Utopia is a fictional place where everything and everyone are in the state of perpetual perfection, the complete opposite of dystopia (1). The origin of the English word “utopia” originated in the 16th century and stemmed from the Greek ou translating to “not” and topos meaning “place”. Originally, the word was used to describe a fictional setting that was not necessarily perfect. Nowadays, this concept of the perfect world has manifested itself as a seemingly unreachable goal, towards which people contribute little by little everyday. In literary works, the world of utopia is used in juxtaposition with reality/dystopia to animate various pitfalls or achievements of human nature.
In Paradise Lost, John Milton incorporates the biblical stories into his epic poem in order to describe how Satan was able to single-handedly ignited The Fall from Paradise. Therefore, the utopia created by God has fallen and God’s creations were riddled with sin. Paradise Lost illustrates an interesting perspective on utopia as it paints a world of dictatorial government where God’s word is the law (2). However, that statement by itself questions what perfection truly is. If Paradise was in a perfect state, how could it have fallen? In the perfect utopia, Eve would have gladly declined Satan’s offer of the forbidden fruit because she was perfect. Therefore, Eve preemptively possessed an imperfection from the hands of God. However, without the knowledge of imperfection, Eve could not have known what perfection is and have the drive to maintain this Paradise.
Work Cited:
- “Utopia| Definition of Symbolism in English by Oxford Dictionaries.” Oxford Dictionaries | English, Oxford Dictionaries, en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/utopia.
- Milton, John. Paradise Lost: 1677. Scolar Press, 1968.
