It’s not uncommon to encounter the word Utopia in discussions about politics or economics. In colloquial and everyday language it means an imagined place or state of things in which everything is perfect.
Many of us remember from school that Utopia was originally a name given to an imaginary island by some famous philosopher a long time ago. Well, that philosopher was Sir Thomas More (1478 – 1535), an English lawyer, social philosopher, author, statesman, and noted Renaissance humanist. He published the book about Utopia in 1516.
Sir Thomas More (1527) by Hans Holbein the Younger. Public Domain image.
More served as Lord High Chancellor of England under Henry VIII, but refused to acknowledge the king as supreme head of the Church of England and was subsequently convicted of treason and executed. Later, the Catholic Church declared him a martyr and today he’s the patron saint of statesmen and politicians.
I must admit that I didn’t read More’s description of Utopia until very recently, and I thought it would be fun to list some of the features of this perfect island, as described in De optimo rei publicae statu deque nova insula Utopia, which translates to Of a republic's best state and of the new island Utopia.
Oh, and by the way, the name Utopia comes from the Greek language and literally means "nowhere". According to More, Utopia was originally a peninsula, but the founders of the community dug a channel that separated it from the mainland for security and isolation.
On Utopia, there are 54 cities, all similar to each other, and a city consists of 6000 households, not more. A household, or a family, consists of 10 to 16 adults, and 30 households form a group that elect a Syphograntus. Thus, there are 200 Syphogranti in each city and together they elect a Prince, who rules for life unless he is deposed or removed due to tyranny.
All houses are well built but look the same. Same goes for clothing. The household is the central unit of society and families come together in a great hall where they eat together.
Marriage is held in high regard and there are strict prohibitions against pre- and extra-marital sex. Any violation of chastity is severely punished. When choosing a partner, well before marriage, one is permitted to see the other person unclothed so that no surprises arise later.
Everybody engages in productive labor, which makes it possible to have six-hour work days. The only ones exempted from labor are government officials and priests.
Menial tasks are performed by slaves. The slaves are mostly either criminals condemned for vicious crimes or prisoners captured in battle.
In their leisure time, Utopians read a lot of useful stuff and in general, education is directed towards useful learning.
The economy is … well, Utopian. Markets are basically just supply houses where everyone is free to go and take whatever is needed without payment. Travelers will receive free hospitality. The Utopians produce an abundance of food, which means that they can export their surplus to foreign countries and get gold and silver in return for the state treasury.
Indeed, there’s no private property and money doesn’t exist. The wealth that comes from foreign trade is only used for warfare, if such a situation should arise. Precious metals and jewels are despised and for example gold is used for bathroom fixtures and chains for slaves.
Euthanasia is advocated.
The Utopians have a hedonistic life philosophy. Starting with reason as the foundation for all knowledge, they come to the conclusion that life must be in harmony with nature, and because nature prompts to seek pleasure, pleasure is regarded as the goal of life. They make a distinction between the pleasures of the body and of the mind, and restrict pleasure only if it will prove harmful to oneself or others.
Cosmetics are frowned upon.
There are many different religions, none supreme over the others, and atheists are regarded with suspicion and they can’t hold office. All religions preach the notion of an after-life and people aren’t afraid of death.
All things considered, I don’t think Thomas More was 100% serious when he wrote his book about Utopia. In fact, he describes the book as “a truly golden little book, no less beneficial than entertaining”. And entertaining it is indeed.
It’s funny that we’re still today using his word to describe a system we think is ideal, or even too good to be true. When reading More’s description with 21st century eyes, one might think that he’s actually describing a dystopia rather than a paradise.