In the time of Sir Thomas More (around the 1500's), there were many religious and political problems in Europe. Due to this, More, wrote a book called, Utopia. He wrote this as a way to address the issues that he saw as problematic in his society. Utopia, is about a traveler who comes to a new place that is the perfect society. In this society there is a strong economy, and there is a strong King. The king of this land respects all religions with the exception of atheism. There are also education and work for all that live in this fictional land. This includes men and women. In Utopia, More, puts great emphasis on ideas of discipline and work. There are no poor people in this land, because there are no idle people. All people work and the trade that is done by father and usually passed down to the child. More also shows the importance of women in a society. There is some bias toward women in this society, but examining the society in which More lives in himself, women in Utopia are unusually treated an adult and not children. One of the other thing that More highlights in this book is the education of people. All are educated, and treated equally in the mind. Many religious thinkers and early political thinkers who address the same issues years later after More's death. Religious thinkers, such as Luther, and Calvin, and political thinkers such as Locke, and Hobbes, address the ideas set fourth in More's, Utopia, through religious beliefs and civil laws. .
Religion is something that is addressed all throughout early western history. In More's, Utopia, there was religious toleration and because of the education levels of the average citizen, it seems that people could have been well informed in whatever religion they choose(266). This is a kind of "wishful thinking" for More. This was the way things should have been in Europe during his time. Unfortunately, they were the complete opposites.
