I can not express how excited I was when I opened up Sir Thomas More's Utopia and saw letters and words that I recognized. I thought: "Finally! Something I can read without needing a translator!". What I like best about this book is, not only that I can read it without feeling stupid, is the style that More writes in. I love how he is so descriptive about so many different things, in fact I believe that his description of Raphael Hythloday: "The stranger had a sunburned face, a long beard, and a cloak hanging loosely from his shoulders; from his appearance and dress, I took him to be a ship's captain" (More 10) was the beginning of my excitement about this text. I know that it sounds a little crazy, but generally, I find that if I like reading the first few descriptions of anything in a book, I can tell if reading it is going to be a struggle for me, or an enjoyment.
I like the ideas that the Utopian society has. No greedy want for money, no real possessiveness of people or property, equality, religious tolerance, very very little behavior that could be considered immoral, and the fact the there are rational decisions made on behalf of the country. I sincerely wish that our own society was like this. I feel like things would be as different as night and day. Who do I talk to about setting this up?
Here's a comic that I think describes how many of us feel, not only about the many different aspects of our world and society, but also about the little things in life such as school, work, family, the dining hall food, and other things:
I am very excited to see where this novel takes our class, and as I have never read it before, it will be fun for me to see what others have to say about Utopia. Looking forward to this new reading with everyone!
Megan,
ReplyDeleteI too think it would be nice to have this extravagant Utopian society, but is it really possible? Is it even possible in the book? Perhaps I may sound a bit skeptical, and perhaps this very well is a fictional story, but I still find this Utopian society too unrealistic. That being said, I don't understand how it would be successful. Zack mentioned in his post how everyone is inherently greedy. This statement alone would be enough to divide the Utopian society into a society that is less than perfect, where people are constantly wanting more and never satisfied with their lives. Like the saying "it's too good to be true," maybe Utopia is too perfect to really be perfect or even exist.
Megan,
ReplyDeleteI wonder if it is even possible to become a society as disciplined and un-unique as Utopia. But, as there is with every text, there is something to learn from what Moore is pointing out. Sometimes, i think that all that is necessary to make a change is awareness. It may sound silly, but look at the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge; if you asked the millions of people who dumped buckets on their heads what ALS was last year, I'm sure many of them would have no clue. Perhaps, when writing this novel, the author was trying to just make people aware that things could be better--that things do not have to stay the way that they are.