暫時告一段落了 雖然是草稿還要改
但是重心先放在美國文學上了: )
(還有一些本來就要顧及的)
還要結束第一次的團練、教育之夜，傳說中見招拆招的司琴
加油: ))
英國文學期中報告(about Utopia)
Rachel Chang 張詠惠 498001280教育學系三年甲班
Topic: the Education in More’s Utopia, comparing with Plato’s Republic
Introduction
Since Thomas More's Utopia is regarded as the blueprint for Utopian Literature, which is a very well-developed and huge genre, every aspects of this masterpiece may be influential; and therefore, worth further researching.
Being trained to taking “education” as magnifying glass to view everything in education department for three years, I can’t even shift my focus out of the education issues mentioned in the book. It is because I believe in the importance of education in the design of the government, the society, and the nation—like Utopia, which all need education as a mean to start and maintain. That’s why I regard education as an important issue when wanting to know more about the Utopia.
Another consideration made beforehand is put the Utopia in comparison with Plato’s Republic. Though Plato’s book was written 1,200 years earlier than Utopia, it is worth comparing the two. For not only our teacher in the class of English Literature, but also many researchers has mentioned Plato’s Republic in their essays about Thomas More’s Utopia (White, 1976; Mumford, 1965; Copleston, 1953; Windelband, 1901). Moreover, even the narrator Hythloday mentioned Plato several times in the first chapters while elaborating. Though there are different arguments toward the contrast—some think they are many parallel between the two, like suggesting Utopia as a “Christianized” Republic (Colin, 1990); some may also argue the dissimilarities attitudes—I still think it will be fascinating to compare under the framework of education.
As a result, in the essay I would like to elaborate the education issue in the Republic and the Utopia, comparing their similarities and dissimilarities, and relating further to our education system today in Taiwan.
Education in Plato’s Republic
According to the students’ intellectual development, Aristotle’s assumption of class and virtue, and the goal of the Republic, Plato divides the process of education into four parts. The first is “preschool education”, where children ranging three to six are put together and taken care by the qualified nannies. They can play game and listen to the stories, which are all designed to achieve certain educational goals, including developing the virtue of courage, justice, and dignity. The second is “primarily education” for every citizen. Everyone, regardless of gender or class, is required to go to school from the age of seven. The subjects taught are mulitple, including read, write, horse-riding, etc. Plato put large emphasize on music, and physical training. The goal for this phase is to develop the virtue of self-control, which is the virtue designed to be possessed by every citizen. The third stage is the secondary education for the guardians; most of them decided since birth and are formally chosen at the age of seventeen. They receive military training are cultivate the virtue of courageous. The last stage is the higher education phase for the cultivation of a philosopher king. At the age of twenty, some best students may have the chance to learn mathematics, astronomy, and dialectics for ten more years. Comparing with the guardian practical assignment, they should do the abstract thinking, which may enable them to achieve the ultimate goal—“reason”. From age thirty to forty-five, these philosophers, possessing the virtue of justice, should “lead the people out of the cave”; and by the age of fifty, these intellectually superior may have a chance to be the philosopher king.
To sum up, there are at least four points which stands out in the aspect of education in the Republic by Plato. First, it is developed step by step and each step serves the purpose of a selection process: the guardian by birth, and the philosopher by their intellectual developed level. Second, preschool education is purposed the first time; for example, Aristotle seems to be the first people suggesting the antenatal training. Third, everyone, including women, can receive primarily education. Moreover, women are trained to be the guardian class, and also the guardians’ wives. Finally, since the class of guardian and philosopher king is also a political division, education is used as a way to control the country political order.
Education in More’s Utopia
I conclude three points that stands out when talking about education in More’s Utopia. First, the education is served for general purpose. The education in Utopia is the education for citizenship growth. Therefore, women should also accept primarily education; of which as scholar point out, “education available to all” is still a new concept in England at that time. Second, the subjects contain astronomy, math, and music, labor, and vocational training. Though liberal arts are included, Utopian seems to put more emphasize on agriculture. Every citizen is required to live in the countryside to farm and plant for a set period of time. So children can do the farming for they not only learn the agricultural theory in school but have the experience of farming in the countryside. Last but not least, the education in Utopia is a process of lifelong pursuit intellectually and morally. They regard the realization of truth as the highest level of happiness and value it at most. To elaborate the concept further, I pick four examples from the book. The first example is the public lecture for citizenship education. Utopian limit their time working at six hours to have not only enough sleep but allow everyone to anticipate the public lecture every morning. The second example is the “table manner” for moral training and the continuing of wisdom. While they are eating together (they usually do so in the city where the popularity is intense), the young will sit next to the elder people, serving them and listening to their wisdom. The third illustration is the generally accepted ways to spend their leisure time. Utopian people are natural and simple; they wear the same kind of clothes, work hard, look down on gem and unnecessary wars. Since then, they have plenty of leisure time; however, they always learn something new according to their own interest; lest they should make trouble out of nothing. Their favorite hobby is reading; like the narration in Book II: “Yet their children, and a great part of the nation, both men and women, are taught to spend those hours in which they are not obliged to work in reading: and this they do through the whole progress of life.” Those who have outstanding performance may have a chance to take a break from work and become a full-time scholar by the secret election of mayor and the recommendation of priest. But if their “intellectual work” can’t succeed, they may be put back to their original occupation.
The comparison of the Utopia and the Republic
After enumerating both the Republic’ and the Utopia’s education main topics, we put it into comparison and conclude out four points as follows. And by comparing it, we may further compare to Taiwan’s education policy and issues nowadays.
The first is the importance of general/primarily education for all citizens. The key to make the perfect or better society happen is by education; only through education can the society maintain the people from going forward. Both books conclude primarily education for all people; while More extend it further to the concept of life-long learning.
In Taiwan, two thousand years later Plato, we take mandatory education for granted; but it may be important to reflect the true meaning and goal for general education—not to define people loser when they are only in the small age, but give them hope to become better regardless of their social background. A thousand year later Thomas More, life-long learning is now a new concept and accepted new goal to Taiwan and around the world. Wish we can achieve this sooner or later.
The second point considers the higher education designed for the ruling group. Higher education can be seen as the way to contribute political power because it is used as a way to develop the dominant people group. In Utopia, the people in power like priest and mayor are the one elected from the scholars, called Ademus; while in Republic, the most outstanding one succeed in the education system turn out to be the philosopher king. It is worth noticing, however, the portion of receiving higher education appears to be few. They must succeed in certain process of choosing. Another point to mention is that though both have the process of selection, More’s choosing of scholars are open for inter-class mobility; while Plato’s is subject to the guardian family.
Today, education is still used as a way to identify the social status somehow. The better school one go to may mean better job and future. But we use test as the mean to select, instead of their birth or philosophical thinking. Some may argue that the type of question we have in tests used for high school and college entrance example is very low level according to Bloom’s theory: including only the knowledge and comprehension question but lack higher thinking like analysis and evaluation.
Finally, they both conclude the women for primarily education. This is quite interesting. Though nowadays, it may seem natural for female going to school, the people that days don’t have that kind of concept. And ironically, neither of them suggests this for the sake of the welfare of the women. Plato is like the first one suggest the importance because he thinks that in order to have good children, it is not enough to have just a good father, but also a good mother, like in Sparta. A thousand years later, More once again conclude women in education, but not for women sake, but because he can’t endure the foolishness of women that days. For he also mentions that wives should confess to their husband every set period of time. In today setting, though we state the policy of equality between sexes, we can still clearly see some injustice in the expectation of parents and teachers. For example, women should marry, instead of getting a phD; or women are not good at math, etc. And according to Pygmalion theory, this unseen prejudice and discrimination may cause the injustice outcome in female’s education performance.
Reference
1. Utopia(google books) http://books.google.com.tw/books?id=1sNLAAAAcAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=Utopia&hl=zh-TW&cd=1&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=Utopia&f=false
2. Lewis Mumford(1965). Utopia, the City and the Machine. Daedalus, 94(2), 271-292
3. Thomas I. White(1976). Aristotle and Utopia. Renaissance Quarterly, 29(4), 635-675.
4. David Happin(2001).Utopianism and Education: the Legacy of Thomas More. British Journal of Educational Studies, 49(3), 299-315
5. Colin Starnes(1990). The new republic: a commentary on book I of More's Utopia showing its relation to Plato's Republic. Wilfrid Laurier University Press
6. A.B.FINLAY. Plato’s Theory of Education in The Republic (An Introduction). http://www.tonyfinlay.co.uk/essayplato.htm.
7. Craig Hutchison(2010). Education is the Key in Sir Thomas More's Utopia. http://craig-hutchison.suite101.com/education-is-the-key-in-sir-thomas-mores-utopia-a269782
8. E-notes. Plato. http://www.enotes.com/platos-republic/q-and-a/how-does-plato-describe-education-his-republic-his-5625
9. Thomas More's Utopia – education. http://www.bl.uk/learning/histcitizen/21cc/utopia/more1/education1/education.html
10. The Significance of Thomas More. http://www.angelfire.com/tv2/flawedperfection/stories/more.htm
11. 郭湘章譯，《烏托邦》，台北，國立編譯館出版，台灣中華書局印行，1993 年。( 第八版)
12. 劉若韶，柏拉圖<理想國>導讀，台北，台灣書店，1998年。
13. 宋美璍。中譯《烏托邦》：臥遊虛訪摩爾的理想國。人文與社會科學簡訊，110-119。
14. 柏拉圖公民教育思想述評(中英文摘要) http://www.hongxiao.com/dy/Article/musiceducation/shuobolunwen/200802/4058.html
15. 莫爾(中文百科在線)
http://www.zwbk.org/MyLemmaShow.aspx?zh=zh-tw&lid=87931
16. 柏拉圖(哲學家)
http://wiki.mbalib.com/zh-tw/%E6%9F%8F%E6%8B%89%E5%9B%BE_(%E5%93%B2%E5%AD%A6%E5%AE%B6)#.E6.9F.8F.E6.8B.89.E5.9B.BE.E7.9A.84.E6.95.99.E8.82.B2.E8.A7.82
17. 柏拉圖的教育思想http://www.uniwant.com/show.aspx?id=1802&cid=312
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