Sipes1

PeterSipesDiscourseAnalysis

Fightthepower:Howtoattackakingwithoutlosingyourhead

AbstractThomasMoresUtopiahashadalonghistoryofanalysis,frommanypointsofview.Reduced

toitsminimum,Utopiatellsthestoryofafictionallandwithoutrageouscustomsto16thCentury

Europeans.ButwhenviewedthroughthelensofBrownandLevinsonspolitenesstheory,itisamodel

forhowtogoaboutmakingapoliticalattack.ThomasMorewillmanagehisattackbyincreasingsocial

distancebetweenhimselfandEnglandsKingHenryVIIIandrecruitingreadersasZajdmansthird

partytoputsocialpressureonthekingtofindtheattackfunny.

IntroductionThomasMoresUtopiawassomemorablethatitlentitsnametoawholegenreofwriting:

utopianliterature.Hedescribesafictionallandwheregoldisforchainingslavesandpeopleare

displayednudebeforegettingmarried.ButviewingUtopiaasanamesakeforaliterarygenreignores

ThomasMoresphilosophicalintentinwritingit.IarguethatMorelaunchedanattackonHenryVIIIof

EnglandinUtopia.ThereasonthatthereissomuchdisputeonthispointisthatMorewasnotfreeto

attackHenryVIII.SinceHenryVIIIwasanabsoluteruler,hehadthefreedomtosettlematters.In

ordertokeephisheadattachedtohisneck,Moreneededtotendtohowthekingperceivedthebook.

HewilldothisthroughhumoranddistancingtheworldofUtopiafromEnglandandtheking.

TheexcitingpointaboutapplyingdiscourseanalysismethodstoRenaissanceliteratureisthatwe

canseethatthereistrulynothingnewunderthesun.Languagewasbeingusedthenforthesamesorts

ofpurposesasnow.

LiteratureReview

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DiscourseAnalysis

Sowhatisdiscourseanalysis?Howdoesitdifferfromotherscholarlywork?Jonesdefines

discourseanalysisverybroadlyasthestudyofthewayssentencesandutterancesareputtogetherto

maketextsandinteractionsandhowthosetextsandinteractionsfitintooursocialworld(2012).So

thediscoursepartiseasy.Discourseislanguage,writtenorspoken,inuse.Theanalysisgetstrickier.At

itsbase,theideaistoteaseoutwhatisreallybeingsaid,becausepeopledontalwayssaywhatthey

mean,andpeopledontalwaysmeanwhattheysay(Jones,2012).Fromhere,allsortsofanglescan

beexplored,including,buthardlylimitedto:socialidentity,narrativestructures,ideologyand

pragmatics.Whilethispapermaytouchonthoseareas,thereareothersofmoredirectinterest.

Intertextuality

Noticingandusingintertextualityissecondnatureforpeople.Wedoitallthetimewithout

meaningto.Incasualconversation,intertextualityisthequotefromthemovieyousawoverthe

weekendwhentalkingtoafriendatlunch.Thetextoftheconversationanditsmeaningrelieson

someknowledgeofthemovieyousawovertheweekend.Yourfriendneedssomeknowledgeofthe

movietomakefullsenseofwhatyoutoldher. 1

Applyingmoreformality,Cullerexplainsintertextassayingthingsindiscoursewhichonehas

notexplicitlythoughtorreadbutarerelatedinsomepositivewaytowhatonehasinthepastthoughtor

read(1981).Thekeyhereisthatonediscourse,ortextdependingonterminology,relatestoanotherin

awaythatallowsforthemeaningintheformergainsmeaningfromthelatter.Infact,intertextualityisso

criticalthatCullergoesontostatethattoproduceastrongdiscourseonemustbeanacuteanalystof

1IusedtotellmymotherThesearentthedroidsyourelookingforwheneversheaskedaboutatopicIdidntwanttodiscuss.ShewasnotasfamiliarwithStarWarsasIwas,soshedidntgetthatsheshoulddropthattopicofconversation.Ifyouneedtoseethescenebecauseyouarentfamiliarwiththeintertext,gotohttp://youtu.be/DIzAaY2Jmsandjumptothe3:12mark.

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intertextuality(1981).Andinfact,allpeopleareanalystsofintertextuality.Indiscourseanalysisthe

moveisfromaconversationalorliteraryallusiontoamorerigorousapproachtoapplyingintertextuality.

2

Positioning

Asmatterofcourse,participantsinaconversationarealwaysbuildingidentitiesforeachother

andourselves.Thisidentitybuildingiscalledpositioning,whichDaviesandHarrdescribethisway:

Positioning,aswewilluseitisthediscursiveprocesswherebyselvesarelocatedinconversationsasobservablyandsubjectivelycoherentparticipantsinjointlyproducedstorylines.Therecanbeinteractivepositioninginwhichwhatonepersonsayspositionsanother.Andtherecanbereflexivepositioninginwhichonepositionsoneself.Howeveritwouldbeamistaketoassumethat,ineithercase,positioningisnecessarilyintentional.Onelivesone'slifeintermsofone'songoinglyproducedself,whoevermightberesponsibleforitsproduction(1990).

Twothingsjumpout.Firstandforemost,wepositionourselvesandothersonanongoingbasiseither

withorwithoutintention.Wedoitwhetherwemeantoornot.Theotheritemisthatitisin

conversation.Utopia,whilenotaconversationwithinthedailyusesenseoftheword,isaconversation

insofarasabookistheauthorstooltohaveaonewayconversation. 3

SohowwillMoreaffectposition?InthecaseofUtopiaitwillbestrictlyverbal,sinceitisa

book.DaviesandHarrmakeitclearthatpositioningneednotbeverbal,thoughtheverbalisone

component.Infact,thewordsthespeakerchoosesinevitablycontainimagesandmetaphorswhich

bothassumeandinvokethewaysofbeingthattheparticipantstakethemselvestobeinvolvedin.

(DaviesandHarr,1990).Theseimagesandmetaphorspushthespeakerandlistenerintorolesin

manyways.IfIamaddressedasdude,thespeakerispositioningmemuchdifferentlythanaspeaker

2Holymetaintertextuality,Batman!Imtalkingaboutintextualitybyreferringtoabookaboutintertextuality.3Anotherwayofputtingit:BecauseIviewthebooksIvereadasconversationpartners,andbecauseIviewmanyoftheirauthorsasfriends,Ihaveahabitofinvitingthemintoconversationswithmyphysicallypresentfriends.AllisonGrady,http://ccsummerresearch.blogs.wm.edu/forthebloggers/

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whoaddressesmeasMr.Sipesandevenmoredifferentlythanthespeakerwhoaddressesmeas

Sir.Thefirstspeakerpositionsmeasafriendwhosharescertainidentitypointswithme,theseconda

moredistantrelationshipthoughstillcloseenoughthatthespeakerknowsmynameandthethirda

completestranger.Butaddressformsarenottheonlywaypositioninghappens.IfIwalkintoaprint

shop,IpositionmyselfmuchdifferentlyifIsayIwantthistobeincolor,thanifIsayThiswillbe

twocolor:blackandPantone183224. Thefirststatementpositionsmeasaninexperiencedprint4

buyer.Theotherpositionsmeasaninsider,beIprinterordesigner.

Inadditiontotheseroles,thetextcanpositionthereaderasoutsidelookinginbyhowthe

readerpercieves[sic]thenarratorand/orauthortobepositioningthem(asreader)oritmaybecreated

bythereader'sperceptionofthecharactersthemselves(DaviesandHarr,1990).Readerperception

mattersforMore,sincetheking,amongothers,willbereadingUtopia.

Whoelsewillhepositionandhow?DavisandHarrnotethatonespeakercanpositionothers

byadoptingastorylinewhichincorporatesaparticularinterpretationofculturalstereotypes(1990).

Thispointiscritical,asthesecondhalfofUtopiaisanethnographyofthelandofUtopia.Infact,More

isnotonlypositioninghiscontemporaries,butallofus.AndthoughMoremaynothaveintendedUtopia

astravelliterature,thereareelementssuchascreatingadistinctionbetweentheknownandthe

unknown:itispredicatedonconfrontingfamiliarwaysofthoughtandperceptionwithaliennaturaland

culturalphenomena(BellerandLeerssen,2007,p.448).Utopiapositionsreadersasoutsiders,

whetheritwasMoresintentornot.

Face

Face,aslaidoutinBrownandLevinson,comesintwokinds:positiveandnegative.Negative

4RadiantOrchid,Pantones2014coloroftheyear.http://www.pantone.com/pages/index.aspx?pg=21129

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faceisapersonsfreedomofactionandfreedomfromimposition.Positiveface,whichwillbethefocus

oflatersections,isapersonspositiveselfimage(1987,p.321).Thesetwokindsoffaceinteract

betweenthespeakerandhearer.

Presentedgraphically,thefollowingsortsofactionsshowtheinteractionoffacebetween

speakerandhearer.Thisgraphisbynomeansexhaustive.

Threatto Speaker Hearer

Positiveface

Apologizing Acceptingcompliment Breakdownofbodycontrol Breakdownofemotionalcontrol Selfhumiliation Confessions

Beingridiculed Beingcontradicted Ssexpressionofviolentemotion Irreverence,mentionoftaboos Gettingbadnews Sinitiatessensitivetopic Ssnoncooperation SmarksHsstatusthewrongwayinan

initialmeeting

Negativeface

Expressthanks Acceptingthanks/apology Excuses Acceptanceofoffers ResponsetoHsfauxpas Unwillingpromises/offers

Receivingorders/requests Gettingadviceorreminders Receivingthreats,warnings Gettingoffers Receivingpromises Acceptingcompliments Targetofexpressednegativeemotion

Figure1:ExamplesofFacethreateningacts(adaptedfromBrownandLevinson,1987).

Facethreateningacts(FTA)increaseordecreaseinseverityinaccordancetothreefactors.

Thefirstfactorissocialdistance(D)ofspeaker(S)andhearer(H).Thesecondisrelativepower(P)of

hearerandspeaker.WithintheDandPfactors,thedirectionoftherelationshipisopposite.D

considersthespeakersrelationtothehearer,andPconsidersthepowerthathearerhasoverspeaker.

Thethirdistheranking(R)ofhowseriousimpositionsareinagivenculture.(BrownandLevinson,

1987,p.331).

Wx=D(S,H)+P(H,S)+Rx

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Aswecansee,therelationbetweenD,PandRisadditivenoonefactorismoreimportant

thananyother.Soinlightofthesefactors,whatdoessomeonedowhentheywanttothreatenanothers

face?Sneedstoconsiderthreethings:(a)thewanttocommunicatethecontentoftheFTAx,(b)the

wanttobeefficientorurgent,and(c)thewanttomaintainHsfacetoanydegree(Brownand

Levinson,1987).Tothatend,theyprovideastrategytree.

Figure2:FTAstrategies(adaptedfromBrownandLevinson,1987).

Startingfromtheleft,thefirstdecisionpointissimple:doesSdotheFTAornot?Ifnot,5.IfS

doesgoforwardwiththeFTA,thereisachoicebetweenonrecordandoffrecord.Anonrecord

statementisonewherethereisnootherpossibleinterpretation.Anoffrecordstatementisonewhere

thereisatleastoneotherpossibleinterpretation,i.e.implicature.Atthispoint,anFTAcaneitherbe

performedbaldlyorwithredressiveaction.AnFTAthathasredressiveactioncanthenmakethat

redressthrougheitherpositiveornegativepoliteness(BrownandLevinson,1987).

PositiveandnegativepolitenessarethebehaviorsthatflowoutofSsintentionstoH.WhenSis

tendingHspositivefaceneeds,Hshowspositivepoliteness.WhenStendsHsnegativefaceneeds,H

showsnegativepoliteness(BrownandLevinson,1987).Inessence,whensomeoneindicatestothat

theyacceptthepersontheyaretalkingtoasamemberofaningrouporasafriend,thatpersonshows

positivepolitenesstothepersontheyaretalkingto.Likewisewhensomeonespeaksandactsinaway

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astominimizetheirinterferencewiththeotherperson,theyareshowingnegativepolitenesstotheother

person.Pleasenote:negativepolitenessisnotthesameasimpoliteness.Quitethecontrary,Brownand

Levinsonindicatethatnegativepoliteness,alongwithpositivepoliteness,isattheheartofredressive

actionactionthatattemptstorestorethehearersfacebeitpositiveornegative(1978).Butpoliteness

isnottheonlywaytosaveface.

HumorasanoutforFTAs

BuildingonBrownandLevinsonswork,Zajdmanfollowsupontheirclaimthathumorisone

possiblepositivefacesavingstrategy.Thekeytousinghumorasapositivefacesavingstrategyisto

makesurethatthehearerdoesnottakeoffense.Hedevelopsahierarchyofspeakerintentandhearer

interpretation.

Ssintention Hsinterpretation Ssexpectation Hsreaction

Meaningoffense Takingoffense insult insult

Meaningoffense Nottakingoffense insult amusement

Notmeaningoffense Takingoffense amusement insult

Notmeaningoffense Nottakingoffense amusement amusement

Figure3:PossibleresultsofajokingFTA(afterZajdman,1995).

Zajdmanpointsoutthatthefirstandlastconditionshavethespeakerandhearerinterpretingthe

communicationinthesameway,whichpresentsnoproblemforthespeaker.Inthesecondsituation,the

speakerhasnotfulfilledtheirintent,butthespeakercanfulfilltheiraim.Thespeakersimplyhastotry

harder(Zajdman,1995).Thethirdcondition,whenSmeansnooffense,butHtakesoffenseisthe

problem.ThissituationcanbeassimpleasSisnotawareHmightinterpretanutteranceasderogatory.

Inanycase,SisatstrategicadvantagetoH.IfStakesoffense,Scanalwaysclaimtonothavemeant

offense,whethertrueornot(Zajdman,1995).

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ButthespeakersabilitytodisowntheirintentonewayortheotherisnotSsonlystrategic

advantage.Athirdpartycanalsobecomeaninadvertentallytothespeakeracriticalpoint.Why?

Whenthespeakerstartsspeakingthethirdpartyissupposedtoignoretheconversationaccordingto

politenesspostulatesbutthenthespeakersaysomethingfunnythatthethirdpartycannotignore.At

thispoint,thehearermayprefertosavefacebyfakingamusementagainsthisorherbetterjudgment

andallowtheFTAtopassforhumorratherthanadmitopenoffense(Zajdman,1995).Providedthe

jokeworks,ofcourse.

Analyzingthecorpus

Whilenotsomuchatheoreticalmodelofhowdiscoursefunctions,corpusanalysisisapowerful

tooltoputquantificationtointuitionsandhunches.Acorpusisatleastonetextpreparedfordigital

analysis(Jones,2012).Inthecaseofthispaper,Utopiaformstheprimarycorpus.Jonesemphasizes

thatcorpusanalysisisnotdiscourseanalysisperse,butratherthatitprovidesnewperspectivesonthe

datathatweremissedusingmoretraditionaldiscourseanalyticaltechniques(2012,p.33).

Thoughitispossibletousethetextunderanalysisasthesoleprimarycorpus,itisalsopossible

(andevendesirable)insomecircumstancestouseareferencecorpus,whichisanothercorpusthatyou

willcompareyourprimarycorpuswith(2012,p.79).Anexampleofareferencecorpuswouldbethe

BYUCorpusofContemporaryAmericanEnglish(http://corpus.byu.edu/coca/).Thereferencecorpus

maybebroaderthantheprimarycorpusornot,dependingonthepurposeoftheanalysis.

HypothesisTurningtowardworldlyconcerns,Moreattackingthepoliticalstructureandnotthereligious

structureinEnglandinUtopia,whichmeansthatheisattackingtheking,HenryVIII,andnotthepope,

LeoX.Heisgoingtogetawaywiththisattackbecauseheispositionsthekingwellandattendstothe

kingspositivefaceasheattackshim.

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AboutThomasMoreSt.SirThomasMore(14781535),thoughneithersaintnorknightatthetimehewrote

Utopia,wasattheforefrontofEnglishhumanism.Hewasacomplexmanwhowasbothreligiousand

scholarly.Nauertnotesthatdespitehisdeeppiety,oneofthestrongestclassicalinfluencesonhimwas

thebiting,irreverent,andantireligioussatiristLucian,someofwhosedialogueshetranslatedfrom

GreektoLatinabout1503(2006,p.124).Lucian,whoserelationtoUtopiawillbeexploredinThe

namingofthingsinUtopia,wasoftenfunny,whichmayhavedrawnMoresattention.Hisfriend

Erasmusnotedthatheenjoyedjokingandthatwitalwaysgavehimpleasure,evenifdirectedagainst

himself(Curtright,2014,p.14).MoreswitplaysanimportantpartinhowhewillmanagetheFTAsin

Utopia.

Moreisalsoknownasareligiousman,butthatistooonedimensional.Therewasmoreto

Morethanhisreligiousbeliefs.HewasalsoascholarofAncientGreek.ThoughMorejustifiedhis

workonLucianbyreferringtotheauthorscriticismofhumanviceandfolly,thetruevalueofLucianfor

himwastheauthorsskillatlayingbaretheessentialambivalenceofthehumancondition,torn(asMore

himselfwas)bythecontendingimperativesofworldlyandspiritualgoals(Nauert,p.124).AndMore

trulywastornbyworldlyandspiritualgoals.AshislifeprogressedhenotonlydefendedhisCatholic

faithfromtheReformationonthecontinent,heservedKingHenryVIIIinvariouscapacities(British

Library,n.d.).

AboutUtopiaUtopiais,likeanythingelse,aproductofitstimes,andin1516thetimesbelongedtothe

humanists.ThehumanistmovementofRenaissanceEurope,withoutignoringotheraspectsofit,an

educationalreformmovementthatimpliedabroadgeneraleducation,but[that]alsoimpliedastrong

emphasisontheoratoricalskillsandsocialvaluesmostneededbytherulingelite(Nauert,p.13).As

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such,MorewouldnothaveintendedUtopiatobereadbyordinarypeople,aboutwhichmorelater.

Further,Moresembraceofthehumanistrhetoricaltacticofinutramquepartem compels5

himtoapproachUtopiansocietyfrommanyangles.Indeed,Utopiaissplitintotwobooks:one

exploresthephilosophy,theotherdescribestheislandofUtopia.Initsverystructure,Moregivesus

twoanglestoconsider,butthereismorebecause[Utopia]isthusnotintendedtobereadasa

straightforwardpoliticaltreatise,but,likeErasmussPraiseofFolly,isinflectedwithmultipleironies

(CraneinHattaway,p.22).Indeed,Utopiacanbereadasatraveloguetoafictionallandwhere

ridiculouscustomsreign,butreaderscanalsochoosetoseeothermeaningsinitthepurposeofthis

paper.

AnalysisMoreneededtostrikeadelicatebalanceinUtopia.Hewantedtomakeanattack,buthe

couldnotdoitdirectly.ToattackopenlywoulddamageKingHenryVIIIspositivefacesobadlythat

someformofretributionwouldhavebeennecessary.Sincehecannotaffecttherelativepower

differencebetweenhimselfandthekingnorcanheaffecttherankingofoffense,thenhemustmanage

theattackbycreatingsocialdistance.Beforegettingtotheseangles,itisimportanttoestablishjustwhat

Utopiaisandisnot.

Isitapoliticalattack?

LexicalfrequencyofcertainkeywordsinUtopiaprovidesinsighttothisquestion.Obviously

Utopiawillbetheprimarycorpus.CicerosdeRepublicaisthereferencecorpus,becauseitisa

philosophicaldialogaboutgovernment. Sincethereissomeambiguitypossibleintheinflectedforms,6

thefrequenciesarereportedasarange.Comingupwithanexactfrequencyfigureisalargetask,so

5Onbothsides[ofacase],aLatinlegalterm.6Ifthatisstartingtosoundlikeagenreofdiscourse,youarethinkingwhatIamthinking.

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CicerosvocabularyisreportedasarangeasfoundatthePerseusDigitalLibrary,whichgivesusa

broaderpossibilityforvocabularyfrequenciesinpoliticalworkswritteninLatin.

Latinword Englishequivalent

FrequenciesinUtopia FrequenciesinCicerosdeRepublica

publicusrexmagistratusmileslegatuslexprinceps

publickingbureaucratsoldierenvoylawprince

105tokens(38.13/10k)37tokens(13.43/10k)19tokens(6.90/10k)11tokens(3.99/10k)12tokens(4.36/10k)50tokens(18.16/10k)65tokens(23.66/10k)

(106.6551.08/10k)(124.12/10k)(10.312.24/10k)(2.240.48/10k)(5.830/10k)(43.0213.00/10k)(34.950/10k)

Figure4:FrequenciesofselectedwordswithpoliticalmeaningsinUtopia

Unsurprisingly,severalterms(magistratus,legatus,lexandprinceps)aresquareintherangesin

Cicerostext.Eventhewordsthatfalloutsideoftherange(milesandpublicus)arenotsofaroutofthe

rangeastolookstrange.Theonlywordthatseemssuspiciousisrex.Cicero,writinginthetimeofthe

antikingRomanRepublic,usesrexnearlytentimesasoftenasMoredoesinUtopia(124.12/10kvs.

13.43/10k).Moresomissionofrexisconspicuousbyitsminimalpresenceincomparisontode

Republica.Giventhatthefrequenciesofseveralkeywordsareinbroadagreement,exceptingrex,the

politicalnatureoftheworkisonsolidfooting.

Ifitispolitical,doesthatautomaticallyexcludeareligiousangletoo?No,noristhereneedto

judgethatquestionwithoutlexicalfrequencyanalysis.Likebefore,thereferencecorpusisreportedasa

rangeasfoundonthePerseusDigitalLibrary,butthistimethereferencecorpusisTertullians

Apologeticum,whichisareligiouswork .7

Latinword Englishequivalent

FrequenciesinUtopia FrequenciesinTertulliansApologeticum

sacer sacred 9tokens(3.26/10k) 10.530.50/10k

7Morespecifically,itsgenreisapology.

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sanctusdeussacerdosreligio

holygodpriestreligion

8tokens(2.91/10k)39tokens(14.16/10k)24tokens(8.71/10k)29tokens(10.53/10k)

9.52/10k194.95104.74/10k3.002.00/10k17.04/10k

Figure5:FrequenciesofselectedwordswithreligiousmeaningsinUtopia

Inthiscomparisonhowever,severalkeywordsUtopiaisbelowthefrequencyrangesfoundin

Apologeticum.Thewordsacer(sacred)inUtopiaisinthelowendofthefrequencyfor

Apologeticum,butsacerdos(priest)inUtopiaisabovetherangefoundinApologeticum.Icannot

exactlyaccountforthisanomaly,butsincesacerdosisthepersonwhoconductsreligiousactivitythe

waythatrex(king)andmagistratus(bureaucrat)conductpoliticalactivity,itseemedbesttoincludeit.In

anyevent,themajorityofthewordsdealingwithreligionarebelowtherangeonemightexpectina

religiousworkbutexactlyontargetforapoliticalwork.Butwhosepolitics?

IsUtopiaEnglandindisguise?

Definitelyyes.GoodeymapsoutthesimilaritiesbetweentheislandofUtopiaandEnglandinhis

paperMappingUtopia:ACommentontheGeographyofSirThomasMore.Withoutgettingintotoo

greatofdetail,thesizeoftheislandofUtopiaandEnglandareroughlythesame.Utopiaistwohundred

mileswide:soisEnglandinalinefromSt.AlbanstotheNorfolkcoast.Utopiahasfiftyfourcities,and

EnglandhadfiftythreeadministrativedivisionsalongwithLondon(Goodey,1970).

AdditionallythedescriptionsofLondonandAmaurotaremateriallythesame,particularlyinthe

beginning.A1572mapofLondon,convenientlyenough,hasadescriptionofthecityinLatin(Historic

Cities,n.d.).

DescriptionofLondononthemap DescriptionofAmaurot

haecestregiaillatotiusAngliaecivitasLONDINIUMadfluviumThemesimsita.

situmestigiturAMAUROTUM,inlenideiectumontis,guraferequadrata.namlatitudoeiuspauloinfracollisincoeptauerticem,milibus

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passuumduobusadumenAnydrumpertinet,secundumripamaliquantolongior.

Thiscity,thecapitalofthewholeofEngland,LondonissituatedalongtheRiverThames.

ThereforeAmaurotissituatedinthegentleslopeofmountainwithanearlysquareshape.ForitsbreadthbegunjustwithinthepeakofthehillstretchestwomilestotheRiverAnyderandalittlebitlongeralongtheshore.

Figure6:DescriptionsofLondonandAmaurot.

Thestrikingpartisthattwodescriptionswrittenseparatelyisthattherearemanypointsof

convergenceinthedescriptions.Threeelementsareofparticularinterest.Thefirstisthenameofthe

city.Bothcitiesarenamedinthefirstsentence.Theverbisalsothesameforboth,thoughthemapsplits

theverb(estsita)andMoredoesnot(situmest).Butthetrulystrikingthingisthatbotharebeing

describedadfluviumThemesimandadflumenAnydrum.Thedifferenceinmeaningbetweenthe

wordsfluviumandflumenisnotlarge,sincetheybothultimatelyderivefromthesameroot,fluere(to

flow).WhilethisadditionalinformationsupportsGoodeyspaper,itisalsoworthnotingduetothe

strikingsimilaritiesinlanguageuse.

UtopiaisEngland.WhateverMorescommentis,itispoliticalandaboutEngland.

Settingitupwithpositioning

SinceUtopiaisanattackontheking,thefirstthingMoredoesinUtopiaistopositiontheking

inapositivelight.First,

inuictissimusAngliaeRexHenricuseiusnominisoctauus,unconqueredEnglandsKingHenrythatnameseighth,HenvryVIII,unconqueredkingofEngland

Immediatelyfollowedwith

omnibusegregiiprincipisartibusornatissimusfor.allexcellentprinceswith.artsmost.decoratedwhoisverywellequippedwithallthevirtuesofanexcellentruler

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Whilethismayseemoverthetoptomoderneyes,itisnotexcessive.MorenextdescribesCharlesVof

Spainasmostserene(serenissimo).SoMoregivesHenryVIIImorepositiveattentionthanother

kingsnotonlyinnumberofwordsbutalsoinprimacyofposition.FurthermorehesetsHenryVIIIas

theactorinthissituation,asheisinthenominativecase.Moreinadvertentlytipshishandinthis

asymmetricaldescriptionofkings.Wardaughtellsusasymmetricuseofnamesandaddresstermsis

oftenaclearindicatorofapowerdifferential(2006,p.269).Andapowerdifferentialbetween

CharlesVofSpainandHenryVIIIofEnglanddefinitelyexistsforMore:hewasasubjectofHenry

VIII.Furthermore,immediatelybeforeHenryisthewordnegotium(business),whichisaworkwith

positiveconnotationinLatin.CharlesVwasfollowedbycontroversa(controversial),whichisaboutas

positiveinLatinasitsEnglishcounterpart. 8

ThenamingofthingsinUtopia

Inadditiontopositioningthekingpositively,MoreisgoingtopositionUtopiaasanonsense

land.HedoesthisbygivingpeopleandplacesinUtopiahavewondrous,evennonsensical,names.

NelsonsuggeststhatthenonsensicalnamingsystemconstitutesastructuringforceandthatMores

networkofGreekpunsdonotsimplyentertaintheyorganize(2001).

Beyondthis,MorehassetupaveryrichintertextualitywiththeGreeknamesintheLatintext.

Nelsonsuggestsoneresultofthatintertextuality:MoreistryingtocreateacontrastbetweenGreekand

Romannotionsofpolitics,withMorestakingouttheGreekpositionfortheUtopians.TheRomanview

isthatlibertyisastatusofnonintervention[and]libertyencouragesvirtue,whichinturnyields

8ThefullopeningofUtopia:cumnonexiguimomentinegotiaquaedaminuictissimusAngliaeRexHenricuseiusnominisoctauus,omnibusegregiiprincipisartibusornatissimus,cumserenissimocastellaeprincipeCarolocontrouersanuperhabuisset

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justice(Nelson,2001). TheGreekpositionontheotherhandisthatjusticecomesfroman9

arrangementofelementsthataccordswithnature(Nelson,2001). TheGreeknamescertainlydo10

helpMorestakeouttheGreekposition,buttheydomore.

IsuggestthatMoreusestheGreeknamestoalignhimselfwiththeHumanistmovementand

createthecentralcontradictionsofUtopia.

Inonemove,MoremanagestosticktotheHumanistpurificationofLatintoitsCiceronian

coreandrefertothefantasticlandsofLuciansliterature.HegetsthebenefitsofwritinginLatina

cultured,educatedaudienceofeliteswithoutviolatingtheemergingLatinlanguagenormagainst

makingnewwords.BywritinginHumaniststyleLatin,healsopositionsreadersasbeingculturedand

educated.Thispositivepositioningoftheaudienceisimportant,asIwillshowlater.

MoresGreeknamesarealsocontradictorypuns,whichallowsforMoretoplausiblyclaimthat

thewholethingisajoke.SinceMoreisusingLuciansnamingasatemplate,theeasiestwaytomake

thepointistoshowafewofthenamessidebyside.

SampleofLuciansnames SampleofMoresnames

aeroknpsairmosquito

UtopiaNoplace

thunnokephalostunahead

AnyderRiverNowaterRiver

nsomachiaislandbattle 11

AmaurotNotclear

9CicerosumsuptheRomanpositionindeofficiis1.20.Justicecomesfromnotharmingotherswithoutcauseandrespectingthedifferencebetweenprivateandpublicproperty.AtraditionalAmericanposition.10PlatosumsuptheGreekpositioninRepublic,pp.550553.Wealthandvirtue(andbyextension,justice)areopposites,thereforeweneedrulebywisementomakesureweavoidthisproblem.11Aseabattlewithislandsintheplaceofbattleships.

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hippomyrmxhorseant

RaphaelHythlodaeus(Moresnarrator)RaphaelNonsensedistributing

Figure7:NamesinLuciansATrueStoryandMoresUtopia

Tobesure,LuciansnamesaremorefancifulthanMores,butthatobservationmissesthe

point.MoreismakingreferencetoLucianwithhisGreekbasednonsensenames,aswellasmakinga

joke.Whohaseverheardofanowhereplace?Awaterlessriver? Anunknowncity?Moresnarrator12

isevensuspect,sincehisnameimpliesthatheisaliar.Thesenonsensenamesdistancetheworkfrom

bothEnglandandpossibleinsulttoHenryVIIIspositiveface,sincetheyallowthekingtointerpret

themasajoke.

AtthesametimeMorealsobindsUtopiatoAncientGreecebymakinguseofnames

reminiscentofLucian.Thisintertextualrelation,duetohispreviousworkwithtranslatingLucian,serves

toincreaseUtopiasperceiveddistancefromcontemporarypoliticalcomment.

WritinginLatin

MostEnglishspeakingreadersofUtopiaencounteritinEnglish,andlikelyassumeMorewrote

inEnglish.Rightlyso,MorewasEnglish.ExceptthatMorewroteUtopiainLatin.Why?Blake

suggeststhatEnglishwasnotperceivedtobeasrichasLatinorFrenchintermsofvocabulary

(Hattaway,2000,p.78).Thatmaybe.

Thesimplefactisthat16thcenturyEuropewasdiglossic.Thehigh languagewasLatin.Itwas13

thelanguageoflearning,literatureandthechurch.Thelowlanguageswerethevernacularlanguages

spokeninthevariouscountriesofEurope.AsWardaughstates,akeydefiningcharacteristicof

diglossiaisthatthetwovarietiesarekeptquiteapartintheirfunctions(2006,p.89).Andtheywere

12InEnglandanyway.13High(H)andlow(L)aretechnicaltermsintalkingaboutdiglossia.Thereisnothinginherentlyhighorlowabouttheindividuallanguagesoutsideoftheirculturalpositionsanduses.

Sipes17

keptseparate.Latinwasavibrantlanguageinsuchfieldsasreligion,philosophy,politics,diplomacy,

law,educationandscience(WheelockandLaFleur,2005).Theassumptionthatamajorworkwould

bewritteninEnglishwasstillinthefuturewhenMorewroteUtopia.Shakespearesaudienceonthe

southsideoftheThameswouldhavetowaituntil1599fortheGlobetobebuilt. Evenlater,Isaac14

NewtonpublishedhisPrincipiainLatin.SotheEuropeandEnglandofUtopiawasstill

diglossicLatinwashigh,andEnglishwasnot.Asaresult,MorewouldwanttowriteUtopiainLatin.

Buteventhatisnotthewholestory.

IwouldarguethatMorewritesinLatinasapositioningtechnique.First,hepositionsevery

potentialreaderwhodoesnotknowLatinasanoutsider.Thetextisopaque.Second,Morepositions

potentialreaderstheeducatedelitewhodoknowLatinasthirdpartyalliesinZajdmansjoking

schema.Asmentionedabove,MorepositionsthemaseducatedandculturedwithhisHumanisticLatin,

whichfurtherpredisposedtheaudiencetohispointofview.ByreadingUtopia,theyseeHenry

lampooned.MoreispressuringHenrytofindtheattackfunny.SowhataretheattacksMoreismaking

ontheking?

TheUtopiansclothes

Hereisaclearpointofattack.Butwhyclothes?Tworeasons,bothofwhicharerelated,come

tomind.First,HenryVIIIworeluxuriousclothestoprojecthismajestyandwealth,oftenonlyonetime

(Hayward,n.d.).Second,hewasresponsibleforsumptuarylaws.Thepurposesofsumptuarylaws

varied,butthemainpurposesweretokeepthesocialbalanceintactandtoexercisegreatercontrol

overthemassesandthenobility(AbitofHenrylove,2012).Soontheonehand,Henryispositioning

himselfaspowerfulbywearinghiswealthandkeepingtherestofsocietyintheirpositionaswell.

14PleasedontaskhowIknowthiswithoutlooking.

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TheUtopiansdidthingsdifferently.

namuestes,quarum,nisiquodhabitusexusdiscernitur,etcaelibatusaconiugio,unapertotaminsulamformaest,eademqueperomneaeuumperpetua,necadoculumindecora,etadcorporismotumhabilis,tumadfrigorisaestusquerationemapposita.

Fortheirclothes,whichareofthesameformthroughouttheislandexcepttomarkdifferencesbetweenthesexesandthemarriedfromtheunmarried,areperpetuallythesameforalltimes,noraretheyuglyoruncomfortable,andthentheyaredesignedforheatandcold.

Figure8:TheUtopiansclothes.

Asanethnography,itwouldbewrongtomisstheUtopiansclothes.ButMorehasasecond

intention,andhistargetisclear:theking.Whoworeclothesonceandhadrulesonwhocouldwear

what?Theking.Utopianfashionisinsharpdistinctiontotheking.Thefashionsneverchange.The

clothesarethesamesummerandwinter.Everyonewearsthesamethingwithonlythebroadestsocietal

differencesmarked.Remember,Morewritesthesewordsin1516,whenthreeroundssumptuarylaws

hadbeenpassedfromthetimeofHenryscoronationin1509(AbitofHenrylove,2012). Thisfact15

wouldnothavebeenlostonUtopiasEnglishreaders.

Makinggovernmentofficialslookbad

MorealsomakesnonUtopiangovernmentofficialslookbad.Again,Moremakesreferenceto

theirclothes.

totusillesplendorapparatuspudendusuidebatur,etinfimumquemqueprodominisreuerentersalutantes,legatosipsosexaurearumusucatenarumproseruishabitos,sineulloprorsushonorepraetermiserunt.quinpuerosquoqueuidisses,quigemmasacmargaritasabiecerant,ubiinlegatorumpileisaffixasconspexerunt,compellarematremaclatusfodere.

Allofthatsplendorseemedtobeshamefullyelaborate.[TheUtopians]greetedeachofthelowlyaslordsandwithoverlookedtheambassadorswithoutanyhonoratallmistakingthemforslaves,sincetheyworechainsofgold.Andifyouhadalsoseenthechildren,whohadthrownawaythegemsandpearls,whentheysawthemfixedtothehatsoftheambassadors,calltheirmothersanddigtheirsides.

15Ok,soparliamentintroducedthelaws,butkeepinmindthattheAffordableCareActof2010originatedintheUSCongress.Whatdowecallit?Obamacare.LetssayImnotconvincedthatalawsoriginationinparliamentmeantthatitwasntHenryslaw.

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Figure9:Theambassadorssplendoroverlooked

Rightoff,Morecallstheambassadorssplendor(splendor)shameful(pudendus).Thento

underlineit,hehasUtopianchildrenpointouttheirjewelsandgoldchains.Children,beingchildren,

pointoutwhennormsarebroken.Onechildsaysthefollowing.

enmater,quammagnusnebulomargaritisadhucetgemmulisutitur,acsiessetpuerulus!atparensserioetiamilla,taceinquitfili,estopinorquispiamemorionibuslegatorum.aliicatenasillasaureasreprehendere,utpotenulliususus,quippetamgraciles,uteasfacileseruusinfringere,tamlaxasrursus,uticumfueritlibitumpossitexcutere,etsolutusacliberquouisaufugere.

Hey,mom,thisbigclownstillusesgemsandpearls,justasifhewereasmallchild!Butthatparentsaysearnestly,Bequietson,heis,Ithink,oneofthefoolsoftheambassadors.Otherspassedjudgmentonthegoldenchains,sincetheywereofnouse,obviouslysothinthataslavecouldbreakthem,andalsosoloosethathecouldrunfreewheneverhewantedtobreakthem.

Figure10:Theambassadorsmocked

Thechildcallstheambassadoragovernmentofficialanebulo(clown)whodresseslikea

smallchild.Thechildispositioningtheambassadorsasnotjustchildren,butsmallchildren

(puerulus)anFTAtotheambassadorspositiveface.Whethertheambassadorhearsthisattackon

hispositivefaceisnotinthetext,butwe,thereaders,doseethisattackonhispositiveface.Thechilds

mothergoesontosilencethechildsFTAbutthenlabelstheambassadorsasmoriones(fools)ina

separateFTAthatwewitness.Bytheendofit,Morehasthewholecrowdpassingjudgmentonthe

ambassadorsinawaythatpositiontheminanegativelight.

Anattackonagovernmentrepresentativemaybeconstruedasanattackonthegovernment,

whichinthecaseof1516Englandmeanstheking.SinceUtopiaispoliticalandaboutEngland,itissafe

tosaythatwemayinterpretthetheambassadorsasstandinsfortheEnglishgovernment,whichisto

sayHenryVIII.

War

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PerhapsthemostdirectthingMorecouldtoinsultthekinginabookistosuggestthatHenryis

badatkinglythings.Warbeingthemostkinglyofthings.

First,MorestatestheUtopiansopiniononthematter.

bellumutpoteremplanebeluinamsummopereabominanturWar,anobviouslybeastlythingiswhattheyloatheverymuch.

Thenwhentheyengageinwar,theUtopiansavoidneedlesskilling.

siabipsisuictoriasit,haudquaquamcaedegrassantur,Ifbythemthereshouldbevictory,theydontgoprocedewithslaughterbyanymeans,

fugatosenimcomprehendunt,quamocciduntlibentius.fortheywouldratherapprehendthosethatfleethankillthemfreely.

NotthatHenryVIIIsreignwasknownformassivemilitarybloodshed,butMoredepictstheUtopians

asbeingaversetobloodshedwhennotnecessary.Infact,whentheydogotowar,heshowsthe

Utopiansashavinggoodreason.

nontemerecapessunttamen,nisiquoautsuosnestueantur,theydonottaketo[war]rashlyanyway,unlesstheyshouldeithermaketheirborders

safe

autamicorumterris,infusoshostespropulsent,orpushoutenemiespouredinfromthelandsoftheirallies.

Thisreasoningisfarfromthereasoningthatwentintothe1513EnglishinvasionofFrance.Why

didHenrypackuptoinvadeFrance?KingFerdinandofSpain,HenryVIIIsfatherinlaw,induced

theEnglishtojointheHolyLeague(Viault,1992).ItispossiblethatMoreisreflectingcommon

opinionthattheinvasionofFrance,whilenotafailure,wasnotseentofallintothecategoryofjustwar.

RemindinghisreadersofHenrysfailureinjudgmentaboutwaristhemostseriousFTAtoHenrys

positivefaceinUtopia.MoreisremindingthereadersofHenrysfailureasaking.Hegoestowarfor

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frivolousreasons.

PersonaMore

OneofthelastthingstorealizeisthatMoreisboththeauthorandacharacterwithinthebook.

ThomasMorethemanissimplyMore,whereasThomasMorethecharacterinUtopiaisPersona

More.BydoingthisMorecreatesfurtherdistancebetweenhimselfandthebook.Ifheisaskedabout

it,hecanalwaysdismissPersonaMoreswordsasbeingthoseofaliterarycharacterratherthanhis

ownwords.

Thefinalword

InonelaststrokeofcreatingsocialdistancetominimizetheFTA,Moreclosestheworkvery

dismissively,

haecubiRaphaelrecensuitperquamabsurdeuidebanturinstituta(More)WhenRaphaelfinishedthese[recountings,they]seemedcompletelyabsurdlyfounded

Sowhateverhisintent,PersonaMoredismissesitasnonsense,whichistheperfectwaytousehis

advantageasthespeakeraccordingtoZajdman.Thekingcannottakeoffense:thewholethingisajoke

anyway,andthereadersallknowit.

ConclusionIntheend,Moremanagedtocreateenoughsocialdistancebetweenhimselfandthekingto

minimizeUtopiasthreattoHenryspositiveface.BypublishingtheworkinLatin,hepositioned

Utopiaasseriousworkthatexcludedmostpotentialreadersbutalsopositionedthereadersasalliesin

Moresattack.Hethenproceededtomocktheking,asseenbyhisloveofclothesandfailuresinwar.

Butintheend,MoredidmanagetoexecutehisFTAwithredressiveactionpositivepositioningofthe

kingandcreatingsocialdistancetominimizethethreat.HewassosuccessfulthathebecameHenry

VIIIsLordChancellorin1529(BritishLibrary,n.d.).

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Ofcourse,theironyisthatHenryVIIIdecapitatedMorein1536foranotherdifferentFTA.

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