of “kids being raised communally” can be seen on Plato’s Republic. However, in Utopia, kids aren’t automatically moved by other families as in Plato’s vision. Plato believed that biological ties between parents and children should be minimized. He proposed a system where children are taken away from their parents at birth and raised by the state in common households. This, according to him, would prevent the development of unhealthy family attachments and promote a sense of unity and shared purpose among all citizens.
He also suggested that children should be assigned to households based on their abilities and potential, rather than their biological connections, and that this would allow for the cultivation of talent and the promotion of the common good. Similar to the idea that Thomas More had about kids being able to move around to settle with other families if their interests did not align with their biological family.
It is important to note that when Thomas More wrote the book, communal life was not new. It was something that was practiced among monks in a religious life. Thomas saw this as ideal, mainly because it contrasted with his reality and the problems that were prominent throughout his lifetime.
Work, Leisure and the Common Good
One aspect that is very attractive about this speculative society is that life is well balanced between work and leisure. A typical day for an adult is a workday of six hours only, and then time is used to engage in recreation, further education or personal interests.
People are not pushed to work more than required; instead, when all necessary work has been done, people are told to finish work sooner, giving them more time to engage in other activities, since Utopians believed that sharpening the mind, as well as physical health, were keys to happiness.
The way they manage to have all they need with reduced work hours is due to several factors, one of them being that they all wear almost the same type of clothes, with small variations depending on the sex or marital status of the person. The clothes are comfortable and can be used in many different situations, making Utopians less likely to need more clothes. Fashion is kept the same, and no one attempts to feel or pretends to be of a higher status.
Something very interesting that can give us an idea of how Utopians see “commodities” is that they value iron more than gold, because they see it as more useful. They have no desire to hold gold because of its appearance, giving them a surplus of gold and precious metals. They use gold for useful purposes like pots only. This can remind us of Karl Marx’s concept that there is no object on earth that in itself has an intrinsic exchange value, but rather just a use value.
Another factor is that the authorities are always monitoring the annual food consumption, and producing surplus corn or livestock, to have more than what they need. They also use the corn only for food, since they do not drink beer, but only cider, wine or water.
Finally, another factor that could sound contradictory, is that Utopians do not support idleness. Everyone needs to spend time working on the farms for six hours, independently of their status.
In the case of children, many useful skills are taught in schools. Starting from farming, agriculture, reading, and ending with activities that help children develop themselves, like outdoor activities and games. The significance of community values is also taught, meaning that they taught the importance of seeing themselves as members of a big community rather than just individuals.
The idea of the common good is very important in Utopia. Remember our post about Rousseau?
In his Social Contract, he talks about the importance of the common good over individual personal interests, in order to create a just society.
In Utopia, the communal ownership of property and the rotational system of work are designed to ensure that resources are distributed equally and that everyone has access to what they need to live a fulfilling life. Similarly, in Rousseau’s theory, individuals must give up certain freedoms and submit to the authority of the general will in order to create a society that benefits everyone equally.
However, there are also important differences. Rousseau believed that individual freedoms could be limited in order to promote the common good, while Utopians placed a strong emphasis on individual freedom and personal choice. People can pursue their own interests without any problem and they aren’t confined to any gender roles, like it was the case during the time Utopia was written. Women could work in traditionally male-dominated fields, and had equal rights and opportunities than men. In fact, women were even trained to go to war if necessary.
The Government and the Belief System of Utopians
The social system is well formed and has some aspects that we can find interesting.
Cities are divided by groups of thirty households, each who elects every year an individual called the Styward.
For every ten Stywards there is another entity called the Senior District Controller, who operates above them.
Each group of ten Stywards is responsible for electing a Mayor - from four options that were provided by the people of the city. This Mayor is in charge of discussing problems with the Senior District Controller.
The Stywards communicate directly with each household about any major issues that may arise in the community, and then they are responsible for reporting these views back with the higher authorities.
Any decision needs to be discussed for three days minimum before making any permanent decision.
Utopia’s direct communication is fascinating, but it simply wouldn’t work in a society with a big population. However, it is very interesting to see how open communication is between Utopians; how everyone’s perspective is valued, and how they believe it is critical to sleep on crucial issues before acting - something that would be extremely beneficial to apply in any political system.
In Utopia, there are many religions, each with its own differences, yet they all agree on the existence of a greater being that is incomprehensible to the human mind. They all refer to that being as Mythras, but what some disagree on is who Mythras is.
Everyone is 'free' to practice any religion they like, and if they want to convert someone, they can do so politely and rationally, but they cannot force anyone. No abuse or personal attacks are permitted. The only belief that had to be maintained was that humans are mortal, or that “the soul dies with the body.” This is because if you aren’t afraid of persecution or death, you’re more likely to break the law. Hence, no one who believes in immortality may be honored or serve in public service in Utopia.
This can be considered as an ideological “must” in Utopia, which ends up sliding into the domain of “no freedom of religious belief,” despite the previous claim that Utopians are religiously tolerant.
There are some conservative beliefs that were common at the time the book was written. One of them is that wives were subordinated to their husbands, and in general, the oldest male was the authority of each household.
Another intolerable aspect for modern readers is that traveling has limitations. In order to travel, people need to ask for permission from the local government and get a written note that says when they need to be back. People need to work even if they are traveling, meaning that if they go to another city, they need to use six hours of their time to work on farms or in something related to the common good.
Traveling without permission is unacceptable in Utopia, and those who do it more than once are sentenced to slavery. People who commit crimes are generally punished with slavery, and slaves who rebel are sentenced to death.
Utopia’s Relevance, Thomas More Repercussions and Our Future
We could think that Thomas was executed for his book, but that isn’t the case. More was executed in 1535 for refusing to recognize Henry VIII as the supreme head of the Church in England, because it implied a rejection of papal supremacy. However, his writings, including Utopia, were seen as a threat to the established order and were banned by the Catholic Church for many years.
The concept of an ideal society, as we have seen, was not a new one. However, he actually invented the word “utopia” by combining two Greek words: “ou” meaning “not” or “no,” and “topos” meaning “place.” Thus, “utopia” literally means “no place” or “nowhere.”
The concept of utopia, despite having been banned for many years, continued to be explored by other writers in the following centuries, including Francis Bacon, who wrote “The New Atlantis” in 1627, and Samuel Butler, who wrote “Erewhon” in 1872.
As one might expect, utopian ideas are frequently connected with socialism and communism, which envision a more equal and just society and are typically viewed as overly idealistic. This leads us to Karl Marx, who had some utopian ideas centuries later.
Thomas More criticizes his time’s feudal society, which emphasized class distinctions and hierarchical structures. More’s ideal society is one in which everyone works for the common good. Similarly, Karl Marx criticizes his time’s capitalist society, with its focus on private property and the bourgeoisie’s exploitation of the working class. Marx’s ideal society, communism, is a classless society in which everybody owns the means of production, as in Utopia.
Thomas and Marx were men who thought that people seek more than they need because they are afraid of not having enough. But it is important to say that Thomas based his vision on religion, looking at how monks lived, and his work was merely a philosophical exercise that was used to imagine an ideal society. On the other hand, Marx’s vision of communism was much more grounded in historical and economic analysis than mere fiction or imagination.
Utopian social visions are often criticized as being not only idealistic but also totalitarian. This is because they prioritize the common welfare of society over individual needs or desires. Many people consider this to be a significant problem in these approaches. Nevertheless, I am of the opinion that automation can be used to achieve communal goods, while simultaneously allowing individuals to focus on their personal pursuits and needs. This approach can also ensure that individuals are compensated fairly for any extra effort they make, without having to struggle for the basic needs first.
Many people, including myself, find it perplexing that machines are being used to generate art, music, and entertainment rather than giving humanity more time to explore their own creativity, learn, and enjoy their own freedom. These are qualities that are uniquely human and lose significance and purpose if technology can replicate them. Such creations force mankind to work harder than ever to compete with machines, as if humans weren’t already struggling to sustain their existence. It’s ironic to observe how humans are continuously finding new ways to lose the limited freedom they already have, rather than thinking in new ways to gain more or striving towards a common goal as a species.
In any case, I believe the question would then need to be:
“What is the goal of a civilization or society?”
The answer to this question may vary depending on whom you ask. Nevertheless, just as every great piece of speculative fiction has a compelling premise, every society should have an unifying vision that drives its people towards a shared destination. Because there is only one certainty: without a shared vision, we run the risk of losing our way and surrendering control over our future.
Despite having many notions that can be seen as wrong, “Utopia” remains a fascinating and inspiring book that invites us to reflect on our societies and how we could improve them. It challenges us to imagine a better world and create practical goals that we can pursue by applying reason.
Whether we agree with all of its principles or not, “Utopia” reminds us that we have the power to shape our own future, and that we can build a society that is fair for everyone while still providing incentive for the extra effort people may make.
Utopia is a book that explodes critical thinking. It may not have all of the answers or solutions, but it will undoubtedly expand our minds and make us rethink how our world works.
So, why not visit Utopia and see what we can learn from it?
Sources:
(n.d.). Thomas More. Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Thomas-More-English-humanist-and-statesman/Years-as-chancellor-of-England
More, T. (1965). Utopia. Penguin Classics.
P. (2007). The Republic: Plato (2nd ed.). Penguin Classics.
Beyond Thought.
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