Research Question On Utopia: The Myth And Reality

Describe about the Research Question on Utopia.

Northrop Frye in his critique to Thomas More’s ‘Utopia’ discusses the concept in various terms. He first tends to link the social concept in terms of myth. As he states,

 “There are two social concepts which can be expressed only in terms of myth”.

He further illustrates that More’s concept of the state of utopia as,

 “The utopia is a speculative myth; it is designed to contain or provide a vision for one’s social ideas, not to be a theory connecting social facts together” (More and Robinson).

In the continuation of his critique to the concept of Utopia, he again states that,

” The utopian writer looks at his own society first and tries to see what, for his purposes, its significant elements..”

Therefore, there lies a scope to intervene the question that

Is the concept of Utopia is only a myth or there is a probable chance to relate the concept with reality? The concept of Utopia presents an imaginative vision of the telos at which the the social life aims. So, can it be achieved by the application of the concept of past theory in the present society?

As to again quote Frye “life imitates literature up to a point, but hardly up to that point”. Therefore, it must be looked that if the state of utopia is actually achieved by the imitation of the concept presented by More in his “utopia” (Mannheim).

References:

Mannheim, Karl. Ideology and utopia. Routledge, 2013.

More, Thomas, and Ralph Robinson. Utopia. No. 14. A. Murray & son, 1869.

Shklar, Judith N. After Utopia: The Decline of Politcal Faith. Princeton University Press, 2015.