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Utopia

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Utopia

By: Sir Thomas More
Narrated by: James Adams
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Summary

In this political work written in 1516, Utopia is the name given by Sir Thomas More to an imaginary island. Book I ofUtopia, a dialogue, presents a perceptive analysis of contemporary social, economic, and moral ills in England. Book II is a narrative describing a country run according to the ideals of the English humanists, where poverty, crime, injustice, and other ills do not exist. Locating his island in the New World, More bestowed it with everything to support a perfectly organized and happy people.

The name of this fictitious place, Utopia, coined by More, passed into general usage and has been applied to all such ideal fictions, fantasies, and blueprints for the future, including works by Rabelais, Francis Bacon, Samuel Butler, and several by H. G. Wells, including hisA Modern Utopia.

(P)2008 Blackstone Audio, Inc. Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Political Science Politics & Government Fiction Classics Utopian Science Fiction

Critic Reviews

“Fluent and highly readable, this new version should be welcomed by all admirers of the Utopia.”

(Louis Martz, Yale University )

“Surprisingly apropos as civilization enters the twenty-first century…Through James Adams’ skillful narration one envisions More standing at a lectern in historical garb. Adams’ deep, measured tones lend weight to the utopian portrayal, as do his accurate pronunciations of the names of Greek philosophers. The disparity between More’s world of harmony and balance and the real events of the last 500 years makes this work all the more relevant.”

(AudioFile)
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Offers up some criticisms of 16th Century Britain that are still relevant today in our Capitalist society - wealth inequality, private ownership, capital punishment, the role of government etc. - while offering up a Utopia that is both peaceful, yet borderline Orwellian. It’s interesting viewing the assumed truths in the world in regards to the role of women and the assumption of slavery and how they have shifted over time. Still, a really important text that offers up the question of what would we would call a Utopia today…

Very interesting

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While More might have been joking, if taken at face value, this piece is unrealistic in the extreme, because one could not expect that large numbers of people would remain so virtuous for so long. So, it's like saying that society would be perfect if it were filled with perfect people, but that's obviously never going to happen. So what's the point in daydreaming? More does nuance his argument here and there, but the overall impression is the same.

Well read; More kidding himself

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I found this 16th century perspective on a perfect and impossible world very interesting. The story was not as I expected but it must have provoked thought. Would I want to live there? Probably not. It would be like living in Abnegation in Divergent!

Interesting

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