Ideal institutions channel human nature constructively.
유일국에서 시민들은 이름 대신 숫자를 가졌다.
Day 3 · 목표 ⭐
More's genius was designing a society that did not demand perfection from its citizens but instead created conditions in which ordinary human beings, given the right environment, would naturally behave well.
D-503은 유리로 된 도시에 살았으며, 그곳에서는 모든 시간이 '시간표'에 의해 정해지고, 행복이라는 이름 아래 사생활이라는 개념이 공식적으로 폐지되었다.
2Reading· 오늘의 본문
We · Yevgeny Zamyatin · 1924
In Utopia, there is no private property. All goods are stored in common warehouses, and people take only what they need. This system, which Thomas More imagined, removes greed and envy from society. Everyone works for six hours a day, not for personal wealth, but for the community. Because no one owns land or houses, there is no reason for theft or conflict. The focus shifts from accumulating possessions to cultivating knowledge and art. In this environment, where basic needs are met without struggle, human nature is not corrupted by the desire for more. People are free to pursue true happiness, which they find in learning, conversation, and helping their neighbors.
B2 · 128 wordsavg 25.6 w/s
More's vision of common property and labor in Utopia is a radical institutional framework designed to preemptively negate the darker facets of human nature. By abolishing private ownership, the society systematically eradicates the primary seeds of social strife: avarice, pride, and competition for resources. The mandatory six-hour workday, not for profit but for communal sustenance, redefines labor's purpose, transforming it from a burdensome means of survival into a dignified, shared contribution. This structure, in which citizens rotate between urban and agricultural work, ensures that no degrading or excessively specialized toil exists. Consequently, the environment channels inherent human energies away from possessive individualism and toward intellectual and civic engagement. More's genius lies not in assuming altruistic citizens, but in crafting conditions where self-interest aligns seamlessly with the common good, making virtuous behavior the most natural and rational course. What makes Utopia endure as a work of literature is precisely this refusal to offer easy consolation — it demands that readers sit with the discomfort of a world that does not resolve neatly, and find their own position within it.
C1 · 170 wordsavg 34.0 w/s
3Vocabulary· 핵심 어휘 & 연습
genius
천재성, 비상한 재능
More's genius was in designing a society that worked with human nature.
designing
설계하다, 고안하다
He was responsible for designing the city's layout and laws.
demand
요구하다
The system does not demand perfect selflessness from people.
conditions
조건, 환경
The right social conditions can encourage cooperation.
naturally
자연스럽게, 당연히
In such an environment, people would naturally share their resources.
Activity 1 · 빈칸 채우기5 questions
1. Every hour of D-503's life was carefully ____ by the Table of Hours.
2. The ____ of privacy did not exist in the One State.
3. Individual names were ____ and replaced with numbers.
4. The glass walls guaranteed there was no ____ for citizens.
5. The State was ____ declared to represent perfect happiness.