Description
With the publication of
Utopia (1516), Thomas More provided a scathing analysis of the shortcomings of his own society, a realistic suggestion for an alternative mode of social organization, and a satire on unrealistic idealism. Enormously influential, it remains a challenging as well as a playful text. This edition reprints Ralph Robinson's 1556 translation from More's original Latin together with letters and illustrations that accompanied early editions of
Utopia.
This edition also includes two other, hitherto less accessible, utopian narratives.
New Atlantis (1627) offers a fictional illustration of Francis Bacon's visionary ideal of the role that science should play in the modern society. Henry Neville's
The Isle of Pines (1668), a precursor of Defoe's
Robinson Crusoe, engages with some of the sexual, racial, and colonialist anxieties of the end of the early modern period. Bringing together these three New World texts, and situating them in a wider Renaissance context, this edition--which includes letters, maps, and alphabets that accompanied early editions--illustrates the diversity of the early modern utopian imagination, as well as the different purposes to which it could be put.
About the Series: For over 100 years
Oxford World's Classics has made available the broadest spectrum of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, voluminous notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.
About the Author
Sir Thomas More (1478-1535), English statesman, lawyer, humanist, saint, poet, and author, was one of the most versatile and talented men of his age. He held important government positions, including serving as lord chancellor. Though he had been a long-time friend of King Henry VIII, he was a staunch Catholic and could not accept the king's demand that all subjects acknowledge the king above the pope, resulting in his execution in 1535. With his writing of Utopia, he takes his place with the most eminent humanists of the Renaissance.
Francis Bacon (1561-1626) was an English philosopher, scientist, and statesman. Recognized for his intelligence from a young age, Bacon would develop the empirical basis for modern scientific inquiry--known today as the scientific method--by promoting skepticism and observational experimentation as essential for the discovery of truth and the growth of human knowledge. A central figure of the scientific revolution and the Renaissance, Bacon was recognized as Lord Verulam and Viscount St. Alban during his lifetime and was honored by both Queen Elizabeth I and King James VI for his contributions to society. Bacon was also an accomplished statesman, responsible for drafting early legal documents and charters for the British colonization of the Americas. His career was not without controversy, however, as accusations of bribery tarnished his reputation and barred him from government service toward the end of his life and career. Today, he is remembered as one of the founders of modern science whose theories and methods continue to form the basis of all scientific experimentation and inquiry.
Henry was born and grew up in South Africa. He had two passions, the love of animation and writing, but he also had a fascination for Ancient Egypt. After a number of career changes, he found employment at the Durban Natural History Museum as staff artist/technical assistant. While working on the mummy exhibit, his interest in Ancient Egypt led him to do some more research. The plot for a historical fictional novel slowly developed. After another career change, and while commuting to and from work, he started to write the novel. The final manuscript was completed in 2017.
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