Utopia

Paradise of the Past
Victoria Wong

Utopia Thomas More. 154 pages. Penguin Classics. $6.95.

Utopia: a word that stems from the Greek οὐ, "not", and τόπος, "place," taken from the title of a book written by Thomas More in 1516. Although the literal meaning is “imaginary place,” it has come to be a synonym for paradise, where people are as free as birds and happy as clams; this is due to what was written in More’s book. The book begins with Thomas More meeting a friend, Peter Gilles. Peter introduces him to a sailor named Raphael Nonsenso. The three friends begin to converse; Raphael talks about a dinner discussion he had with a Cardinal and an English lawyer, and how they differed in opinion concerning certain social problems. Raphael then mentions an island that he lived upon for five years; upon More’s encouragement, he proceeds to give a, “detailed account of it from every point of view, geographical, sociological, political, legal – in fact, [he tells More and Gilles] everything [he] thinks [they’d] like to know, which mean everything [they] don’t know already”. The island he describes is Utopia. Utopia is partially based upon Plato’s idea of a perfect republic but is in most part Thomas More’s individual thoughts about what would be the perfect society. It preaches the virtues of a simple lifestyle in small, interconnected towns, shunning the lavish lifestyles of the nobility and royalty of the time. Utopia is generally a book that encourages good moral behavior, pacifism and tolerance, with the exception of the practice of slavery (since this book’s almost five hundred years old, some outdated practices may be forgiven). At the same time, it encourages fighting when it’s for the good of one’s nation and society in general. What is quite wondrous about this book is that even though it was written almost 500 years ago, the topics discussed within can still be applied to the modern world. Many of the social issues that are covered are the ones that people have to deal with today, such as divorce, religion, and healthcare. The bluntness with which More addresses these issues is rather refreshing, as problems concerning many aspects of society are covered with nary a qualm about being politically correct. One example of this would be the Utopian’s view on euthanasia. When a person has an incurable disease, the Utopians will sometimes go up to a sick person and say this: “’Let’s face it, you’ll never be able to live a normal life. You’re just a nuisance to other people and a burden to yourself – in fact you’re really leading a sort of posthumous existence. So why go on feeding germs?’” This bluntness provides a more down-to-earth, if not totally ethically right, view on how certain situations can be dealt with, which helps to broaden the reader’s mind in regard to social issues. Utopia is a description of how a nation deals with serious issues, so it would be an unsuitable book to read for people who look forward to humorous plot and/or fast-paced action. Since it was translated from Latin, it contains a somewhat old-fashioned writing style and difficult language at points; thus, this book would not be a select choice for those readers who prefer short and easy reading. Overall, Utopia is a great read for the mature reader who is willing to spend some time reading about more serious subjects in life, even if they are written from a different viewpoint that that of people in today’s world.