Summary Of More's Life

Thomas More, a well-known humanist, was one of the many contributors to the renaissance, being born on February 7th, 1478. He spent his childhood living in London, England, attending one the best schools there. He was always noted as being a curious child, giving a shot at learning any subject or genre. However, he mostly focused on law and religious teachings such as holy scriptures. Later on in life, he studied in the University of Oxford and was even the chancellor of England from 1529 to 1532, often referred to as Sir or Saint Thomas More.

A photo taken of Oxford University.

When King Henry VIII was head of the Church of England, he refused to succumb to his ideals, eventually putting out his thoughts on the manner in his most famous novel Utopia. In this 1516 book, More’s ideal vision of morality is contradicted by the topics discussed; women’s rights, multi-religion societies, and divorce. As much he wants his vision of a utopia to happen in England, he knows it will never come true because of the many issues in the world. This further establishes his role as a humanist.

Along with Utopia, his works include; The Sadness of Christ, A Dialogue of Comfort Against Tribulation, The Confutation of Tyndale’s Answer, The Four Last Things, and many other poems. Adding onto his eventful life, More was called a ‘reformation martyr’ by the Church of England. His refusal to the king led to him being tried for treason at Westminster and on 6 July 1535 was executed on Tower Hill. His last words were,"The king's good servant, but God's first."