I'm moving to Utopia!

If I was alive in 1516 when Utopia was written, and I knew this place described in Book II of More’s Utopia existed, I would go live there. Today it would be very difficult to give some of my possessions and technology, but I would still consider moving to Utopia. I liked their daily lifestyles and the rules they had in place. For example, I really liked that they only had to work for six hours a day and the rest of the time was for recreation and sleep. I also appreciated how they had their housing set up. I thought the idea of having a beautiful garden at the center of every block was great. We keep on building new developments and skyscrapers, and I think we have lost a lot of nature’s beauty because of it. Another lifestyle rule that they had is that everyone basically wears the same clothes. Even though I love being able to pick my own clothes, I think that making everyone where the same clothes is a smart idea. It creates a sense of equality among everyone, and people can’t judge you based on your clothes.

I also agree with a lot of their moral beliefs. The two ideas that stuck me the most was their beliefs on how you should treat people and what true pleasure is. On page 61, it says, “as long as they [the laws] are observed, to pursue your own interest is prudent; to pursue the public interest is pious; but to pursue your own pleasure by depriving others of theirs is unjust. On the other hand, deliberately to decrease one’s own pleasure in order to augment that of others is a work of humanity and benevolence which never fails to reward the doer over and above his sacrifice.” This passage really stood out to me, because was taught the same beliefs when I was growing up. It is good to do the right thing for yourself and follow the rules; it is bad to take from others for your own benefit. But when you give up what you have to help others, you are truly doing something good. The other idea that I really liked is that the people in Utopia didn't find pleasure in objects, and that just because you had a lot of stuff did not mean that you should be honored. I think this is a lesson that we have a hard time learning today. We place so much value on material objects and we idolize the rich and famous, but in the end does any of those things and those people really matter? I personally don’t think so, but I still find it hard to give up my phone, iPad and laptop and watching reality television.

Speaking of pleasure, I thought their definition of it was interesting. They believe the type of pleasure that goes beyond the surface of basic needs is based on having stable health. I never really thought of pleasure in that sense; however, it does make sense. Maybe it is just because I think I am about to catch a cold, but I understand where the Utopians are coming from because I know that I am never happy whenever I am sick. I agree with their belief that you need stable health to find pleasure, but I am unsure of whether or not I think that the source of pleasure is stable health.

As you can probably tell I was a fan of this reading, but now I understand Amber’s enthusiasm for it, because it has been my favorite reading so far. J