Thomas More's Utopia stands out as one of the most striking political works ever written. Composed specifically as a response to Henry VIII's break with Rome, the book meditates on the perfect society, while indirectly critiquing the political and social ills of Tudor England. Containing thoughts on religious pluralism, a welfare state and women's rights, More's book was well ahead of its time, already hinting at later theories on communism and capitalism centuries before Marx, Engels and Smith.