Utopia by Thomas More
Fourth Corrected Edition in English. This edition of Thomas More’s “Utopia” is entitled “Sir Thomas Moore’s Utopia: Containing an Excellent, Learned, Wittie, and Pleasant Discourse of the Best State of a Publike Weale, as it is Found in the Government of the New Ile Called Utopia.” It was published by Bernard Alsop as the “newly corrected” edition in 1624. It was translated by humanist Ralph Robinson and is the first edition to publish the new dedication to Cresacre More, the great grandson of the author.
“Utopia” was first published in Latin in 1516 and was translated to English in 1551. “Utopia” is a narrative that depicts a fictional island and its society and customs. It is divided into two books; the first book is a dialogue of counsel which begins with correspondences between More and several people with whom he has become acquainted on the continent and includes discussions on religion, politics, and social practices. The second book is a discourse on Utopia and its society’s religious, social, and political practices, which include: all property is community owned, there is no violence, and religious tolerance is practiced.
More’s landmark work “Utopia” is considered one of the most influential books in western literature and is believed to have motivated the ideas of Anabaptism and Communism with its politics.
TITLE: Sir Thomas Moore’s Utopia: Containing an Excellent, Learned, Wittie, and Pleasant Discourse of the Best State of a Publike Weale, as it is Found in the Government of the New Ile Called Utopia.
Published: 1624
Catalogue: #0261