The Life of Sir Thomas More
The writer, public servant, saint, and complex historical figure behind A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS
The central figure of Lantern Theater Company’s production of Robert Bolt’s A Man for All Seasons — live on stage March 10 through April 9, 2022 — is Sir Thomas More, born in London in 1478 to a successful barrister who intended the same career for his son. Though More would eventually enter the legal profession, he first took a detour to a monastery, where he lived for four years to test his calling to the priesthood. It was his first major brush with defying authority for the sake of his conscience: he was prepared to be disowned by his father if he felt called to the priesthood instead of the bar. His deeply held religious views and his indomitable sense of personal morals were with him always, and this would not be the last time they urged him to defy authority at his peril.
More had an impressive resume; he succeeded at Oxford, where he studied law, and was a respected barrister once he entered the profession. He also held a number of government positions: he was in Parliament, where he was also speaker; undersheriff of London; solicitor-general; master of requests; master of the exchequer; ambassador; and member of the King’s Privy Council, the highest group of offices. From 1529 to 1532, he was the Lord Chancellor, the king’s chief advisor and among the highest positions a man, notably a commoner, could hold in the English government of that era.
He wrote extensively, publishing poems, treatises, philosophical arguments, religious explorations, and a biography. He also wrote a history of Richard III, helping to cement that king’s reputation as an unlawful and murderous usurper; this was Shakespeare’s main source for his Richard III.
Most famously, More wrote Utopia, which imagined a perfect society founded on communal beliefs and a way of life that was free from the self-interest and greed of the European cultures of his time. He advocated for the mitigation of evil, not its elimination, because he accepted that humans are fallible. He also argued for women’s rights and equal education, which he put into practice with his own family — his daughter Margaret was educated in language, history, philosophy, geography, astronomy, and more. She was proficient in Latin, and she translated some of the philosopher Erasmus’ work into English, becoming the first non-royal woman to publish a book translated into English.
Utopia cemented More as one the foremost members of the humanist movement. Humanists, like More and his good friend Erasmus, studied literature, poetry, philosophy, rhetoric, and more with the goal of spreading those abilities throughout society to create a purer, more moral community that invited everyone’s participation. Most humanists were Christians, and their goal was generally to reform and purify the Church rather than doing away with it. According to Erasmus, Thomas More was a man “born for friendship”; his convictions were deep, but he was good company, a true friend, and a beloved father.
In addition to his literary abilities, More’s skill as a public servant was exceptional, as was his willingness to stand firm for his beliefs. He got into serious conflict with Henry VII, but after that king’s death More’s effectiveness, skill, and loyalty earned him the notice of the new king. Henry VIII continued pressing him into service — twice as an ambassador, on the Court of Requests, and then as his advisor and Lord Chancellor. More than once, More tried to reject these offices and assignments, but that humbleness seems only to have brought him nearer to Henry VIII’s good graces.
But those religious beliefs and moral convictions brought him into conflict with his ruler. More was a very devout Catholic, above and beyond what we see in the play. In his public life as Lord Chancellor, he spent a great deal of his time persecuting those he considered to be heretics. In his private life, he had a chapel built at his home and could often be found praying there. Some of his most devout practices he kept secret — for example, in his biography, his son-in-law William Roper says More wore a hairshirt, an uncomfortable shirt worn under regular clothes as an act of penance, which only Margaret knew about.
It was this adherence to his religion, and to the moral center it provided him, that proved to be More’s earthly downfall. He refused to publicly accept King Henry VIII’s assumption of the pope’s place at the head of the Church of England, and no enticement or punishment could convince him to change. But though his steadfast beliefs ended his life, they brought him immortality: More was made a saint in 1935. He is the patron saint of politicians, lawyers, civil servants, public servants, and court clerks — those who should have their own firm personal ethics and unshakeable sense of self.
More on Lantern Searchlight: Artist Interview: In the Rehearsal Room with Frank X — The MAN FOR ALL SEASONS actor on playing Sir Thomas More, channeling a complex historical figure, and what the play can teach us today
Lantern Theater Company’s production of A Man for All Seasons is onstage March 10 through April 9, 2022, at Plays & Players Theatre. Visit our website for tickets and information.
