As to an alternative to the death penalty, Hythloday suggested a treatment similar to that of the ancient Romans of a nation neighboring on Persia, namely to sentence convicted thieves to hard labor on public works. He suggested further that if a thief knows that in the event he is caught he will receive the same sentence whether he robs or murders his victim, he may be much more disposed to murder him than he otherwise would. When asked by the cardinal to justify his objections to making theft a capital crime, Hythloday argued that a human life is of more worth than money, and that it is unreasonable to punish equally the taking of a man's life and his purse. The remedies he proposed included limiting the production of wool, restoring of farmlands to their original use, and returning of former farmers to their work, thus increasing employment. The consequence was that many farmers were being driven off their lands without any provision for their subsistence.Ĭontinuing his report to More and Giles of that dispute in Cardinal Morton's home, Hythloday tells how he further criticized English aristocracy and even the middle classes for their luxury and their vices, calling attention to the prevalence of taverns, alehouses, and brothels, as well as the practices of dicing and playing cards, football, and tennis, all of which affect moral fiber and the general welfare adversely. In many places farmlands were being appropriated for sheep grazing, since wool growing had become very profitable. The system was fundamentally faulty, he argued, in which non-productive noblemen maintained non-productive flunkeys while forcing the common laborers to drudge in abject poverty.Ī further set of circumstances was contributing to the multiplication of thieves and beggars throughout the country, according to Hythloday. Furthermore, the practice of rich men maintaining large households of retainers who were, for the most part, idle, contributed to the number of thieves and beggars because often retainers found themselves cast out without support when they grew old or sick or when the head of the household fell upon hard times. There were many disabled veterans wandering about the country with no possible means of support. Men, he maintained, were driven to stealing through desperation. Hythloday took the position that the death penalty was altogether too severe a penalty for theft and suggested that it would be better to seek for remedies to eliminate the causes of thievery. Hythloday had challenged one of Morton's guests, a lawyer who boasted of the effectiveness of the English system of justice, which was breaking all records for hanging thieves. The first point Hythloday makes in his denunciation of existing conditions is brought out in an account he gives of a meeting at the home of Cardinal Morton, Archbishop of Canterbury, when he was visiting in England. Book II: The Discourse on Utopia: More's Concluding Observation.Book II: The Discourse on Utopia: Peroration.Book II: The Discourse on Utopia: Religion.Book II: The Discourse on Utopia: Treaties and Alliances.Book II: The Discourse on Utopia: Marriage and Divorce.Book II: The Discourse on Utopia: Euthanasia.Book II: The Discourse on Utopia: Slavery.Book II: The Discourse on Utopia: Philosophy.Book II: The Discourse on Utopia: Learning.Book II: The Discourse on Utopia: The Economy.

Book II: The Discourse on Utopia: Travel.Book II: The Discourse on Utopia: Community Life.Book II: The Discourse on Utopia: Markets.Book II: The Discourse on Utopia: Population Control.Book II: The Discourse on Utopia: Occupations.Book II: The Discourse on Utopia: Officials.Book II: The Discourse on Utopia: The Cities.Book II: The Discourse on Utopia: Country Life.Book II: The Discourse on Utopia: Geographical Features of Utopia.Book I: The Dialogue of Counsel: More Versus Hythloday on Public Service.Book I: The Dialogue of Counsel: The Council for Financial Affairs.Book I: The Dialogue of Counsel: Hypothetical Meeting of the French Council.Book I: The Dialogue of Counsel: The Meeting at Cardinal Morton's House.Book I: The Dialogue of Counsel: Opening of the Discussion.Book I: The Dialogue of Counsel: Setting the Stage.

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