Utopia:

The Impossible Dream?

This is Sir Thomas More. But who exactly was he? What

connection does he have to King Henry VIII? And what does

he have to do with the topic of Utopia?

TASK 1: Investigate the life of Sir Thomas More (1478-1535)

You could present your research as a mind map, information poster, power

point presentation, storyboard, etc.

If you are having trouble getting started, the next slide has some facts

about More’s life taken from: https://kids.kiddle.co/Thomas_More

Some other useful websites are:

https://www.biography.com/scholar/thomas-more

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Thomas-More-English-humanist-

and-statesman/Career-as-kings-servant

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_More

Sir Thomas More

painted by

Hans Holbein the Younger

Sir Thomas More or Saint Thomas More (7 February 1478 – 6 July 1535), was an English

writer, lawyer, and statesman.

More held many important jobs including Speaker of the House of Commons, Lord

Chancellor and advisor to King Henry VIII. He also invented the word "utopia", which

means: "an ideal place to live". This is described in the book he wrote called Utopia.

When Henry VIII left the Roman Catholic Church because the Pope would not give him

a divorce from his first wife, he started The Church of England. More was a devout Catholic,

so he did not accept the King as head of the Church. Because of this, he was arrested and

executed for treason.

More is thought of as a martyr and was made a saint by the Roman Catholic Church in

1935. His feast day is on the 22nd of June and he is the patron of lawyers and politicians.

A play and movie called A Man For All Seasons (1966) is based on his life.

There were some tricky words on the last slide.

TASK 2: Match the words to their correct definition. (Answers on Slide 11)

devout

advisor

treason

martyr

ideal

statesman

patron

A standard of perfection or excellence

Someone who supports, sponsors, represents or endorses others

A person who is put to death for something they believe in

Someone who gives advice, usually in a formal capacity

A person who is experienced in the art of government

To have a strong and devoted religious faith

The betrayal of one’s government, country or sovereign (ruler)

Sir Thomas More is perhaps most famous for his creation of

the fictional island of Utopia in his book of the same name.

Published in 1516, Utopia introduces the concept of the

perfect or model society. The book is a satire which means

even More himself did not intend for it to be taken completely

seriously, which is perhaps made evident by its Latin subtitle:

“Libellus vere aureus, nec minus salutaris quam festivus, de

optimo rei publicae statu deque nova insula Utopia”

Translation: “A little, true book, not less beneficial than

enjoyable, about how things should be in the new island

Utopia“

INTERESTING FACT: “Utopia” is a pun on two Greek words.

“ou-topos” meaning no place

“eu-topos” meaning good place

Inspired by Sir Thomas More, people have long sought to design and build their own Utopias.

THINK: Can you tell which of these amazing looking places have actually been built?

Key Characteristics of a Utopian Society:

• A peaceful and fair government

• Equal access to high quality systems of

education and healthcare

• Equality for all citizens regardless or gender,

age, ethnicity, sexuality, religious beliefs,

cultural practices or disabilities

• A safe and pleasant environment

• A happy and productive population

Easy, right?

TASK 3: Design your own Utopia.

Your task is to design a utopian island for your perfect society. You

will need to:

1) Name your society. Be creative!

2) Create a flag for your island. Think about colours/symbolism.

3) Draw a map of your island. Use a key to label:

• Roads

• Settlements (villages, towns, cities)

• Government buildings

• Key businesses

• Ports, harbours, docks, marinas, etc.

• Agricultural areas (farming)

• Tourist areas (hotels, beaches, museums, etc.)

• Areas for recreation (zoos, parks, sports facilities, stadiums, etc.)

• Any additional areas that are important for your community

• REMEMBER: Be creative and unique. Surely your utopian society

would expect that… right?

Here are some points to consider when designing your utopian society. Feel free to adapt your own!

• What will be your capital/centre of government? What type of government will you have? Will you have a monarchy (king or queen), a

president or a prime minister? Will they rule alone or have people to help them make decisions? How will you choose these people?

• What will be the climate of your island? Where will your population live? What type of habitat will you provide for them to live in?

• What language will your people speak? How will they communicate? What religion will they follow? What cultural traditions wil l you

encourage? What holidays will you allow?

• How will you educate your civilians? How will you look after them? What system of healthcare will you use?

• What will be your system of currency? How will people buy goods/trade commodities? How will you ensure that wealth is distributed as

evenly as possible? What work or employment will there be? What happens to those too old or too ill to work?

• What industry will you have? What will you export (sell) from the island? What goods will you need to import (buy)?

• What systems of transport will you use? How will people get around your island safely and as environmentally friendly as possible?

• How will you manage the environment? How will you keep pollution to a minimum?

• How will you encourage and reward success without embarrassing or alienating those who don’t succeed? What will people do for leisure?

How will they have fun?

• How will you keep order? How will you punish those who commit crimes? What systems of justice will you use?

REMEMBER: Your population needs to be happy and your society needs to be as fair and perfect as possible otherwise it

will fail as a utopia!

The idea of a utopian society where everything is perfect seems absolutely fantastic and, on the surface, makes

you wonder why human beings can’t just live this way.

However, utopia as a concept is fundamentally flawed which means that there are certain problems which make it

extremely challenging or prevent it from working altogether.

THINK: What problems did you come across when designing your utopian society?

EXTENSION TASK: List 5-10 and give a reason to justify why they made it hard for your utopia to work.

For example:

Problem 1: All wealth will be spread evenly with everyone receiving the same pay. However, some people might

argue that their job is worth more than others because it is highly skilled or specialised and takes longer to train

for.

Problem 2: Everyone will live in high-tech, high-rise, luxury apartment blocks to save space. However, the people

near the top will have much better views than the people at the bottom.

The Impossible Dream?

Answers to Slide 4.

devout - to have a strong and devoted religious faith

advisor - someone who gives advice, usually in a formal capacity

treason - the betrayal of one’s government, country or sovereign (ruler)

martyr - a person who is put to death for something they believe in

ideal - a standard of perfection or excellence

statesman - a person who is experienced in the art of government

patron - someone who supports, sponsors, represents or endorses others