Augustine's text is clearly one that advocates Christianity, but is there more to be understood than just Bible verses? What does this text add to the conversation about Utopia?
He provides us with two cities in his discussion: the City of God and the Earthly City. The City of God is, of course, a place outside the earthly, mortal realm, and the Earthly City is merely the one we all currently reside in. There are a few key differences between the City of God and the Earthly City:
1. The Earthly City is full of evil and misery.
2. There can be periods of happiness or peace in the Earthly City, but the City of God one is one of eternal peace.
3. Unlike the Earthly City, you have to earn your way into the City of God.
Based on Augustine's discussion of the City of God, it may easily be viewed as a Utopia. It's a place stripped of everything bad, and not only are its citizens living in peace--they're living in peace forever. This sounds pretty unimaginable (a no-place, if you will), but also pretty great (who wouldn't want to be at peace for all eternity?). Augustine argues that Utopia cannot be achieved in this life, but the next. Those that believe they can achieve complete happiness on their own are considered delusional. This is in part due to human imperfection and sin; the Earthly City was created to determine the perfect citizens for the City of God.
There is one interesting difference between this Utopia and the ones commonly found in literature: entering is a privilege that must be earned. This raises the question, should a true Utopia be inclusive rather than exclusive? Although there isn't anything in the definition of Utopia that rules out the possibility for exclusiveness, the idea just doesn't feel right to me. For a Utopia, I've always envisioned a society where all people -- any people -- coexist in perfect harmony. By introducing a higher power to which all people obey and respect, Augustine suggests that people will begin a journey that leads to a perfect self without sin. Those that do not share this belief live in ignorance, according to Augustine, and thus are not suited to live in a Utopia.
The final paragraph of your post really had me thinking. I never considered if utopia was something that was inclusive or exclusive. Because in most utopian literature we read about a society that is already established it is easy to overlook how they got their in the first place. Is there a selection process? What qualities are sought after to join the society? Who ultimately decides who join?
ReplyDeleteRegardless of these questions I absolutely agree with you're opinion that utopia should be a place for all people.