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Utopia Assessment over the Ages

The idea of an ideal world and life, free from misery and misfortune and enriched with

harmony, peace, justice, and tolerance, is far so captivating that "it doesn't exist/ or couldn't

exist." The ideas are widespread throughout the ages in myths, culture, and human history.

Ideally, humanity creates an imaginary world far more perfect and excellent that the physical

world, whenever the present life and its conditions are not satisfying and favourable.

Nevertheless, there exists a primordial difference through which "utopia" is portrayed as it

ascribes a life full of fallacies that cannot be realizable but only dreamt about in the real world.

"Utopia," the Greek rooted term implies "no-place/no-where." Mainly, this term dates its origin

back to Thomas Moore after he poetically described an “imaginary, fancy island in the Atlantic

Ocean, where he descriptively models a society with a flawless socio-political system, equality,

justice without any trace of distress, in other words, a world of imagination far from reality.”

Several Greek and Roman literature and history sources are analyzed.

Hesiod in "Works and Days” brings out the motif of an ideal life, when he analogically

describes the myth of “the five stages of humanity. " (Hesiods 46) Hesiod depicts a gradual,

continuous deterioration of human life from its original natural state. There is a factious

description of the original nature of life, “Golden Age," “when men lived like gods, with carefree

heart, free and apart from trouble and pain," and “when the fertile earth produced fruit by itself."

Additionally, Plato litigates a dialogue between Socrates and his disciples. Socrates, a renowned
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philosopher, is tasked with creating "the perfect city," though the dialogue presents Plato's

Utopian views. To propel his "perfect city" analogy, he develops different levels of perceptions.

To achieve a perfect city, with the ideology that only an ideal society can achieve perfection of

life, he analyses different classes of people within the population. Entirely in the "Republic," it is

seen that Plato lays the foundation for a perfect city, though the people are lied to.

Degree of utopia possibility and its achievement pitfalls

Huxley’s “Brave new world” is described as a dystopia, “the opposite of utopia”. In

“Brave new world” Huxley criticizes the shortcomings of the contemporary society predicting

the future in a negative light (Huxley 52). In his American context, Huxley predicts a doomed

future, implying that Utopia or the state of perfectness is nearly impossible to achieve.

Furthermore, about the ongoing development in America, he says “it is a revaluation of values, a

radical alteration (for the worse) of established standards”. Huxley objectively criticizes the

negative proclivities brought about by mass production, industrialization and people adoption of

these products. Instead of bringing a perfect world free from pain and misery and misfortune

“Brave New World” paints development as a way of making the world more desolate and people

dull. In his book, "1984" Orwell depicts a society where fear is used as a manipulative tool to

control non-conformists to the current political system.

To create a dystopian fallacy, Orwell manipulates the pre-existing narrative of a utopian

society and warns people of a futuristic society marred by defects, oppression, lack and fright

(Orwell, 66). Orwell foresees a world that is far from perfect, where nearly every positive feeling

is quenched, and life is characterized by misery. Huxley postulates that instead of scientific

progress leading to an ideal world, it creates "men like machines" and the insistence on
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development and perfectness "unjustly sacrifices the here and now for the potentially better

tomorrow".

Relationship between Utopia and Totalitarianism.

John Rawl places Utopia and totalitarianism at opposing ends. In his justice postulations,

he champions equality of human rights, opportunities, and uplifting the less fortunate in the

society, creating a sense of Utopia. In his opinion, Rawl literary adduces that a just society is

“when citizens are free and operate within an equalitarian eco-social system (Rawl 104)”, which

is a contradiction of totalitarianism where the political system controls every sphere of life.

Nevertheless, despite his, liberal idea on justice, Rawl models a balance between Utopia and

totalitarianism, by conceptualizing a society established upon the “original position itself”. The

original position is imaginative, though it can be, as it presents an ideal community where social

justice is achievable in a perfect society, “Laws of People”.

Balancing Liberty and Security in the Wake of Covid-19

Creon is an advocate of obedience to state laws, where he postulates that “the state, the

fatherland is everything to us” and “loyalty to state comes before family fealty”. It is notable

that, Antigone’s concern with familial order, social sanity, and obedience to statues of the gods

puts her life consciously in danger. Contrary, Creon's concern is the satisfaction of political

expedience and authority. There is a contrast between Antigone's stress on "obedience to the

gods" which presents a perfect society where human freedom is available and Creon's pressure

on state control.

In the wake of Covid-19, the government has put in place several restrictions in order to

mitigate the current situation. On the one hand, human freedom and other several rights are being
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curtailed as we have surrendered them to the government, hoping they will protect us. On the

other hand, there is a possibility of state violation of our fundamental social rights. Nevertheless,

in an idealistic perfect society, there is no suffering or misery, no pain, no misfortune, as it is

seen with those disobeying state control. Furthermore, in the wake of the Corona Virus, having

our human rights and exercising them, seems "far dangerous than allowing the state has control

of them". The misery, misfortune and death associated with coronavirus, presents more of an

imperfect world. There are several risks we have, one is the probability of losing our moral

values to the state, for humanity to flourish it has to be just where the state does not control its

citizens. In addition, trusting the government with human rights, may lead to a tyrannical

leadership. Plato in the republic describes all forms of government as unstable, the best in his

opinion is “timocracy”, though it will suddenly fall apart. In the current pandemic crisis, since

most functions are being controlled by the military, “Timocracy” there is a possibility of the

society falling apart.

Reflections of Plato’s “Republic” in “Huxley’s and Orwell’s” dystopias.

State versus individual– in “The republic" the ideology of state taking control and having

a higher interest than people is dominant (Plato 89). In its postulations, the benefits of the

country are far much crucial that those of individuals, bringing the ideology of "totalitarianism".

In addition, there is similar modes of social stratification, dividing the society into classes in both

“ The Republic” and “ 1984 by Orwell”. Furthermore, there is a similitude between “The

Republic” and “The Brave New World” towards “horizontal social mobility”.

Socrates solution to getting to the ideal world.

In Socrates view, “a perfect ideal developed city” can only be managed by “a developed

non-pseudo society’. Socrates argues that for the ideal society to be realized, its populace should
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be divided into separate groups, with further subdivisions on the first, which he terms “the

guardians-complete and auxiliary” while the third group is “the farmers and the craftsmen”.

“Do you agree with Socrates? Explain” -NO, because Socrates ideology of

subdividing of people into separate groups not only brings segregation but also harbour the

imaginative hope of Utopia. For a perfect society encompasses a life, free from misery and

misfortune and enriched with harmony, peace, justice, equality and tolerance.

In conclusion, the ideology of achieving a perfect society, free from suffering and

adversity and a life enriched with harmony, peace, justice, and tolerance, is eminent in several

Greek and Roman literature sources. Nevertheless, there exist opposing ideologists who foresee

an opposite of Utopia.
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Works Cited

Sophocles, The Antigone. Cambridge University Press, print.

Homer, D.B. The Iliad. Wildside Press LLC, print.

Hesiod, N.: Theogony, Works and Days, Shield. JHU Press.

Hesiod, N.: Works and Days, Shield. JHU Press.

Plato. The republic of Plato. London; New York: Macmillan, press.

Huxley, Aldous. "Brave new world ." Invisible Crises. Routledge, print.

Rousseau, Jean-Jacques: On the Individual and Society. University Press of Kentucky.

Karl Max. Ideology and Utopia. Routledge, press.

John Rawl; “Rawl law of people: realistic Utopia?” Wildside Press LLC, print
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