Thomas More (1478–1535) was a lawyer, judge, member of the English Parliament, ambassador, advocate for women’s education, Christian saint, and one of the earliest humanists in England. From a young age, he was very interested in reading and writing, and in his early poetry from times when he was still young it was visible that he had, “an awareness “of himself in relation to others”, showing “conscience in the old sense of the word, ‘a knowing with’” that always enabled him to determine a “part of his own”(Sylvester, 1967:30). Perhaps this is the reason why he was so fascinafde by ancient Greek philosophers especially Plato and his socratic dialoges. As he graduated law school and then deeply studied Greek philosophy, he wanted to blend Greek philosophical ideas with biblical traditions of his own time. However, as a man of strong faith and unwavering moral principles, More refused to acknowledge the legislation of 1532–1534 that declared Henry VIII the head of the Church of England and opposed the king’s divorce—actions that ultimately led to his execution, in the age of 57.
As mentioned, More was deeply influenced by ancient Greek philosophy. Among all the philosophers, he held the greatest admiration for Plato, whom he often referred to as “the great philosopher,” believing that Plato’s Socrates was the finest philosopher of all. His understanding and interest in Greek philosophy and especially plato is visible in his works, as there are many instances in for example his Utopia where we see allusions of Plato’s or Cicero’s works. Beyond the many allusions found in his writing, it is evident that More was deeply concerned with the idea of a perfect society—or, more precisely, a perfect city—much like Plato in The Republic. He was particularly interested in the moral values such a society should embody, revealing a clear intellectual connection between his thought and that of Greek moral philosophers such as Plato and Aristotle. It is also worth noting that, as a devout Catholic of the sixteenth century, More sought to unite the traditions of Jerusalem and Athens, blending Christian faith with classical philosophy to envision Utopia—a static society grounded in perfect moral principles, immune to the corruption of history and change, where everything is operating in its best capacity.
He was also among the first to advocate for women’s rights, portraying in Utopia a society where women receive the same education as men, since they share the responsibility of defending and advancing the state. In 1523, as a member of the English Parliament and Speaker of the House of Commons, More championed the principle of freedom of speech within Parliament. These progressive ideas reflected the values he sought to promote in sixteenth-century England. Moreover, in his writings, he went even further—abolishing private property in his imagined Utopia and opposing all forms of extremism, envisioning a balanced and just society guided by reason and virtue.
It is worth noting that More was an exceptionally honest and devout man who truly lived according to the principles he wrote about. He provided equal education to both his son and daughters, advocated for human rights and freedom of speech, and sought to reform the Catholic Church from within in order to prevent the schism that eventually occurred during his time. His courage and moral strength is especially evident in in his History of King Rochard III, where he critiques monarchy and highlight how power is frequently abused by individuals and used to rule not by virtue but solely by fear and greed. After all this, it is not surprising that More was eventually executed by Henry VIII for refusing to support the king’s divorce from Catherine of Aragon and his subsequent marriage to Anne Boleyn. More also opposed Henry’s ambition to become the head of the Church of England—an act of defiance that ultimately led to his execution.