Could a country ever be completely united and equal, with no inner division and equal opportunity for everyone? It certainly seems so in Utopia, a fictitious country, presented by, a fictitious explorer, Raphael Nonsenso in the very real novel Utopia by Thomas More. Now the question arises, how could a country be united that well? The answer lies in the way that Utopia handles religion, labor, and property. In these Utopia creates unity by promoting equality throughout.
The ways Utopians handle religion creates unity by promoting equality. In Utopia, as in every other country, there are many different religions. However, in Utopia, this does not mean there are multiple feuding divisions within the country like there are within other ones. Instead the country is more unified as a result of all the religions. According to Raphael “the most ancient principles of [the utopians] constitution is
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religious toleration” (pg. 100). The Utopians know that religion can divide the people which would create disunity within themselves. By giving each religion equal treatment they prevent the splitting of utopia into different sects and strengthen the bond between their citizens. This unity is shown in their church practices where everyone, no matter their religion, gathers in a church to pray together. The special thing about the prayer is that “it’s worded in such a way that, while they’re all saying it together, each person can apply it to himself” (pg. 109). Every man, woman, and child, regardless of their beliefs, unite under one roof with each one speaking the same prayer. Only a country like Utopia, with such a heavy focus on equal treatment, could accomplish something like this where the entire country is united so. This is only the first way that people are given equal treatment, the second can be found in how the Utopians labor system works. The way Utopians handle labor creates unity by promoting equality.
In Utopia, everyone works. There are no vagrants hanging around and doing nothing, every person has a job there. Furthermore everyone has “one job they all do, irrespective of sex, and that’s farming. It’s part of every child’s education” (pg. 55). Unlike other countries where jobs are divided into jobs that men can do and jobs that women can do Utopia creates an equal opportunity for everyone. With every child learning how to farm in school everyone has access to the same skills and in this sense everyone is equal as well. Of course this is not the only way that Utopia creates unity and equality with labor. The Utopians believe that when putting humanity under a more powerful microscope one will be “surprised to find how few people actually produce what the human race consumes” (pg. 57). With the system that Utopia uses everyone produces his fair share and everyone does their fair share of work. No one does more and no one does less to provide for the country and through this everyone is equal and
unified. The way Utopians handle property creates unity by promoting equality. There is no such thing as private property in Utopia. If any utopian needs or wants anything “[one] just goes to one of the shops and asks for it” (pg. 61). No one owns anything and thus everything is available to everyone. This system is one of ultimate equality where each person has the same things open to them and no one is short in the things that they need. The reason this system is in place is to create more unity. For they believe that “Christ…would have led the whole world to adopt the Utopian system long ago, if it weren’t for that beastly root of all evils, pride” (pg. 112). By eliminating private property, the Utopians dissolve one of the main root causes of pride. No man thinks himself better because they own more, not in a society where everyone is so equal as in Utopia. When every citizen is equal, and when they know themselves to be equal, all of them unite. After all, why would any man try to make themself appear better or worse when everyone already knows their true worth.
In Utopia, a perfect society exists in which everybody has a vocation that creates a corporate vocation making a perfect society. Utopia means "no place." This meaning can be easily comprehended because there is no such thing as a perfect society. So it wouldn't exist anywhere, no place. In Thomas More's utopian society, everyone has a purpose to add to the community's vocation, which is how the private and corporate vocations are linked together. Also in this utopian society, people live together in harmony. This is because every person needs the next person to survive.
There are many elements that are required to maintain a utopian society such as equal chores of an everyday household. There are responsibilities of every resident from cooking food to keeping the house clean. These chores have to be just otherwise the purpose of the utopian society is corrupted. All residents have the same right as any other member of the society yet there are some rules that are to be followed to help maintain the community. This is when a form of self-government comes into action.
One of the reasons, the so called Utopia fails to exist time and again when attempts are taken solely on the ground of equity is that, even the most idyllic society is somewhat built on the foundation of pain, sacrifice of the weak for the benefits of strong. From the analysis of Omelas and the contemporary North American societies it is clear that there is no Utopia.
Utopians work for the commonwealth and in result no one worries about hunger or payment, “products of each household are taken to designated houses there and each kind of goods is separately stored in a warehouse. From then each head of household goes to get whatever he and his household need” (More 1713). This system allows Utopians to prosper because if one household does not do well that year and another does well, this results in a balanced scale, this system is seen in America today also known as government assistance. Subjects on the other hand have to work and pay taxes to their ruler, this results in his prosperity and the different groups based on their income, “People, thus, cannot persist in a state of anarchy and without a ruler who keeps them apart” (Khaldun 1732). Utopians have multiple rulers who keep the peace and expect no pay while subjects have a single ruler who relies on his subjects to prosper.
The intention of this work was to open the minds of its readers, in this case the people of Europe. This is the case of every writing in relation to philosophy and politics. Utopia can easily be restricted to satire and art; nevertheless, this work is so much more. The channel of communication was unorthodox; nonetheless, it took creativity and ingenuity to make ideas as radical has his were during the 16th century to be transmissible to those who had the eye and mind to interpret it. This work, like various others has its flaws and key pros. This system cannot be seriously enacted into society today due to its limitations for the advancement of society. That said this is a great starting point for colonization on distant planets and the bases for a new version of democracy that could evolve into something more desirable and unimagined today.
Utopia is an imaginary state, which consists of people who believe they are more capable to live in a group than alone. In such a community, the welfare of the group is the primary interest comparing to the comfort of individuals. The purpose of this society is to allow people to live in equality and freedom. Their social and economical status would be the same. An example of such a society was established in 1848, by John Humphrey Noyes. It soon dissolved at 1880 because of the oppositions aroused among the people about the system of "complex marriage". This system is different from the one in The Giver, whereby all adults in the community were considered married to one another.
In order to create structure in a society, one must ensure the care of its people. In the imaginary civilization of Utopia, the main strategy is to "get through life as comfortably and cheerfully as we can, and help other members of our species to do so too" (More 92). More focuses on the well being of its citizens to create happiness and order within the society. He does this by initiating the idea of human rights and equality. With the sense of equality in society people can help each other to live blissfully, and stop trying to become better than their neighbors.
The Utopia Reader defines the word utopia as “a nonexistent society described in detail and normally located in time and space.” (p.1) I would best define utopia as a fictional dream- paradise land where everything is peaceful, perfect and all runs smoothly. There is no crime disease, or pain. People are happy, kind and fair and have each other’s best
One of the various issues that has been an essential part of ethical and legal debate, over the history leaders tried to make Utopia. Every story ends for a reason and death brings an end to an each individual's dreams. Although the short story "Harrison Bergeron" by Kurt Vonnegut, aims at presenting an evidently best and perfect world, the anxiety of freedom is abandoned. Basically, the point of Utopia is that it's an impression of 'ideal worlds'. What I believe, the right name ‘Utopia’ itself means "No-place" in this world. Even if we have perfect world; there is always one person who feels that there is something is missing. We are human we are born naturally with imperfection. I believe we are imperfect, utopia is non-existed land and author proves in his work. God has made everything for purpose we cannot do what we want because God has given brains to humans, which makes them unique which leads to think different, act and react different.
Before reading Utopia, it is essential that the reader understand that like Jonathan Swift’s, A Modest Proposal, Utopia is satirical. More creates a frame narrative in which Raphael Hythloday, the novel’s main character, recollects his observations of Utopia during his five-year stay. Hythloday spares no detail in his descriptions of Utopia, as he discusses everything from their military practices, foreign relations, religion, philosophy, and marriage customs. Interestingly enough, everything Hythloday discusses in Book II seems to be a direct response to of all of t...
Utopias often describe the ideal society as a perfect harmony between male and female, black and white, rich and poor.
Utopia achieves great universality by evincing great understanding and sympathy with all men (Surtz, vii). It presents the hope for far better things, sustained by the view that man may shape and mold himself in any chosen form, (viii) thus creating the best earthly state possible. Redfield’s text focuses on nine insights to a spiritual transformation. When all nine insights are understood, an exciting new image of human life, and a positive vision of how we can save this planet, it’s creatures and it’s beauty will be attained (Redfield). According to Redfield, upon reaching the new millennium, human culture will shift as we move toward a completely spiritual culture on earth. In order to understand where we are today, we must take ourselves back to the year 1000 and move through the millennium as we lived through it. Imagine yourself being alive in the year 1000, the Middle Ages. The first thing you must understand is that the reality of this time is being defined by the powerful churchmen of the Christian church (22). Because of their position, these men hold great influence over t...
A utopia does not necessarily need to be absolutely perfect to be accepted by all the people. For example, in Brave New World, John says, “But I don’t want comfort. I want God, I want poetry, I want
All Utopians work. There are no rich people, deadbeats, or other people who go through life not working. Most people prefer to work and live in the city, but the work on the farms must be done as well. So, there is a rotation: everyone gets a turn to live and work in the city, and then must live and work on a farm for period of time. Since everyone must do this, there is no complaining from anyone. They see working on the farm as fulfilling their duty to the nation.
Because they are described in a detailed manner, the Utopia book itself seems to be enough to be a blueprint for the future. However, Thomas More clearly stated that he just wishes Europeans to follow some good qualities of the Utopian society—“there are many things in the Utopian commonwealth that in our own societies I would wish rather than expect to see” (97)—because he himself knows that it is impossible for any country to be like Utopia. This is apparent, because Utopia is possible on the premise that every factor comes together to create this ideal society. Even the geography has to contribute to this premise, as Hythloday explains the geography of Utopia as the place where strangers cannot enter without one of them (39). Moreover, from diligent and compassionate Utopians’ characteristics and their ways of life, they seem to be successful in reaching the fullest of every aspect of their life including physical, intellectual, social, spiritual, and emotional, when it is hardly possible to even have one person like that in real life.