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saragondin's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
3.5
amyschmelzer's review against another edition
4.0
The author, Sir Thomas More, uses a narrator named More to make this feel like a true account of a conversation he had with a man named Raphael. Raphael describes this country Utopia that he had visited and lived in for several years. We all know the word utopia to mean a perfect society. I, like More the narrator, had some disagreements with how Utopia the country operates but wouldn’t mind if we enacted some of their customs. A two hour siesta after lunch? Sign me up.
ichigotia's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
3.5
rev's review against another edition
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
amiliainoxford's review against another edition
challenging
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.25
The ideas were interesting and I was sometimes captivated but it was often short lived. Enjoyable for a university text.
b1ta's review against another edition
challenging
funny
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
tamlin_draper's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
abandonedmegastructure's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
funny
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
There's always a lot of angles to interpret a work like this from: as a straightforward historical source, an early modern predecessor to worldbuilding bibles, an empty joke, a very targeted satire, a semi-serious policy proposal... I myself was spurred to read it by my love for the excellent Terra Ignota series, which draws heavily on this sort of 16th/17th/18th-century literature, and enjoyed spotting the connections.
The general structure of the book is pretty constant: More points out a flaw in early 16th-century English society, which a modern audience will often nod along to, then presents a solution that's anywhere from surprisingly contemporary (universal healthcare that permits euthanasia, religious tolerance) to morally repulsive (settler-colonial war, legally enshrined patriarchy). I was reminded of talking to a very confident uncle who thinks he's got all the answers to the hot-button issues. A solid dose of ever-applicable satire keeps things funny, and some well-written footnotes help provide historical and linguistic context (although I disliked how vital background knowledge was intermixed with relatively unimportant quotation information, and would've liked one to use 'regular' footnotes while the other is relegated to the appendix.
Turner's translation does two notable things: it anglicizes greek words that the original audience was meant to understand, and it chooses words to emphasize the proto-communist themes present in the original work. Overall, I think these are good decisions, though the second has perhaps faded some with the decline of communism since the sixties.
All in all a pretty fun work to pick up, obviously very different from anything that gets written today but all the more interesting for it!
The general structure of the book is pretty constant: More points out a flaw in early 16th-century English society, which a modern audience will often nod along to, then presents a solution that's anywhere from surprisingly contemporary (universal healthcare that permits euthanasia, religious tolerance) to morally repulsive (settler-colonial war, legally enshrined patriarchy). I was reminded of talking to a very confident uncle who thinks he's got all the answers to the hot-button issues. A solid dose of ever-applicable satire keeps things funny, and some well-written footnotes help provide historical and linguistic context (although I disliked how vital background knowledge was intermixed with relatively unimportant quotation information, and would've liked one to use 'regular' footnotes while the other is relegated to the appendix.
Turner's translation does two notable things: it anglicizes greek words that the original audience was meant to understand, and it chooses words to emphasize the proto-communist themes present in the original work. Overall, I think these are good decisions, though the second has perhaps faded some with the decline of communism since the sixties.
All in all a pretty fun work to pick up, obviously very different from anything that gets written today but all the more interesting for it!
rinlorulsy's review against another edition
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25