Sci-Fi Non-Review: The Dispossessed by Ursula K Le Guin

I just finished Ursula K Le Guin's Hugo and Nebula winner The Dispossessed. I did thoroughly enjoy the book, and despite some delays on my part, I read it fairly quickly.

My first experience with Le Guin's work was in my sci-fi literature class at EKU. One of the required readings was The Left Hand of Darkness. At the beginning of the class it was the reading I was least enthused to tackle, but halfway through the book was enthralled. I always wanted to go back and read it again but have since misplaced my copy.

During that semester I found a copy of A Wizard of Earthsea in the campus book store for 50¢ and snatched it up immediately. I consumed it in no time and absolutely loved the short book. Again, I somehow misplaced my (cheap) copy, though I recently found another copy almost as cheap.

So why am I refusing to review The Dispossessed presently? Much like The Left Hand of Darkness I feel I need a second reading to better understand the book. I rarely use study guides or commentaries to help me understand a book, and even if I do resort to the viewpoints of others to aid in my own understanding, I like to do it after my initial reading so as not to spoil my own "first experience" with the work. First Experience is something I tend to hold sacred in regards to fiction. I value my own impressions of the characters, my own visualizations of the settings and beings portrayed, over those of others. That's why I will always try to read a book before watching a film adaptation, if I think it is a work I will enjoy. I also think this is why I am strongly critical of subsequent portrayals.

There are a lot of things I like about the book. The nature of a dual-planet system is terribly interesting, the duality of the Cetians culture, the interplay between the Urrasti and Anarresti and the history behind the separation of the two is engaging and worthy of further understanding.

The one real thread that caught my attention regarded the shortcomings of the anarchist Odonian society. The anarchists left Urras to settle on Anarres, which is a much less suitable planet for sustaining life. While they founded their society on anarchist principles, Shevek—the book's protagonist—discovers that social constraints have evolved that increase bureaucracy, centralization and alienation. While the subtitle of the book is An Ambiguous Utopia, we see that Anarres is by no means the perfect world as it struggles with resource scarcity, environmental health issues and the growth pains of a new society.

So there you go, my non-review review. I promise, once I give it a good second reading and read some further commentary I will slam dunk this review for your yawning pleasure.



Awards:

Nebula Award for Best Novel 1974
Hugo Award 1975
Locus Award 1975
Nominated for the John W Campbell Memorial Award 1975