| Utopia | ||
| Each city is divided into four equal districts. In the middle is a marketplace of all kinds of commodities. The products of each household are taken to designated houses there and each kind of goods is separately stored in a warehouse. From them each head of household goes to get whatever he and his household need, and he takes away whatever he wants, paying no money and giving absolutely nothing in exchange for it. For why should he be denied anything, since there is plenty of everything and no one need fear that anyone would want to ask for more than he needs. For why should anyone be suspected of asking for too much if he is certain that he will lack for nothing? Certainly fear of want makes all kinds of animals greedy and rapacious, but only mankind is made so by pride, which makes them consider their own glory enhanced if they excel others in displaying superfluous possessions; in the Utopian scheme of things there is no place at all for such a vice.
The Utopians are indeed amazed that any mortal can take delight in the dubious sparkle of a tiny gem or precious stone when he can look at a star or even at the sun? How can anyone be so insane as to imagine that he is nobler because of a fine-spun woolen thread, since that wool however fine was once worn by a sheep? The Utopians are indeed amazed that that gold, which is in itself useless, is now prized so highly everywhere, that mankind itself, which gave it value is valued much less than the gold itself, so much so that some beef-headed blockhead, who has mortals to match his folly has many wise and good men in his service for no better reason than to that he has a heap of gold coins |
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