Utopia, For the Common Good
Samira Kuklinski
21/01/2021
"Utopia" by Thomas Morus, 1516
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In Utopia a certain human behaviour guarantees economic security. No one on the island acts selfish or only has their own wealth in mind. Instead everyone seeks the best for the public and the community, they want to truly pursue a commonwealth.
Because of this selfless behaviour no one has any property rights in order to avoid unequal distribution and the possibility that only one person acquires great luxury.
Goods are taken to a public store and every Utopian has a right to everything. With the public welfare in mind everyone only takes what they need so that the community can live plentifully and happily, in an economically secure environment, and no one has to live in poverty.
To emphasize, the behavioural difference of Utopians lies in the fact that there is no form of competition or hostility between the population and everyone lives in harmony and wishes only the best upon the other Utopians.
More’s Utopia is based economically on a very simple form of communism: people put whatever they produce into the common storehouse, from which they are allowed to take whatever they need.
Whilst this scheme might work on a small island, where there is a small and tight-knit community, it's installation in the real world would not work.
The reality of all societies is that there will always be people who are centered around their own benefit rather than the well being of the community. Jealousy, greed and hostility are inevitable in a society because these impulses and feelings are in human nature. Therefore a public storehouse that secures the economy in Utopia is highly unlikely to workout in real life. The goods in there would probably be stolen, or since everyone is allowed to take items from there, some people would take more than necessary. This leaves others with nothing or too little to lead a happy and carefree life.
Another way people would most likely take advantage of More’s system is by being freeloaders. Some are bound to be lazy and exploit the work of others, without contributing to the storehouse themselves.
Since the survival of your own self is a primary instinct of humans I think there would be no possibility that people would provide for strangers before themselves. On a small island where everyone cares for eachother it may be possible but in our world where it is impossible to know everyone More’s scheme would not work.