The ideas presented in this philosophical discussion raise an interesting question. Do they express opinions held by More? Critics differ in their responses to the problem. Hythloday indicates at the opening of the passage that these are views supported by some of their philosophers; but as the discussion progresses, he no longer refers to some thinkers and thus gives the impression that they are beliefs commonly held by Utopians. Clearly, Hythloday himself is in sympathy with those doctrines.
If we are to ascribe this philosophy to More, we must acknowledge that it is More the humanist, not More the strict Christian, who is speaking. The heart of this philosophy, though not necessarily anti-Christian, is predominantly Greek, hence pagan. "The chief aim of life is pleasure," they say. That bare statement, taken alone, sounds like pure hedonism or epicureanism. A further reading in the text reveals qualifications of that blunt assertion, making the doctrine more respectable — that is, avoiding depriving others of their pleasure in trying to gratify your own, and prizing the pleasures of the mind above those of the body. A more satisfactory label for this philosophy might be "naturalism." Tune your life to conform to the dictates of nature, which manifests God's plan. The corollary to that injunction is to receive joyously those experiences which nature has determined to be both necessary and pleasurable, whether at table or in bed, at a concert, or reading Greek.
