...Utopia (/juːˈtoʊpiə/) is an ideal community or society possessing highly desirable or perfect qualities. The word was coined in Greek by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book Utopia, describing a fictional island society in the Atlantic Ocean. The term has been used to describe both intentional communities that attempt to create an ideal society, and fictional societies portrayed inliterature. It has spawned other concepts, most prominently dystopia. In many cultures, societies, and religions, there is some myth or memory of a distant past when humankind lived in a primitive and simple state, but at the same time one of perfect happiness and fulfillment. In those days, the various myths tell us, there was an instinctive harmony between humanity and nature. People's needs were few and their desires limited. Both were easily satisfied by the abundance provided by nature. Accordingly, there were no motives whatsoever for war or oppression. Nor was there any need for hard and painful work. Humans were simple and pious, and felt themselves close to the gods. According to one anthropological theory, hunter-gatherers were the original affluent society. Religious utopias can be intra-religious or inter-religious. The inter-religious utopia borders on a concept like Polyculturalism and is not deemed possible in the near future or the near-far future. Fledgling theories are generally canceled as impossible, but the ideology of God and Religion used in inter-religious utopia is commonly stated...
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...Brian Garcia English 102 Professor Koplow October 5, 2013 In his book, Utopia, Sir Thomas More examines the crippled government system in England. He wrote Utopia in 1516, during the reign of King Henry VIII. He takes on this satire through the eyes of his fictional character Raphael Hythloday, where Utopia is described as a society that seems to be the ideal living situation for human beings. A society far more advanced and just. Raphael believes Utopia’s greatest achievements include becoming the perfect society. As a nation that is based on rational thought, and religious tolerance. Where everything is shared, including your home, a world with great productivity for the greater good of the nation. In Utopia there is no class distinctions, no greed for money or gold, therefore crime and immoral behavior is kept to a minimum. In Utopia, there is no private property. Everything is owned by everyone and there is no need for anyone to want more that another person because everyone in the society works together to supply ample provisions for the whole community. When describing Utopia, Raphael points out many of the problems that he sees in English society. One of the most striking examples of English social problems that Hythloday points out is the insistence of the English monarchy to emphasize class distinction. You’re either wealthy or a peasant. But he does say how can anyone “value himself because his cloth is made of a finer thread: for how...
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...inheritance, West is comfortably adjusted to life in America in the 1880s despite the unsavory politics, rabid economics, growing gap between rich an poor, and frequent labor strikes, all of which threaten to arrest industry and devastate the young nation. After a bizarre experience with “animal hypnotism,” West sleeps for over 113 years and awakes in the year 2000 in the home of Dr. Leete. West finds that the new society has no greed, no corruption, no poverty, no crime, and no war. A society in which everyone’s laundry is professionally laundered, meals are professionally prepared in public kitchens, everyone gets a quality education, working hours are short, and retirement comes at the age of forty-five. Everything is as in a utopia. This utopia, no doubt, represented the aspirations of the book’s nineteenth century author, Edward Bellamy. Channeled through the voice of Dr. Leete, Bellamy saturates the book with his ideas of the ideal society. Bellamy’s vision of the future was quite in sync with that of the basic American Dream: equality, justice, and responsibility, for all. Troubled in real life by the same problems that plagued his fictional society of the 1880s, Bellamy wrote his book as a wake-up call and road map to lead his contemporaries...
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...despite the fact that such an ideal life has stayed in people’s mind, not too many people believe a real utopia exists. It is similar to when audiences watch a romantic movie with a perfect ending and tell themselves this can only happen on the screen where all the lines have been written and edited carefully. Without any hope for any possible alternatives, eventually, no one would strive to create a peaceful and fantasy world according to their dream. However, there is a country that is making the dream of a lot of people come true. In a recent decade, Singapore has been moving towards the idea of improving their social and economic problems through constructing the modern building projects. Needless to say, their significant achievement in economic social development has brought them opportunities to become one of the most stable economies in the world regardless of a limited space and sacred natural resources. Singapore is among the countries that has the lowest rate of unemployment, highest adequate living conditions and social pension, and fastest economic growth in Asia. Furthermore, it is also well known for the green environment and energy efficiency. Although Singapore is believed to be a clear example of how a utopian plan has improved human development, there are critics argue that its government is directing people in an oppressive setting through a so called utopia and that there is lack of innovation in a too stable economic organization. The rigid of the government...
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...Dystopias: Definition and Characteristics Utopia: A place, state, or condition that is ideally perfect in respect of politics, laws, customs, and conditions. Dystopia: A futuristic, imagined universe in which oppressive societal control and the illusion of a perfect society are maintained through corporate, bureaucratic, technological, moral, or totalitarian control. Dystopias, through an exaggerated worst-case scenario, make a criticism about a current trend, societal norm, or political system. Characteristics of a Dystopian Society • • • • • • • • • Propaganda is used to control the citizens of society. Information, independent thought, and freedom are restricted. A figurehead or concept is worshipped by the citizens of the society. Citizens are perceived to be under constant surveillance. Citizens have a fear of the outside world. Citizens live in a dehumanized state. The natural world is banished and distrusted. Citizens conform to uniform expectations. Individuality and dissent are bad. The society is an illusion of a perfect utopian world. Types of Dystopian Controls Most dystopian works present a world in which oppressive societal control and the illusion of a perfect society are maintained through one or more of the following types of controls: • Corporate control: One or more large corporations control society through products, advertising, and/or the media. Examples include Minority Report and Running Man. Bureaucratic control: Society is controlled by a mindless...
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...Where Is Utopia in the Brain? DanieL s. Levine Introduction The designer of utopian societies, whether fictional or real, often confronts the limits of what is possible for members of our species. But how severe or flexible are those limits? The explosive growth of behavioral neurobiology and experimental psychology in the last decade has produced many results on the biological bases of social interactions. This growth suggests that we can now look to science for some partial answers to the question of limits. Until recently, the social sciences and the biological sciences have mainly developed separate and disconnected accounts of human behavior. In the “nature/nurture controversy,” for example, anthropology has tended to emphasize cultural influences on human nature whereas behavioral biology has tended to emphasize genetic influences. The journalist Matthew Ridley (Nature via Nurture) provides an accessible account of the intellectual history and rhetoric of these two fields. Yet an increasing number of scholars in both areas are now realizing that behavioral biology and anthropology are studying the same human phenomena from different viewpoints. This overlap means there should be an underlying reality that is consistent across the different disciplines regardless of any disagreements in terminology. The behavioral biologist Edward O. Wilson calls this type of interdisciplinary commonality consilience, a term coined earlier by the nineteenth-century philosopher William Whewell...
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...Utopia functions as a “perfect” society with negligible flaws. The Utopian customs are an important facet of making this society truly perfect. Albeit some customs contribute to this perfect society, others are innately impossible and lack human conscience. The acknowledgment of these customs, along with its flaws, constantly serves as a reminder that a perfect society, Utopia, will likely never be existent in the modern world. Raphael Hythloday, the narrator of Utopia, states that the Utopians “might indeed put the gold and silver into plate-ware and such handiwork, but then in case of necessity the people would not want to give up such articles, on which they had begun to fix their hearts, only to melt them down for soldiers’ pay.”(611) The Utopian usage of gold and silver will not work for soldiers’ compensation. Utopians commonly disregard and even scorn the thought of gold and silver, so for soldiers to accept it as a means of payment will contradict the long upheld Utopian culture. Moreover, gold and silver are abundances in Utopia; as such, the basic concept of supply and...
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...The history of utopian literature began with religious tales of past golden ages or future paradises, such as the Genesis story of the world creation and the Garden of Eden. While both myths demonstrate the characteristic of utopia and dystopia The Genesis account moreover demonstrates the necessity of a system of rules for stability. Therefore, when people talking about utopia, the synonymous word perfection would come up to their mind. So, a utopian society is an ideally formed society which has perfect political and social order, just like a paradise. The citizens in this kind of society would definitely have the most enjoyable life we all dream about, that there are no wars, diseases, discrimination, and inequity. According to my previous...
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...Upon entering the “Squat Grey Building” that is the Central London Hatchery and Conditioning Centre; you will see the motto of the World State: Community, Identity, and Stability. These three words reflect the ultimate goal of the Utopia that is the World State. “Community” means that everyone within the Utopia must work together to maximize happiness for the society as a whole. “Identity” refers to the five classes of hereditary social groups that are created through genetic engineering. Finally, “Stability” refers to the ultimate goal of the Utopia. By creating similar people and censoring and controlling actions, the society looks to minimize conflict, risk, and overall change. The three goals of the World State are completely controlled through the use of science and technology in Brave New World, which thereby stripped its residents of all social aspects and personal freedoms. By creating the Brave New World Huxley shows the importance of technology and progress to society, which makes us stop and consider how our current progress and advancements in technology have affected our society as a whole. Before looking into how people in the World State are restricted from having any free will, it is important to define what it means to be human. In my opinion, all humans are born with free will. I would define free will as the equal and inalienable rights to be an individual who can make their own choices. The ability to act at one’s own discretion without constraint...
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...John Locke, Thomas More, and Thomas Hobbes were all political philosophers of their time. Thomas More, would be the least of a philosopher out of the three. Thomas More, a respected statesmen and prominent political figure and advisor to Henry VIII, was best known for authoring Utopia which depicts the social, religious, and political customs of a fictional island and attempts to define an ideal society. More’s Utopia portrays a humanist ideal world, where there is freedom and harmony between individuals and Sovereign themselves. The difficulty with Utopia is that it does not consider actual human behavior patterns. A society can accept the idea of perfect society, there is no need for “thank you” or “I’m sorry” in a society that runs on perfection and generosity runs like a spectacular waterfall. The problem is that Utopia wouldn’t work, a society would become susceptible to negative behavior, once one individual abuses the generosity of others, others will see the advantage and start to follow...
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...Utopia, as described by Thomas More, is a perfect society because they had a diverse religion, a low crime rate, and an established government. More expresses how Utopia had a very diverse and accepting religion. Everyone could believe in almost anything they wanted. More explained how “Many religions were practiced in Utopia, from worship of the sun or moon to a belief in one God.” (More, Paragraph 9) Overall, most religious beliefs were tolerated. This allowed Utopians to have freedom when it came to religion. Utopia was also shown to have a low crime rate. “Crime was also rare in Utopia because there was no incentive to steal in that all possessions belonged to everyone anyway.” (More, Paragraph 7) Since materials were shared among the...
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...Throughout Thomas Moore’s Utopia, the description consists of nothing less than perfection. The word “Utopia” was originally used by Sir Thomas Moore in his book Utopia to describe a perfect place. Compared to modern society, the Utopians culture and customs were certainly strange to read about but also interesting. Most of, if not all of their means of living were different compared to the way we live now. Although written in a completely different time period, some of their actions would be considered peculiar even in Sir Thomas Moore’s time. Firstly, the major custom which would catch the reader’s eye is certainly concerning their usage of gold. Throughout history, gold has always been something that people have seen as valuable and have cherished it. It has been used as a means for trade, decoration, and among other things. Although in reality gold has always been valued, the Utopians did not seem to care...
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...Personal or Political? Cleverly penned to literally mean ‘no place,’ Utopia is an ideal discussed by Thomas More in Utopia. With connotations of eternal and universal bliss, the potential of a Utopian society easily strikes a chord in anyone’s heart to continuously pursue. Therefore, isn’t that ultimately what we are all trying to do, reach our Utopia? It is common knowledge that we are all diverse and individual people, so is a true worldly Utopia possible? We each form our own individual Utopian ideals, and while some theories may connect in ways with another’s opinion, a Utopia is more of a personal ideal and less of a societal or political ideal. The foundation of a Utopia is where most commonalities in opinions are found: job or purpose, happiness, belonging, positive environment, insurance of safety and sustenance, and the perfect amount of order. Getting to a more specific level, however, reveals differences in issues of strong government control or complete independence, stationary communities or nomadic, living off the land or to focus on a life with industrialized advancements, etc. In More’s Utopia, the perfect amount of order is similar to the United State’s House of Representatives, in which one person per city is made the voice of the people. The votes are ultimately out of the public’s control and are the Representative’s own personal opinion of what is best for the people. (More) When the time comes to vote on issues like control, as a country we do our...
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...cynical, there are plenty of examples where people will do just about anything in order to achieve what they want. Luther and Machiavelli both were under the impression that people are naturally selfish, and thus need the guiding hand of the government to keep them in check. All three use the fear of punishment as an incentive to uphold the laws. Machiavelli said that “Fear is sustained by the dread of punishment that is always effective” (Machiavelli, 58). More doesn’t say it as up front as Machiavelli does, but the reason people behave is because of their fear of the punishment of becoming a slave, not because they love their rulers. Machiavelli and Luther both saw the need for there to be a separation of secular authority and religious authority, putting to question the idea of divinely inspired royalty. “Each must decide at his own peril what he is to believe…How he believes is a matter for each individual’s conscience and this does not diminish [the authority of] secular government” (Luther, 25). Machiavelli was concerned with acquiring and maintaining power and was of the opinion that whoever was smart enough to obtain power and keep it had the right to rule, and Luther saw the government merely as an organization to keep...
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...Youth in Dystopia (DRAFT) Christopher Lewis Chapman University May 21, 2014 Vadeboncoeur (2005) criticizes the age-old question: “What do you want to be when you grow up?” and explains that youth are always defined as being in the process of becoming an adult. But what happens if this question is no long applicable or even necessary? Dystopian novels remove this illusion of choice. In each of the novels I will address, all teenagers attend or participate in a ceremony whereby they transition from young adult to adult. The first series I will address is Scott Westerfield’s Uglies series, where youth undergo plastic surgery as their rite of passage. Maturation and growing up require endure body modifications to create same-ness and the perfectly pretty white race. Second, I will analyze Ally Condie’s Matched series, where social order to determined by sorters who decide vocation and spouses. All teenagers attend a ceremony where a person’s perfect match is determined by a computer program. Lastly, I will use Veronica Roth’s Divergent series to explore how the world is constructed by personality type. Youth choose to participate in factions that are determined by a psychological examination that detects a youth’s instinctual predilections when facing their fears. As readers begin to figure out the rules to this new society, they are challenged to make comparisons to their own world. We are forced to wonder whether or not, as educators, we reinforce stereotypical...
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