Utopia book club questions

The reading plan

Meeting 1: Part 1

1. When poverty and theft enter the same debate, what should matter most in deciding a fair punishment?
2. What might challenging courts achieve that serving a ruler cannot?
3. How should the value of human life limit punishment for theft?
4. What reasons might someone have for defending harsh punishments, and which would you struggle most to accept?
5. How might a traveler's account change the way people discuss problems close to home?

Meeting 2: Parts 2 to 6

6. Would you trade some choice in your work for abundance and more time to learn?
7. How might shared houses and carefully planned streets shape people's relationships?
8. When might delaying debate protect good judgment, and when might it get in the way?
9. How well might secret elections and public consultation restrain rulers without weakening their ability to act?
10. What kinds of fairness might freely distributed necessities provide, and what might they leave unresolved?

Meeting 3: Parts 7 to 9

11. Is avoiding bloodshed enough to justify assassination rewards or hiring others to fight?
12. Where should communal welfare stop shaping individual choices about marriage?
13. What should communal welfare mean when decisions concern illness rather than punishment?
14. How fair is protecting citizens while making conquered peoples pay the costs of war?
15. What tensions might arise between religious freedom and the common good?

Themes to talk about

Tips for the host

1. Open each meeting with one question everyone can answer, then go deeper.
2. Anyone who fell behind can catch up with the 15-minute summary.