Utopia By More, Thomas

Five hundred years since its first publication, Thomas More’s <i>Utopia</i> remains astonishingly radical and provocative. More imagines an island nation where thousands live in peace and harmony, men and women are both educated, and property is communal. In a text hovering between fantasy, satire, blueprint and game, More explores the theories and realities behind war, political conflicts, social tensions and redistribution, and imagines the day-to-day lives of a citizenry living free from fear, oppression, violence and suffering.<br><br>But there has always been a shadow at the heart of <i>Utopia</i>. If this is a depiction of the perfect state, why, as well as wonder, does it provoke a growing unease?<br><br>In this quincentenary edition, published in conjunction with Somerset House, More’s text is introduced by multi-award-winning author China Miéville and accompanied by four essays from Ursula K. Le Guin, today’s most distinguished utopian writer and thinker.