Thoughts on The Dispossessed

The Dispossessed presents a complex web of ideas, with the most prominent being the socio-political contrast between capitalism and anarchistic-communism. It's often claimed that the author treats both structures impartially, but I beg to differ. Given her sympathies, she has painted an idyllic picture of anarchistic communism and a scathing one of capitalism. The capitalist society she creates, with its extreme wealth at the top and abject misery at the bottom, seems not only morally repugnant but also rather implausible. Capitalism has long understood the need to keep the working class content, yet her model defies this principle.

In contrast, the anarchistic-communist model she offers, set in a harsh environment, appears almost too perfect for success. While she superficially acknowledges some difficulties, the real challenges seem to be glossed over. This model borrows heavily from the kibbutz movement in Israel, which has failed, making it hard to envision her ideal society thriving.

This is the only le Guin book I've read, and I found the style rather stilted and contrived. There were times when I struggled to distinguish the author's supposed dispassion from plain boredom. I stopped reading The Seducer to take on The Dispossessed, and this has made me appreciate the former's superior writing. The dull, tedious style of The Dispossessed is, in my opinion, not necessary to convey the poverty and utilitarianism of her utopian society. If she had commissioned Ray Bradbury to put her ideas into words, he would have created something beautiful without sacrificing the style she intended.

The book's linguistics also left me unimpressed. While I understand the need for an anarchistic society to create its own language and culture, I'm not convinced by the way it's presented. The establishment and development of the language seem rather inconsistent to me. For example, the lack of a word for "wife" yet the presence of a midwife seems odd. And while some may argue that inventing a language adds to the believability of the story, I believe good writing can achieve this effect without such artificial devices.

The structure of the book, with its split narrative, also gave me pause. I'm generally skeptical of such formats, as I feel they often don't hold up as well as a straightforward chronological layout. However, perhaps in this case, the book's complex themes and ideas require such a structure to be fully explored.
Despite these criticisms, I did find some aspects of the book to be quite thought-provoking. The author's philosophical considerations at a micro or personal level, particularly regarding Shevek's development, were interesting. While I found Shevek to be a rather dull character, his journey of self-discovery and the impact of his society on his personal growth were值得探讨. Additionally, the author's espousal of certain personal/interpersonal philosophies, such as the importance of absolute fidelity in a partnership, resonated with me.
Overall, while The Dispossessed has its flaws, it's still a book that值得一读 for those interested in exploring complex socio-political and philosophical ideas. It may not be a perfect work of literature, but it does offer plenty of food for thought.

\\"Τα φώτα των ήλιων διαφέρουν αλλά υπάρχει μόνο ένα σκοτάδι\\". This profound statement seems to convey a message about the diversity of lights (perhaps representing different perspectives or ideas) yet the existence of a single, unifying darkness (maybe symbolizing the challenges or obstacles that stand in the way). It could be seen as a hymn to personal freedom and the struggle (the hardest of all) against all the countless walls that will be found in front of it.

\\"You can't defeat ideas by fighting them. You defeat them only by ignoring them. Refusing to think, refusing to change. And that's exactly what our society does! Samuel uses you when he can - when he can't, he prevents you from publishing, teaching, even working. Right? In other words, he exercises authority over you. And where does this come from? Not from a disguised authority, such a thing doesn't exist. Not from his mind, nor does that exist. It comes from the inherent fear of the average human mind. It comes from public opinion. This is the authoritarian structure in which he participates and which he knows how to use\\".

This text appears to be a thought-provoking exploration of the concepts of personal freedom, the power of ideas, and the role of society and authority. It challenges the reader to consider how we respond to different ideas and how society often suppresses change and new perspectives.

Shevek will endure and be remembered as one of the most courageous figures not only in Science Fiction but also in the realm of literature itself.

The story poses a profound query to the reader: What is the true meaning of having genuine freedom? Is it something that truly exists? Is it free will? These questions are constantly explored throughout Shevek's arduous journey from Urras to Anarres.

Moreover, the book reveals to the reader the potential that sexuality is fluid. This can be inferred from the relationships Shevek has. He has a deep connection with his female lover, Takver, and also shares a special bond with his friend Bedap, who is gay.

As Shevek endeavors to discover all the answers in his pursuit of making humanity better, the book raises all these thought-provoking questions, challenging the reader to reflect on the nature of freedom, sexuality, and the pursuit of a better world.

The Dispossessed is a science fiction novel that tells the story of two planets, Urras and Anarres.

Hundreds of years ago, Urras sent settlers to Anarres to create an anarchist society. Since then, the two planets have developed separately, with their own languages and ways of life.

The book begins with Shevek, Anarres' greatest physicist, traveling to Urras to develop his revolutionary theory of Simultaneity. However, he soon discovers that he is a prisoner on Urras, and the possessive Urrasti want to exploit his theory for their own gain.

While the book is widely regarded as one of the greatest science fiction novels of all time, I found it to be a tedious read. The characters were uninteresting and one-dimensional, and the plot went nowhere for most of the book.

Despite these flaws, I still think The Dispossessed is a book worth reading. It offers a brilliant exploration of anarchist society and the differences between capitalist and anarchist mindsets.

In the end, I gave The Dispossessed 2.5 stars. While it wasn't a book I enjoyed reading, it did make me think and consider new ideas. I would encourage others to read it, even if they may not have the same experience as I did.

"We know that there is no help for us but from one another, that no hand will save us if we do not reach out our hand. And the hand that you reach out is empty, as mine is. You have nothing. You possess nothing. You own nothing. You are free."

The Dispossessed: A Thought-Provoking Exploration Beyond Utopia and Dystopia

The Dispossessed stands as a remarkable thought experiment, perhaps Ursula K. Le Guin's crowning achievement. It delves deep into a plethora of complex themes, including the contrast between anarchism-socialism and capitalism, freedom and slavery in various aspects of life, the struggle to perfect scientific theories, the nature of human corruption in political ideals, and the achievability of political utopias.

After reading numerous insightful reviews of this towering novel, it becomes clear that it has successfully integrated a story of big ideas with the moving tale of physicist Shevek. His journey in the arid anarchist society of Annares and later in the capitalist societies of Urras is both captivating and profound. The book also offers a powerful love story between Shevek and Takver, highlighting the challenges of living ideals in a less-than-perfect anarchist society.

What truly impresses about this book is its ability to remain engaging and thought-provoking despite a lack of traditional action and complex plot. It rewards the patient reader who is willing to contemplate the ideas presented and relate them to their own life experiences. By depicting a realistic anarchist society with its flaws and inevitable creep towards bureaucracy, Le Guin forces us to question the viability of such a model in the real world.

In conclusion, The Dispossessed is a masterpiece that goes beyond the genre. It challenges us to examine our own lives and political structures, and to think about the ideals that should drive society. While it may not provide easy answers or galvanize us to action, it pushes us to reflect on our assumptions and strive for a better understanding of ourselves and our world.

Some books have the remarkable ability to make us deeply contemplate life, and "The Dispossessed" is one such work. I first devoured it during a transatlantic flight a decade ago, and Le Guin, as always, had my brain functioning at a higher speed than usual. Back then, I was too awestruck to put my thoughts into words. However, after a second, more leisurely read over a couple of weeks, with time for my brain to pause, think, and truly appreciate what I was reading, I'm now ready to attempt it.

This novel is a prime example of anthropological science fiction, the kind that delves into big ideas and focuses on exploring society, making us confront uncomfortable questions that lack straightforward answers, just like in real life. It closely examines complex issues such as the nature of the relationship between individuals and the community, the stagnation of political systems (whether plutocracy or anarcho-communism), the tyranny of the majority, the politicization of life, and the control of information flow and thoughts.

Le Guin presents a slow, deliberate, and meticulously crafted story. There's no overwrought passion or unrestrained idealism. Instead, it's a contemplative novel that methodically explores ideas, rewarding the reader's patience. It doesn't offer the simple satisfaction of categorizing things as polarizingly good or bad, right or wrong. Instead, it presents a multilayered complexity that forces us to think deeply.

The titular Anarres is an ambiguous utopia of individualistic collectivism, rooted in scarcity but with an underlying egalitarianism. It's a harsh and unfriendly place, a sister planet of Urras, where anarchist settlers exiled themselves to create a world with no laws, more tolerance, and less oppression. However, even this seemingly anarchistic society is not immune to stagnation and the overwhelming force of judgmental uniformity and rigid dogma.
Le Guin shows the true ambiguity of this utopia, highlighting both its flaws and its beauty. Shevek, the protagonist, is a complex character who is both intelligent and naive, seeking fulfillment and the breaking down of walls that separate and imprison us all. His partnership with Takver is at the heart of the story, grounding him and giving him the strength to disrupt the status quo.
I don't fully agree or disagree with Le Guin's complex ideas in this book. She shows how an isolated and scarcity-rooted anarcho-communism can work, for better or for worse. What's important is that she makes us think about how things are and how they could be, the allures and dangers inherent in different systems, and how ideas can gradually subvert what we take for granted. For this, I'm always grateful. I keep coming back to this complex, intelligent, social, and humanistic fiction, and each time, I feel a small shift and change within myself, a refusal to stagnate.
In my personal ranking of Le Guin's books, "The Dispossessed" is second only to "The Left Hand of Darkness." This book may have aged since it was written, but it has never lost its relevance or its ability to engage and challenge readers. It's an essential read for anyone interested in science fiction, social commentary, or the exploration of complex ideas.

Ursula K. Le Guin, through the medium of science fiction, engages readers in a profound conversation about communism and capitalism. She skillfully weaves in philosophy and social science, such as Zeno’s dichotomy paradox, Zimbardo’s prison experiment, Durkheim’s concepts of mechanical and organic solidarity, and Ainsworth’s concept of insecure attachment. The novel is intellectually stimulating, to say the least. It follows Dr. Shevek, a physicist working on a “General Temporal Theory” that could enable instantaneous spaceflight. He leaves his communist planet, Anarres, where equality reigns and there are no police, soldiers, or wars. On capitalist Urras, he experiences a world of religious “propertarians” with gender inequality and a focus on ownership. On Urras, Dr. Shevek is a private guest at a university, where he resists testing students. As the story unfolds, we see that neither planet is perfect. Both have their flaws, like communism frustrating creativity on Anarres. The novel is filled with memorable quotes that offer insights into life, love, and society.

They say there is nothing new under any sun. But if each life is not new, each single life, then why are we born? This profound question lingers in the air as we explore the thought-provoking world of "The Dispossessed".

"The Dispossessed" is an intellectual book that delves deep into the examination of how an imaginary anarchist society would function. It presents a plethora of ideas regarding individual freedom, work, duty to society, possessiveness, relationships, socialization, and parenting. The author masterfully weaves these concepts together with a backdrop of fantastic world-building and vivid characterization.

This was not an easy read, yet it was well worth the effort. One doesn't have to be a die-hard sci-fi fan to appreciate it. All that is required is an open mind and a willingness to think for oneself. By engaging with this book, readers are challenged to question their own beliefs and assumptions about society and human nature. It offers a unique perspective that can expand our understanding and inspire us to envision new possibilities for a better world.

One of my favorite books of all time.

In a dystopian future, we follow the coming-of-age journey of Shevek, a mathematician who lives on Anarres, a moon where anarchists have been exiled and have formed a community that survives with little contact. Until, due to his work, Shevek decides to flee and explore other worlds. Everything that Le Guin writes is wonderful, but in this novel, which could have been so dry, it is filled with poetry and beautiful ideas, like the "brothers of name", names that are assigned randomly.

What is interesting about this book is how the author shows the result of a political ideology like anarchism, in a passionate and very moving way. Without falling into the trap of showing anarchism as a panacea (although clearly, she has her sympathies) and capitalism as the source of all the evils of society, we discover along with the protagonist, Shevek, all the information about these very different worlds: the anarchist planetoid Anarres (which has become a limitation for his work as a physicist, due to excessive bureaucracy, among other problems) and the main world called Urras. The novel is the description of a journey that will change both societies, which were completely ignorant of each other. Emotional and able to generate interest even in those least interested in politics.

"He has power over you. Where does he get it from? Not from vested authority, there isn't any. Not from intellectual excellence, he hasn't any. He gets it from the innate cowardice of the average human mind. Public opinion! That's the power structure he's part of, and knows how to use."

I have made up my mind that this will not be a comprehensive review. Instead, it will be a concise and focused comment.

The Dispossessed is one of those books that is not written to let you get lost in the story but to make you reflect on yourself. The purpose of this book is to make you think because it is an experiment.

Ursula K. Le Guin intended to write a dystopia. However, she decided to do so without the presence of any superior form of government, which, if it had been there, would presumably have been oppressive or abusive. As a fan of the dystopian genre, I find Le Guin's idea especially stimulating. It takes to the extreme a condition that we encounter in almost every dystopian novel and without which a totalitarian regime would not only be powerless but also completely unable to survive, and that is habit. When people obey so effectively, it is mainly because obeying has become a habit; to such an extent that no one notices anymore that they are, after all, obeying. So this is what Le Guin imagined: Let's envision a society where there is no law, no religion, and where the people's submission stems from an intimate and deeply ingrained desire to live in this way, to prioritize the society's requests (requests; never orders) over their own needs. And even more clever is that "society" is never truly recognized as a real entity since there is no true form of government - this people describes itself as anarchist. How could anyone think of rebelling against that?

The unsettling aspect of The Dispossessed is precisely this. Everyone believes they are doing only what they want, when they want, and how they want. When put like this, in a sense, it is all very similar to Huxley's Brave New World (one of my all-time favorite novels), only in reverse circumstances.

My main and significant issue with \\n  The Dispossessed\\n is that it often felt like a theoretical book or an essay, rather than a work of fiction. There are too many and too long descriptive passages - describing the ideas, of course - and too little about what all this means in practice. I prefer to see how ideas develop, not just be told how. In this regard, I loved Le Guin's writing style, but I do not agree with how she chose to write this book, which is why I did not enjoy it as much as I could have. I admit it is a bit discouraging. But it was truly worth a try.

3.5★

Do I Like This Book?

I'm truly not certain. Perhaps I ought to have adhered to the GR reading order, as in the beginning, I was extremely confused. However, this story of two distinct planets, as seen through the eyes of the intelligent and (originally) idealistic Shevek, parallels our own society. Communism or Capitalism? Which system is superior?

I especially like this quote:

  “My world, my Earth is a ruin. A planet spoiled by the human species. We multiplied and fought and gobbled until there was nothing left, and then we died. We controlled neither appetite nor violence; we did not adapt. We destroyed ourselves. But we destroyed the world first.

The entire impact of the book then took hold of me. Overall, this book was a far better read for me from 70% onwards. It made me reflect deeply on the state of our own world and the choices we make. The exploration of different social systems and their consequences was thought-provoking.

Read with The Women's Classic Literature Group.

  
   
  

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Shevek, a physicist hailing from the planet Anarres, has a burning desire to push forward his theories which are related to instantaneous communication across the vast expanse of light-years. However, he feels that he has reached a dead end on his home planet. The people of Anarres were once the residents of Urras who rebelled against a centralized government and established their own anarchist utopia on Anarres.

Despite facing protests from those who consider him a traitor, Shevek decides to travel to Urras, specifically to a land called A-Io. There, he is treated like a celebrity, given tours of the area, but soon discovers obstacles to the free dissemination of his theories.

Anarres and Urras view each other as moons and have an intertwined history, ironically regulated by a treaty. Anarres is an anarchist collective, while A-Io on Urras is an "archist propertarian" (capitalistic) society. Different flavors of government are represented by various characters from different regions of Urras. This book presents a dual timeline narrative, alternating between Shevek's life story and his experiences on Urras.

In this work, Le Guin delves into numerous topics such as forms of government, individual freedoms, ecology, power, language, the contrast between humility and egoism, and the debate between idealism and pragmatism. I believe it serves most effectively as a platform for contemplating these philosophical concepts. However, it falls short as an engaging story. The majority of the book is dedicated to world-building,描绘 each planet's way of life. Shevek's journey highlights the inherent strengths and weaknesses of different ideologies. The plot and the characters, with the exception of Shevek, lack depth. Nevertheless, it is undoubtedly a book for thinkers. It emphasizes the significance of knowing what should replace the methods we aim to change. It is recommended for those who enjoy analyzing the advantages and disadvantages of different social systems.