Thomas More (1478-1535) was a lawyer, judge, social philosopher, author, statesman, and noted Renaissance humanist. However, this 1965 study by E. E. Reynolds is not concerned with More’s political ideas or his religious convictions, but with his considerable literary achievement. Among this discussion, Reynolds argues that More’s Utopia is not a picture of an ideal state, but a dramatic criticism of contemporary society.

A volume in the Writers and Their Work series, which draws upon recent thinking in English studies to introduce writers and their contexts. Each volume includes biographical material, an examination of recent criticism, a bibliography and a reappraisal of a major work by the writer.