LITR 5737: Literary & Historical Utopias
Midterm Submission 2007
Ruth Pilarte
June 18, 2007
The Goal Of Utopia
Defining the word “utopia” can prove to be a difficult task for various reasons. Although “utopia” comes from the title of Sir Thomas More’s 1512 novel, the word utopia is actually made up of Greek parts, eu (good, as in “euphoria”) + topos (place) to mean “good place.” Utopia’s origins also comes from the Greek parts ou (no) + topos (as in topography) to mean no place. In modern society “utopia” can mean an array of things, reasons being that what one person considers to be utopia, might actually be someone else’s example of dystopia. Even so, the modern definition of utopia abides by several distinguishing features. Today, “utopia” may refer to a community or society with common goals and rules that bind them together. This community is striving for peace, harmony, and equality among its entire people and environment. While this definition of utopia works for most people, it also raises the challenges associated with the term “utopia.” For instance not everyone’s ideal of utopia revolves around the fact that everyone is equal and striving for the same goal. The fact that there is little room for individuality in utopia is considered dystopia to many.
One purpose of utopia is to expose the social injustice and inequality that exist in the world. Utopia tries to change social conditions by limiting free market and wealth. It seems to be in the “utopian mind frame,” that if a person knows that they can only attain a certain level of economic wealth and assets, this will take away his, or her innate desire and greed for more material things. Greed is what causes the rich to deprive the poor of their fair share and what is rightfully owed to them. More’s Utopia states, “However abundant goods may be, when every man tries to get as much as he can for his own exclusive use, a handful of men end up sharing the whole thing, and the rest are left in poverty” (28). The only solution to poverty and greed appear to be the removal of private ownership. An example of this is seen in Looking Backward, where Julian West wakes up to a world where the government take care of everyone’s financial needs. Doctor Leete states to Julian, “No man any more has any care for the morrow, either for himself or his children, for the nation guarantees the nurture, education, and comfortable maintenance of every citizen from the cradle to the grave” (85). Utopia does its best to secure financial security for everyone alike.
A second purpose of utopia is to identify and change gender roles and stereotypes that society places on individuals. This leads to objective 4b., which asks, “How may utopian or millennial studies serve as an interdisciplinary subject of study?”
Women for centuries have been looked upon as being inferior to men physically and mentally. In many past societies, the main role of women has been solely of mother and caretaker of the home. As Brouke Carpenter points out in her historical presentation, the feminist utopian novel address present values and conditions. Furthermore, they present women not only as the less equals of men, but also as the sole arbiters of their reproductive functions (1).
Herland does an excellent job of illustrating all the stereotypes on women. For instance, upon arriving in Herland, the three men conclude that men must reside there due to the fact that the island seems civilized. Van states, “But they look-why, this is a civilized country, There must be men!” (11). Perkins is exposing a common stereotype of her time, that women are not capable of running any matters that does not deal directly with the domestic home.
A second stereotype revealed in Herland deals with defining femininity. Many people seem to associate certain duties and characteristics as being either feminine, or masculine. For example, it is considered masculine to tend to the earth, while it is considered a feminine trait to cook, clean, knit, and to take care of the children. We see these gender role stereotypes in play while upon watching the women of Herland knit Terry states, “When I see them knit, I can almost call them feminine” (31).
Utopia ideals point out all the injustice and inequality that exists. Utopia does its best to promote brotherhood and equality for everyone. Even so, there are many challenges that arise with utopia societies. For one thing, what equates utopia for some people may be dystopia for others. Not everyone is content with the fact that all people will get the same financial and material benefits regardless of their occupation. Others are discouraged with the fact that there is limited ability for intellectual growth, or for any new creative, unique ideas that individuals may have. This challenge that utopia ideals faces leads to objective 3b. which asks, “Are utopian impulses limited to socialism and communism, or may freemarket capitalism also express itself in utopian terms and visions?”
Although one can never rule out that utopian ideals can succeed in a capitalist society, the chances of it happening are slim. Utopian ideals correspond more with the socialist and communist views of brotherhood and equality. Freemarket societies strive in environments that promote individual thoughts and goals. In many cases, it is the society’s ambition and desire to be better than their neighbors that brings in money and power.
A second challenge on utopian visions is its restrictions on individual and intellectual growth. This is evident in Anthem, where the protagonist, Prometheus, endures hardship due to the fact that he refuses to give up his individuality. As Ausmus states in his 2005 midterm, “Anthem describes a society separated from others in a physical sense and in an intellectual and spiritual sense. They are shielded from knowledge, ambitions, and individualism through a vast and controlling ideology.”
As the Bible says, “A man without a vision perishes,” and this is one of the dangers that can arise through utopian ideals. For if one cannot express his, or her own creativity and vision, then it is as though they are killing a part of his, or her soul. Anthem shows an illustration of this by stating, “Many men in the homes of the scholars have had strange new ideas in the past, but when the majority of their brother scholars voted against them, they abandoned their ideas, as all men must” (73).
While utopian ideals seem to promote harmony, peace, and tolerance, there are a few flaws in this system. For one, it does not promote individual mental and spiritual growth. This causes a problem for many of us who long to hold onto our individual goals and dreams. Another flaw of utopia is that in reality all humans do not share the same work ethic and as humans we tend to be more selfish individuals out for our own benefit rather than the benefit of the community. We have certainly addressed these issues in the seminar class and have spoken deeply of the pros and cons of utopia and the difficulty that arises in defining this broad term.