Gender Roles in Utopian Societies Essay - 1310 Words

Although Utopian societies create an ideal sense of what society should be like, not all Utopian societies share the same beliefs when it comes to overall gender roles. The male may come off as the stronger, wiser individual, whereas the female is the more fragile character in the background. We wonder if the roles could reverse or how can these roles differ in certain societies. In Sir Thomas More’s Utopia, males play the dominant role when it comes to society, whereas in Looking Backward by Edward Bellamy focuses on female-dominated aspects of society. Utopia by Sir Thomas More depicts men to be the deciders when it comes to creating a family of their own. In the section Of Their Slaves and Of Their Marriages, More begins the idea of†¦show more content†¦It is interesting though when More says â€Å"Yet if either of the injured persons cannot shake off the love of the married person, they may live with them still in that state, but they must follow them to that lab our to which the slaves are condemned† (92-93), meaning that if the person who was cheated still loves the cheater, they can go off and be a slave with them. More’s Utopia may give off the stigma of males being the typical person in charge, but Edward Bellamy’s Looking Backward switches that idea around. Julian West wakes from a deep sleep to find out his society has completely changed; Doctor Leete, who found West in his sleep, updates him on all the changes. At one point, West asks if female roles have made any changes; Leete tells him that their roles have evolved. Leete tells West: â€Å"†¦Ã¢â‚¬ËœOur women, as well as our men, are members of the industrial army, and leave it only when maternal duties claim them. The result is that most women, at one time or another of their lives, serve industrially some five or ten or fifteen years, while those who have no children fill out the full term’† (Bellamy, 267). Women are now working and making t heir own decisions; they can still be mothers when they need to be. And if the woman does not want to get married, she doesn’t have to, whereas in Utopia, a woman or man was imprisonedShow MoreRelatedThe Utopian Society : A Utopian State1296 Words   |  6 Pages A utopian world is one that is different from person to person and given the ideology that one attains, the utopian state doesn’t fit all individuals. In my socially just utopian society, women have the same rights as every man that walks this earth. Differences and individuality would be embraced and not imposed; they would be respected and not ridiculed. There is no political correctness in my utopia; rather, it differs depending on a woman’s personal choices. In the past, women had few lifeRead MoreStanding Solider, Kneeling Slaves By Kirk Savage Essay1402 Words   |  6 Pagesthe monument and sculptures that were being built during this time. On the other hand Bellamy’s book â€Å"Looking Backwards† proposes the idea of a Utopian society where everyone is equal and works for one sole employer; the nation. I will be discussing how Bellamy’s principles on labor would help solve the problems Savage proposes of slavery, racism, and gender inequalit y. 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This ability to reformulate itself has created a way for authors to explore and investigate ideologies and protests whilst keeping the issues contextual to the time. More has done this extremely well, establishing the genre at the beginning of the 16th century, in his novella Utopia. By using Rafael as the narrator he successfullyRead MoreSecond Great Awakening954 Words   |  4 PagesWHAT WAYS DID THE SECOND GREAT AWAKENING INFLUENCE AMERICAN SOCIETY AND CULTURE?† In the thirty year span between 1830 and 1860, the Second Great Awakening did much to change the modern American mind by sparking the abolitionist movement, empowering women (in their domestic sphere) and forming the cult of domesticity, partially fixing the corrupt government through the temperance movement, and in the creation of many utopian societies by radical religious populations. 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In examining this question it must be kept in mind that notion of equality that is put forth in Book V is not in the modern day sense. Plato is exploring the possibility that women in ancient Greek society remained an untapped resource that was confined mainly to the