Utopia

Escrito por Thomas More

Narrado por Ricardo Roldan

A segunda é o alcance dos interesses individuais, entendido como apenas viável, se feito através do preenchimento prévio das necessidades coletivas. Esses conceitos são centrais na obra.
Todo os outros elementos do funcionamento tanto dos costumes, quanto da cultura, como do governo são diretamente ligados a esses pontos.

O autor vê a propriedade privada como a essência das mazelas do homem. Podemos entender como propriedade privada a desigualdade material, e se refere muito mais a propriedade privada como vemos hoje, do que à concentração de riquezas por direito de posse, como no caso da nobreza européia tradicional. Da mesma forma, a necessidade de ver a sociedade como um conjunto e de subordinar os interesses individuais aos coletivos são a única maneira de alcançar prosperidade e progresso. A descrição da ilha é feita com base numa comparação com a Inglaterra do seu tempo, que tem uma função de negativo. É perfeitamente possível entender Utopia como uma anti-Inglaterra.

• Idioma: Português
• Editora: Universidade Falada
• Data de lançamento: 1 de jan. de 2010

Thomas More

Thomas More (1478-1535) was an English lawyer, judge, philosopher, statesman, and humanist. Born in London, he was the second of six children born to Sir John More and his wife Agnes. From 1490 to 1492, he served as household page for Archbishop of Canterbury John Morton, who introduced him to Renaissance humanism and nominated him for a spot at the University of Oxford. After two years of learning Latin and Greek, he left to study law and was called to the Bar in 1502. Two years later, he was elected to Parliament, launching his political career in earnest. In 1516, while serving as Privy Counsellor, More published Utopia, a work of political philosophy and social satire that describes the customs of a fictional island nation. After a series of prominent posts in the court of King Henry VIII, More succeeded Thomas Wolsey as Lord Chancellor in 1529, making him one of the most powerful men in England. His three-year reign was mired in controversy, as he worked to impede the influence of the Protestant Reformation through the persecution of heretics and the suppression of Lutheran books, especially the Tyndale Bible. In 1530, he refused to sign a letter to Pope Clement VII that sought to annul Henry’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon, damaging his relationship with the King and distancing himself from clergymen loyal to the crown. After resigning in 1532, he further enraged the King by refusing to attend the coronation of Anne Boleyn, leading to a series of charges orchestrated by Thomas Cromwell. His refusal to take the Oath of Supremacy, which recognized the King as the figurehead of a new Church of England, would culminate in his being found guilty of high treason in 1535. Five days after his trial by jury, More was beheaded at Tower Hill. Recognized as a martyr by the Catholic Church, he was canonized as a saint in 1935 by Pope Pius XI.