Thomas More’s, Utopia is one of the most politically and socially influential texts to date. His audience, which ranges from academic and social scholars to college students, all can gain a different understanding of the work and it’s meaning. In order to fully comprehend More’s message, one must have an appreciation for the time and culture in which he lived. After grasping historical concepts, one reads Utopia, not as just a volume recounting a fictitious island society, but rather as a critique on a time of corruption and reformation. Throughout the entire text, More’s personal views on the religion, politics, and economy of this turbulent time seep through the carefully plotted thread of this critical work. More is seen in history through many different lights.
It is difficult to historically describe the sixteenth century without mentioning More’s individual involvement as a key religious and political figure of the time. In his early life, he focuses mainly on his desire for priesthood. More lived in a monastery for years and pursued the pious life of the Carthusian’s only to abandon it for a political career. Many speculate that More’s reasons for leaving had to do with the corruption he witnessed in his time there and desire to engage in matrimony. The corruption and greed forming among the clergy is what triggered the Protestant Reformation, led by Martin Luther. Next, More entered into the political spotlight through parliament and as a Speaker of the House of Commons, where he spent his energy encouraging the idea of freedom of speech.
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His next duty was Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, followed by the Lord Chancellor. Both of these came towards the end of his political and judicial career when his views began to split from those of Henry VIII. More’s disagreement with the ideas of Henry VIII and the conversion to Lutheranism was eventually the end of him, when he was beheaded for refusing to swear to the Oath of Supremacy and Act of Succession. He believed in the way of the Catholic Church till the end and paid the ultimate sacrifice of his life.
Evidence of More’s religious views is found throughout the text. He cleverly disguises his true opinions by inventing a fictitious traveler by the name of Raphael Hythloday, who the reader believes to be the originator of the radical ideas. More also sprinkles real names throughout the introduction, which adds credibility to the entire idea of Utopia as a real place. He goes one step further to make himself a character as the voice of reason. In the time that More wrote the novel, these views were so radical that, had they not had some sort of a disclaimer provided, he could have been punished.
Raphael describes the Utopians in detail. More spends an exceptionally large amount of time discussing the Utopians religious beliefs. He describes them as monotheists, stating, “they believe in a single power, unknown, eternal, infinite, inexplicable, far beyond the grasp of the human mind” (73).
More stresses this notion of civility in a heathen culture where Christianity had not touched until Hythloday’s arrival.
The only religious law that must be followed, which was created by Utopia’s founder, Ut opus, claims that any religion is permissible if it includes the notion of an afterlife. He writes this to an audience who he believes has lost all sense of what Christianity truly is. R. W.
Chamber states, “The Four Cardinal Virtues-Wisdom, Fortitude, Temperance and Justice… were taken into the medieval system… and were sufficient to ensure that a man or a State might be a model of conduct in secular matters” (138).
He says that heathen cultures, like Utopia, are based on these Virtues that are “subsidiary to, not a substitute for, the Christian virtues” (138).
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Chamber’s idea suggests that More uses the concept of the Utopians, as heathens, working in a successful and yet Non-Christian society, as proof that just because one says one is a Christian it does not mean that he / she lives a better life than a heathen. It should be mentioned that “heathen” was a derogatory term in the sixteenth century that conjures up images of barbarians and uncivilized chaos.
This play on Heathenism is More’s attempt to critique English Christians who became corrupt, yet still call themselves pious Catholics. It is a call for reform in the religion. Later, More states, “Either through the mysterious inspiration of God, or because Christianity is very like the religion already prevailing among them, they were well disposed toward it from the start” (73).
He maintains that the Utopians were anxious to convert to the rituals of Christianity such as communion and baptism.
This is More’s call to the audience of the sixteenth century to reform back to these traditions and realize the power of them to civilize even “heathens.” More was not just a firm believer in the Church, but rather in the union of Church and State. This desire is seen in his life achievements in both areas. The political arena of More’s time was controlled by kings and princes. More feared that tyranny and power-hungry kings were gaining more control towards the end of his political career with Henry VIII. Utopia, is perhaps his reaction to this. In Book I, Hythloday depicts princes as those who “apply themselves to the arts of wars…
instead of to the good arts of peace. They are generally more set on acquiring new kingdoms by hook or crook than on governing well those they already have” (8).
Many lines in Book I seem to be directed to the greed surrounding monarchies, and especially to Henry VIII. However, as mentioned before, More’s use of Hythloday as a fictitious character and More as the defender of England, allows for him to avoid any accusations of heresy.
More toys with the idea of Communism, as it is called today, in the society of the Utopians. He describes the society as one where money is not an issue. More writes, “as long as money is the measure of all things, it is really not possible for a nation to be governed justly or happily” (28).
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It is difficult to discern whether More really supported communism as an economic and social system or if he was partly playing with the idea. Edward L.
Sur tz answers this question, somewhat, by stating, “As for the Fathers of the Church, they in their genuine writings praise the voluntary communism among the monks, but condemn the heretics wishing to make it compulsory and universal; they assert the right of the individual to private property, but oblige the rich to the alleviation of the needs of the poor” (171).
This particular position explains, due to More’s monk tendencies, why he made the Utopians a communal society. Perhaps, this is More’s critique on the greedy and self-serving tendencies arising in the society. He believes that by showing a society where no one owns anything, that his audience will realize the error of their selfish ways. More spends a great deal of time in Book 1 on a conversation in which Raphael is expressing sympathy for the poor. More was rumored to also display this tendency in his life.
In More’s time, the poor were at their poorest while the rich were getting richer. Food, clothing, etc, became a luxury to the homeless peasants, who often resorted to thievery. In conclusion, More used an interesting characterization method to write a blatant critique of the societal constructs that he lived in. This was a dangerous task to undertake in a time when heresy and treason were punishable by death. More’s life achievements conflict with some of the views in his work, but that is why he calls it fiction. More lived a life of great determination and devotion.
His strict lifestyle and critical analysis of the world that surrounded him served as the perfect exposition for a world that only existed in his mind. To close, a quote from Book I, Hythloday states, “You must strive to influence policy indirectly, handle the situation tactfully, and thus what you cannot turn to good, you may at least-to the extent of your powers-make less bad” (26).
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