Thomas More was born on February 7th, 1478 in London. As an infant he was taken to the precincts of the church. There the priest instantly exorcised him and quickly baptized him ‘to obtain eternal grace by spiritual regeneration’ (Ackroyd).
As a child Thomas served the archbishop by running errands, and to carry messages. He went to school at Oxford and studied public affairs. He was very determined to become a monk and disciplined himself to live and become a monk. Thomas as a young man would also write comedies and spent most of his time in Greek and Latin literature. Besides mastering all of that he also mastered French, history, and mathematics. In about 1494 he went back to London and went to school at New Inn and there he became a law student.
Thomas More devoted all his poetry, comedies, and literary works to Pico Della Mirandola. His first book “Adagiorum Collectanea” which is the last and ninth volume of proverbs was published in about February 1500 by, Erasmus (Ackroyd). It was announced the first selection of classical adages and proverbs ever printed.
published.” It was published in 1516 and written in Latin. Its about a perfect society of religion and day to day customs. (http://downloadbookz.com/utopia-original-first-edition-version-published-for-kindle-english-translation-sir-thomas-more.html)
Everything at this time then points in the direction of the monastery. While this entire time he applied everything he had to piety. All of this was to priesthoods in vigil. Through this he proved himself to be prudent. He really couldn’t be a priest or a monk though because he wanted to be a husband instead of being a priest or a monk. All of this was tearing him apart because ever since he was little he wanted t...
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...cted. He did not look upon the severing of his head from his body as a circumstance that ought to produce any change in the disposition of his mind". Written by Addison in Spectator (No.349) (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14689c.htm)
The beheading took place outside Tower Hill on July 6, 1535 and the rest of the body was buried at the church of St. Peter Ad Vincula. Thomas More was formally beatified by Pope Leo XIII, in 29 December, 1886. He was also canonized by Pope Pius XI in 1935. Thomas’s poetry, books, and plays are still used to this day. In my opinion he stood up for what was right and lived to be very Christ like.
Works Cited
Ackroyd, Peter. The Life of Thomas More
11/19/10 http://www.luminarium.org/renlit/morebio.htm
11/23/10 < http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14689c.htm>
11/20/10 http://www.stthomasmoreusc.org/bio_more.html
Utopia is a term invented by Sir Thomas More in 1515. However, he traces the root two Greek words outopia and eutopia which means a place does not exist and a fantasy, invention. It is widely accepted that Plato was to first to picture a utopian order. In his masterpiece, “Republic”, he formed the principles of ideal commonsense and his utopia (Hertzler, 1922:7). After the classical age, Sir Thomas More assumed to be the first of the utopian writers in early modern period. As a humanist, he gave the world in his “Utopia” a vision of a perfect communistic commonwealth (the history of utopian thought). Utopia’s influence on contemporary and rival scholars is so deep that it has given its name to whole class of literature. Following the appearance of More’s Utopia, there was a lack of Utopian literature for nearly a century (Hertzler, 1922:7). This period ended with the works of Francis Bacon, Campanelle and Harrington. These early modern utopians, being the children of Renaissance, filled with a love of knowledge and high respect for the newly truths of science. Thus, they believed that the common attainment of knowledge means the largest participation of all members of society in its joys and benefits. After the period of early Utopians, continuation of a sprit of French Revolution and initial signs of industrial revolution resulted in the emergence of a new group of Utopians called Socialist Utopians (Hertzler, 1922: 181). The word “Socialism” seems to have been first used by one of the leading Utopian Socialists, St Simon. In politics utopia is a desire that never come true neither now nor afterwards, a wish that is not based on social forces (material conditions and production) and is not supported by the growth and development of political, class forces. This paper discusses the validity of this claim, tries to present and evaluate the political reforms, if any, offered by Socialist Utopians.
The definition of a martyr is a person who willingly suffers death rather than renounce his or her religion. When Sir Thomas More died in July of 1535, he became a martyr. In the play A Man for All Seasons, author Robert Bolt shows us his views on how More came to his death . In this play, Thomas Cromwell, Richard Rich, King Henry VIII, and Sir Thomas More himself are responsible for his death. Although it could be argued that many more people in Sir Thomas More’s life had a part in contributing to his death, these four characters had the greatest part in eventually bringing him to his death.
Many would say that Thomas More was a fool because of his deep faith in the Church. He was scrutinized as being foolish due to the fact that he would rather die than give in to an oath, which even though against his beliefs could have saved his life. Most men, who might have been considered wiser, would have saved their own lives. Apparently, that was exactly what Norfolk did. He asked More once, “We’re suppose to be the arrogant ones, the proud, splenetic ones-and we all given in! Why must you stand out?
In the early 16th century, Thomas More wrote a novel about a fictional society in which humanist ideas were dominant. During this time, European noble power was anything but a Humanist utopia. Europe was not only a mess, but a genocidal mess. Between the reigns of the Tudor Dynasty, and eventually under power of Queen Mary I, English citizens lived in constant fear of their religious rights and their lives. On top of the religious civil wars, the Catholic Church and other clergymen were progressively straying from ‘purity ideas’.
In his youth, St. Boniface encountered many priests or clerics who traveled from town to town. Through these spiritual conversations, it became evident to St. Boniface that he wanted to pursue a life with God. Eventually, after continuos begging and his fathers fatal sickness, he was sent to the care of the Monastery of Examchester. (Appleton) It is here, that St. Boniface expressed to the Abbot at the time, that he wanted to live a monastic life. The father of the monastery, after council, granted him his wish. Here is where the saint began to prove his love for God, and could begin his journey of the Christian life. After exceeding all expectations and surpassing the knowledge of his teachers, he moved to a neighboring monastery, called Nursling, whereby he studied under the influence of Abbot Winbert.(St. Boniface Church) Here he gained vast knowledge of scriptures and the spiritual exposition of the Bible. Here, he gained such a reputation that men and women from far and wide traveled to study scriptures under his guidance. At the age of 30 he was humbly ordained a priest and yet another branch of his life was fulfilled.
Thomas More is a great person and a staunch Catholic. In his heart, he knows what kind of friends he wants, a simple man who asks for nothing and just stand by his side. Not the person who has great power like Henry VIII, not the person who respects him like Rich Richard, not the person who asks him to give in for their friendship like Norfolk; A person who stays with him like a family member. However, all the people want to be friend with him in this book want something from him. They don’t really understand the meaning of friends, and they could never be true friends with Thomas More.
Sir Thomas More wrote this story exactly in the time when Europe was religiously being torn apart by conflicts and revolutions such as the reformation, that caused “the separation of the Christians of western Europe into Catholics and Protestant” (khanacademy). Religion as a whole was as a consequence, an important and hot topic to discuss at the time considering all that is going on. I wonder why Hythloday spent so much time and effort discussing that matter with the narrator. It was rather dangerous to talk too controversially about religion during that period. The Author, by expressing himself through a fictional monotheist but laic polity in which the inhabitants all believe in a single Power, God and governed by specific moral code laws
Francis was born at Assisi in Umbria in the early 1180’s. His fath er was Pietro Bernadone, a very wealthy cloth merchant. His baptized name was Giovanni but it was changed to Francesco. Francis received a decent amount of schooling as a child although he did not show much interest in it. He was very spoiled and did not want to go into his father’s business. He had high status, was handsome, wore fine clothing, and was very well known with the people of Assisi.
Thomas More was a very respected individual, theologian, and statesman around the time of King Henry VIII. King Henry appointed Thomas the Lord Chancellor of England as well as Wales in 1529 in order to replace Thomas Wolsey who did not see eye to eye with King Henry. The primary influence on Sir Thomas’s thoughts and actions was his humanist catholic faith while working tirelessly to restore christendom and was a devout catholic much like King Henry. Sir Thomas was one of the most honored people in England along with Wales at the time: Without a doubt the most respected statesman then, and possibly the most respected statesman of all time.
Reason to defend Sir Thomas More: More is just thinks that his private conscience is more important than his public duties and will do what he thinks is right, not what is convenient. This is not considered High Treason as More is not attempting to betray his country in any way.
Moore, Thomas. "Utopia Book 2." Utopia by Thomas More. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Apr. 2014. .
This clearly demonstrates the fact that More knew what he was on about and wasn’t going to go against his beliefs for the sake of living. More strongly believed in the church and the Head of the Church, the Pope. He sustained in doing what you feel right in your heart, not what people tell you. More knew that if he stayed alive, it would have been sufferable, living in jail for the rest of his life, no job and little sight of family. He did what he thought was right. “ I do no harm, I say none harm, I think none harm. And if this be not enough to keep a man alive, in good faith I long not to live”(pg. 97)
Thomas More was born in London in 1478. He studied at Oxford where he took a profound love of classical literature. In Utopia, More shows his own skills in humanism. In this story, modeled after Plato's Republic, More examines his culture against a hypothetical culture he invents. His Utopia varies greatly from both his society and our society today. Four ways Utopia differs from our society are social system, attitude towards jewelry, marriage customs, and religion.
Sir Thomas More was a character who was faced with a number of difficult choices. The major one being, when Henry VIII's first wife was unable to produce an heir to the throne, he used that as an excuse for the pope to grant him a divorce, so he could marry a new wife. The King is backed by everyone on this request except the highly regarded and religious Sir Thomas More. When the old Chancellor of England, named More his successor, it became important for Henry to get More's support, but More could not be swayed. He made his decision to oppose the marriage early on, but even though it was something he did not waver from, he still had trouble with it. More made a very difficult decision in opposing the King and his family, but regardless of the consequences, he felt that he was morally correct and for him to choose any other path would have been impossible for he could not oppose the church and God.
Because they are described in a detailed manner, Utopia book itself seems to be enough to be a blueprint for the future. However, Thomas More clearly stated that he just wishes Europeans to follow some good qualities of the Utopian society—“there are many things in the Utopian commonwealth that in our own societies I would wish rather than expect to see” (97)—because he himself knows that it is impossible for any country to be like Utopia. This is apparent, because Utopia is possible on the premise that if every factors comes perfectly to create this ideal society. Even the geography has to contribute to this premise as Hythloday explains the geography of Utopia as the place where stranger cannot enter without one of them (39). Moreover, from diligent and compassionate Utopians’ characteristics and their ways of life, they seem to be successful in reaching the fullest of every aspects of their life including physical, intellectual, social, spiritual, and emotional, when it is hardly possible to even have one person like that in real