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Similes
Book 1
Explanation and Analysis—King Solomon:
In Book One, Raphael relates his conversations with Cardinal John Morton to More and Peter Giles. In one particular conversation, Raphael describes a friar whom, offended by the words of a fool spoken in jest, begins to call that fool all kinds of terrible names. The friar justifies his actions with an allusion to King Solomon from the Bible in a situationally ironic moment:
"I would not act more wisely. For Solomon, that wisest of men, says Answer a fool according to his folly, just as I'm doing now. I'm showing him the pit into which he'll fall if he's not careful."
The friar quotes Proverbs 26:5. King Solomon is a wise and reputable judge from the Old Testament of the Bible, known for making fair decisions regarding problems that troubled his subjects. This allusion made by the friar is ironic, considering that his response to the fool is clearly irrational. The allusion also betrays the friar's arrogance. He believes himself morally superior to the fool, though he ends up replicating his actions.
On a larger societal level, the friar's actions can be taken as a reflection of various deficiencies in the clergy: he, of all people, should set a moral example for the ordinary citizens he serves. Instead, the friar resorts to bullying and lashes out in anger—two of the very things Jesus speaks out against in the Bible.
Related Themes:
Explanation and Analysis—Religious Authority:
In Book One, Raphael relates a past conversation he had with Cardinal John Morton, a friar, and several others. In the course of this conversation, More—speaking through the voice of Raphael—provides satirical commentary on the hypocrisy of religious authorities. The friar is easily offended when the fool calls him a "vagrant":
"[The friar] called [the fool] an idle wretch, a slanderer, a stirrer of discord and a son of perdition, invoking the most blood-chilling threats from sacred scripture."
It is both ironic and hypocritical that a religious authority, so offended by a playful insult, would respond by hurling vitriol and abuse at his perceived tormentor. In a novel so fixated on exposing the perpetrators of social inequity, it would be remiss of More to not address the clergy. Both kings and the clergy are political figures; even so, the clergy are often afforded a certain amount of amnesty. Because religious figures are meant to be the moral figureheads of a society, to criticize them is to challenge God himself. Though religious leaders are not immune to corruption—frequently siphoning resources from their parishioners instead of working to support them—they are often portrayed as morally pure, taking action only according to God's wishes. More satirizes this unquestioned authority through the figure of the friar, calling to attention the hypocrisy of his entire class.
Related Themes:
