Utopia

What we can learn from a Renaissance nowhere  

In 1516, a book was published in Latin with the enigmatic Greek-derived word as its title. Utopia-which could mean either 'good-place' or 'no-place'-gives a traveler's account of a newly discovered island somewhere in the New World where the inhabitants enjoy a social order based purely on natural reason and justice. As the traveler describes the harmony, prosperity, and equality found there, a dramatic contrast is drawn between the ideal community he portrays and the poverty, crime, and often frightening political conditions of 16^th century Europe. Written by Sir Thomas More (1477-1535)-then a rising intellectual star of the Renaissance and ultimately the advisor and friend of Henry VIII who was executed for his devoutly Catholic opposition to the king-Utopia is as complex as its author.  

In the form of a Platonic dialogue, Utopia explores topics such as money, property, crime, education, religious tolerance, euthanasia, and feminism. Claimed as a paean to communism (Lenin had More's name inscribed on a statue in Moscow) as often as it has been seen as a defense of traditional medieval values, Utopia began the lineage of utopian thinkers who use storytelling to explore new possibilities for human society-and remains as relevant today as when it was written in Antwerp 500 years ago.

• Explore the issues like feminism, euthanasia, and equality through Renaissance eyes 
• Early communist tract or a defense of medieval values? You decide.  
• Peer inside the enigmatic mind of the man who dared stand up to Henry VIII 
• Appreciate the postmodern possibilities of Platonic dialogue 

Part of the bestselling Capstone Classics series edited by Tom Butler-Bowdon, this edition features an introduction from writer, economist, and historian Niall Kishtainy. 

Sir Thomas More (1477 - 1535) London, England was an English lawyer, statesman, and chancellor of England (1529-32). More is often considered as a reformer and a conservative, a civic humanist and a devout Christian. More's best known and most controversial work is Utopia - a book in which he condemns the corruption and greed of European society, and supports the ideal of an egalitarian communist state. In July 1535, More was charged with treason under the rule of Henry VIII, and was executed on Tower Hill, London.

Tom Butler-Bowden was working as a political adviser in Australia when, at 25, he read Stephen Covey's The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Captivated by it and other books in the personal development field, he left his career and went on to write critical introductions to self-development and prosperity classics through the best-selling Capstone Classics series published by Wiley. He then went on to write bestselling 50 Self-Help Classics, the first guide to the personal development literature and a winner of the Benjamin Franklin Award.