Utopia Case

Utopia written by Thomas More describes a communist city-state managed by reason. This book is one of the most foundational works in political theory. This work explains the social relations, occupations, and religious views and citizens rights in this communist city-state. Utopia is known to be an ideal society where there was perfection in law, politics etc. Other main topics that were mentioned were war, slaves, government, pleasure and women in Utopia. Everyone and everything in Utopia is the same and treated the same. There are magistrates, who make decisions for the island as a whole and there are the common people. No, one person is better then another in Utopia. The group of people that may be treated slightly different is the slaves.

Utopia is about a society with a communist lifestyle. It is an island that has fifty-four cities where everyone within the cities have the same customs, speak the same language and abide by the same institutions and laws. Each city contains the same amount of land with the same functions happening in them (More 51.) Homes are set up in continuous rows and behind the houses is a large garden that everyone takes care of and gets pleasure from tending and adoring it (More 58.) Referring to the government, families elect their phylarchs. These people advise the ruler. They help make decisions about public affairs and they help settle disputes with their cities (More 59.) As for occupation, there are only a few professions throughout the island. The one occupation that everyone is trained as a child to know how to do is farm. Utopia has this system of exchanging farmers where every year different families would move into the houses on the farms and it was customary for these families to care for the farmland for that year. Other occupations consist of blacksmiths, weavers, carpenters etc. but farming is the one occupation that everyone knows and does (More 61-63.) The minimal number of professions is a characteristic of communism. Having to be a farmer and not having the options in profession reveal a communistic society.

Everyday life of a Utopian is the same. They do the same thing everyday and stay content. There is no such thing as privacy in Utopia. Utopians are raised to be a community. There is no private property. All families lived the same lifestyle and interacted with one another. Cities are dived up into districts and marketplaces are located in the center of each district which is how families get everything they need. No payment or type of exchange is needed (More 68.) There is always enough for everyone. No one has more then another and one person is not worth more then the other. There are no such things as luxuries in Utopia. Families only get what is necessary for them to live.

Those who had a slightly different lifestyle compared to everyone else are the slaves. Every household has two slaves. There are two types of slaves in Utopia. Slaves are the people who commit serious crimes or foreigners. Then there are those to choose to be slaves. The ones who've committed serious crimes are put constantly to work and they keep them in chains. The Utopians who choose to be a slave are not treated as badly but they are worked harder. Slaves also care for the sick. Slavery can be revoked after good doing. Also, children of slaves are not brought into slavery (More 95-96.)

Everyone has his or her point of view of a "utopia". If I could imagine my own "utopia"