Visions of utopia -- or more commonly, dystopia -- permeate the canon of literature and the arts. Thomas More's Utopia builds upon prior literature on the subject, like Plato's Republic. In More's Utopia, the author builds himself into the work as a character, much as Plato does in his writing. However, More takes Plato's concept of a utopia much farther to provide a rather detailed and comprehensive vision of what an idealized society might look like and how it might function. More's Utopia bases itself on the ideal of reason, and presumes a human nature that is devoid of problems like greed or anger. The central theme in More's Utopia is the minimization of institutions, laws, and structures. While contemporary culture trends more toward dystopic than utopic visions, some artists do remain committed to a presentation of ideals. John Lennon was one such artist. In his song 'Imagine,' Lennon sings about a utopia. Like More's utopia, Lennon's is an imaginary world unlikely to manifest but one that may be at least a blueprint or inspiration for human society. Both More and Lennon imagine a society in which there are 'no possessions.' More agrees fully with this sentiment. In Book I of Utopia, Moore writes, 'I must freely own that as long as there is any property, and while money is the standard of all other things, I cannot think that a nation can be governed either justly or happily.' The reason why utopias lack private property can be traced to the problems associated with human greed, jealousy, and possessiveness. Property also creates the potential for social injustice and inequality that can lead to conflict. Thus, the utopic visions of More and Lennon can be interpreted within a Marxist framework. When a small group of people in power come to own the means of production, they need to amass a labor force to support their enterprise. Rather than valuing labor as a function of the value of the goods or services being produced, labor is valued in a more arbitrary fashion. This means laborers are not in control...
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