Throughout the second book of Utopia by Sir Thomas More, we are able to see that More’s idea of Utopia surround three basic principles, including happiness, money, and personal values. These are a few notes I took…

*Happiness
-Nations will not be created equal with money and property involved
-Happiness has nothing to do with material objects
-The source for happiness is a much disputed subject
-People can gain happiness from the improvement of the mind
-Utopians are much more happy in their next state of life
-No one should ever harm or criticize another to make themselves happy
*Money
-People do not have money to buy things, so they steal
-Money should not be equal to the value of human life, therefore, capital punishment should not be made for all crimes
-Slaves cannot ask for money from others
-Any money gathered from Utopia’s exports is used to build up armies
-Money is also raised through land revenues
*Values
-Everyone respects their elders, wives obey husbands, and children listen to their parents
-Utopians kill animals, only when they deem necessary, and not for sport
-Labor is valued highly
-Utopians take care of their bodies, because they believe God gave it to them to keep
-Marriage is extremely valued, polygamy is illegal, and divorce is hard to obtain

Here are a few things I noted about Sir Thomas Mores first book of Utopia that I believe fit with our world today...

-"there lay vast deserts...men that were neither less wild nor less cruel than the beasts themselves"
-Nations have mutual commerce and trade by both land and sea
-"...which other people do not part with till they are old and sick, when they then unwillingly give that which they can enjoy no longer themselves"
-Princes of seperate nations will apply themselves to war over land rather than peace
-"...robbers prove sometimes gallant soldiers, so soldiers often prove brave robbers"
-nations train up armies to take over other nations and their land
-"If you teach wrong and punish them later, is that just?"
-God has commanded us not to kill

Here are a few notes of things that I did not agree with...

-"...they go lazily about their task, he may quicken them with a whip"
-"God treats us better than he did the Jews" (I dont believe God had anything to do with the horrible things that the Jews had to go through, it was strictly Hitler)
-Capital punishment for all crimes
-Asking someone to work under a prince because they believe it will help them