Mass Market Paperback, 400 pages
English language
Published Dec. 1, 1994 by Eos.
The story takes place on the fictional planet Urras and its moon Anarres (since Anarres is massive enough to hold an atmosphere, this is often described as a double planet system). In order to forestall an anarcho-syndical workers' rebellion, the major Urrasti states gave the revolutionaries the right to live on Anarres, along with a guarantee of non-interference, approximately two hundred years before the events of The Dispossessed.[2] Before this, Anarres had had no permanent settlements apart from some mining.
The protagonist Shevek is a physicist attempting to develop a General Temporal Theory. The physics of the book describes time as having a much deeper, more complex structure than we understand it. It incorporates not only mathematics and physics, but also philosophy and ethics. The meaning of the theories in the book weaves nicely into the plot, not only describing abstract physical concepts, but the ups and downs of the …
The story takes place on the fictional planet Urras and its moon Anarres (since Anarres is massive enough to hold an atmosphere, this is often described as a double planet system). In order to forestall an anarcho-syndical workers' rebellion, the major Urrasti states gave the revolutionaries the right to live on Anarres, along with a guarantee of non-interference, approximately two hundred years before the events of The Dispossessed.[2] Before this, Anarres had had no permanent settlements apart from some mining.
The protagonist Shevek is a physicist attempting to develop a General Temporal Theory. The physics of the book describes time as having a much deeper, more complex structure than we understand it. It incorporates not only mathematics and physics, but also philosophy and ethics. The meaning of the theories in the book weaves nicely into the plot, not only describing abstract physical concepts, but the ups and downs of the characters' lives, and the transformation of the Anarresti society. An oft-quoted saying in the book is "true journey is return." [3].
Anarres is in theory a society without government or coercive authoritarian institutions. Yet in pursuing research that deviates from his society's current consensus understanding, Shevek begins to come up against very real obstacles. Shevek gradually develops an understanding that the revolution which brought his world into being is stagnating, and power structures are beginning to exist where there were none before. He therefore embarks on the risky journey to the original planet, Urras, seeking to open dialog between the worlds and to spread his theories freely outside of Anarres. The novel details his struggles on both Urras and his homeworld of Anarres.
The book also explores the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis, that language shapes thinking, and thus, culture. The language spoken on the anarchist planet Anarres, Pravic, is a constructed language that reflects many aspects of the philosophical foundations of utopian anarchism. For instance, the use of the possessive case is strongly discouraged. In one scene, Shevek's daughter, meeting him for the first time, offers him "You can share the handkerchief I use,"[4] rather than "you may borrow my handkerchief", thus conveying the idea that the handkerchief is not owned by the girl, merely carried by her.[5] Cover of first paperback edition
The Dispossessed looks into the mechanisms that may be developed by an anarchist society, but also the dangers of centralization and bureaucracy that might easily take over such society without the continuation of revolutionary ideology. Part of its power is that it gives a spectrum of fairly well-developed characters, who illustrate many types of personalities, all educated in an environment that measures a person not by what he owns, but by what he can do, and how he relates to other human beings. Possibly the best example of this is the character of Takver, the hero's partner, who exemplifies many virtues: loyalty, love of life and living things, perseverance, and desire for a true partnership with another person.
The work is sometimes said to represent one of the few modern revivals of the utopian genre, [6] and there are certainly many characteristics of a utopian novel found in this book. Most obviously, Shevek is an outsider in Urras, following the "traveler" convention common in utopian literature. All of the characters portrayed in the novel have a certain spirituality or intelligence, there are no nondescript characters. It is also true to say that there are aspects of Anarres that are utopian: it is presented as a pure society that adheres to its own theories and ideals, which are starkly juxtaposed with Urras society.
However, the work is subtitled "An Ambiguous Utopia", and one of the major themes of the work is the ambiguity of different notions of utopia. Anarres is not presented as a perfect society, even within the constraints of what might define an anarchist utopia. Bureaucracy, stagnation, and power structures have problematized the revolution, as Shevek understands through the course of the novel. Moreover, Le Guin has painted a very stark picture of the natural and environmental constraints on society. Anarres citizens are forced to contend with a relatively sparse and unfruitful world. Hardship caused by lack of resources is a prominent theme, reflected in the title of the novel. Anarres citizens are dispossessed not just by political choice, but by the very lack of resources to possess. Here, again, Le Guin draws a contrast with the natural wealth of Urras, and the competitive behaviors this fosters. Le Guin's foreword to the novel notes that her anarchism is closely akin to that of Pyotr Kropotkin's, whose Mutual Aid closely assessed the influence of the natural world on competition and cooperation.[7] Le Guin's use of realism in this aspect of the work further problematizes — ambiguates — a simple utopian interpretation of the work. Anarres is not a perfect society, and Le Guin shows that no such thing is possible.
Uno dei libri più belli che abbia mai letto. Un capolavoro che parla di come una volta fatta la rivoluzione bisogna continuare a farla.
Pairs well with the tail-end (covering the 60s-70s counter-culture) of "A People’s History of the United States: 1492 - Present." On the more philosophical-end of SFF I typically read, but glad I read it!
cometín o erro de tardar demasiado en poñer a miña atención no contexto que enmarca a historia. Tanto esta como os personaxes son un vehículo para expoñer a comparación entre dous modelos económicos e sociais, tanto as súas eivas como fortalezas, os compromisos que requiren para a súa adopción e as forzas históricas que os impulsaron. Non é unha proposición pesimista, se non que apela á responsabilidade individual respecto do colectivo e as decisións que este toma para o conxunto da cidadanía. Escrito hai moitas décadas, pero certos diagnósticos respecto a Terra non fixeron máis que confirmarse, así que as consecuencias tamén son previsibles (isto si que da máis repelús). Moi interesantes tamén as reflexións sobre a realidade percibida en relación a experiencias pasadas e expectativas futuras, explicadas en relación á definición do tempo (o transcurrir das cousas, a secuencialidade que lle chaman na novela). Recoñezo que me costou …
cometín o erro de tardar demasiado en poñer a miña atención no contexto que enmarca a historia. Tanto esta como os personaxes son un vehículo para expoñer a comparación entre dous modelos económicos e sociais, tanto as súas eivas como fortalezas, os compromisos que requiren para a súa adopción e as forzas históricas que os impulsaron. Non é unha proposición pesimista, se non que apela á responsabilidade individual respecto do colectivo e as decisións que este toma para o conxunto da cidadanía. Escrito hai moitas décadas, pero certos diagnósticos respecto a Terra non fixeron máis que confirmarse, así que as consecuencias tamén son previsibles (isto si que da máis repelús). Moi interesantes tamén as reflexións sobre a realidade percibida en relación a experiencias pasadas e expectativas futuras, explicadas en relación á definición do tempo (o transcurrir das cousas, a secuencialidade que lle chaman na novela). Recoñezo que me costou moito sentir entusiasmo ao ler, tiven que esforzarme, pero creo que se debe ao tipo de novelas que leo, onde «pasan cousas», e aquí os personaxes explícanse moito a si mesmos. Non é demérito, tampouco o conto como algo negativo, só describo como me sentín ao ler.
Un libro bellissimo, che parla di anarchia più di quanto i testi anarchici criptici e volutamente astrusi alla comprensione abbiano mai fatto. La descrizione perfetta di una società capitalistica, patriarcale, guerrafondaia, classista in contrapposizione a chi ha effettuato la scelta di non volere più nulla di questo, di voler scientemente non possedere nulla di materiale o immateriale per poi in realtà condividere tutto. Certo nulla è perfetto e ci sarà sempre chi cercherà di esercitare il potere anche se in modo lieve, qualcosa scricchiola. Questo libro è entrato a far parte dei miei "libri fondamentali", quelli da dover leggere almeno una volta nella vita.
More plot than most of her books, it still turns back into a person on a journey. Shevek is on a journey from his anarchic home to a capitalist world. What propels him from a simple world of shared struggles? Why leave? When he arrives can he accomplish his goals? Is there something he can do that the people there couldn’t do for themselves? Will he be trapped and neutralized by the soft prison of luxury?
And how can he return home? What awaits an anarchist who is seen to turn his back on the revolution?
I love the deep thinking about language and the practice of mutual aid in a land with few resources. I love the true struggle to stay good when the droughts hit. And the challenge that centralization and coordination always brings. Everything is dealt with in indirect ways that paint larger pictures just out of …
More plot than most of her books, it still turns back into a person on a journey. Shevek is on a journey from his anarchic home to a capitalist world. What propels him from a simple world of shared struggles? Why leave? When he arrives can he accomplish his goals? Is there something he can do that the people there couldn’t do for themselves? Will he be trapped and neutralized by the soft prison of luxury?
And how can he return home? What awaits an anarchist who is seen to turn his back on the revolution?
I love the deep thinking about language and the practice of mutual aid in a land with few resources. I love the true struggle to stay good when the droughts hit. And the challenge that centralization and coordination always brings. Everything is dealt with in indirect ways that paint larger pictures just out of sight, beyond the edge of the book.
Highly recommend.
I wouldn't have described myself as an anarchist before this book; I would now. This book presents a form of society that has gripped me, and brought me hope. Truly excellent sci-fi.
Qué maravilla de libro... Me ha encantado, y me ha dado mucha pena terminarlo.
Muy importante el momento en que ha llegado a mí, ya habiendo leído muchos libros de la gran Úrsula, comprendiendo mejor su escritura y las obsesiones alrededor de los que gira.
Por otra parte el tema del libro, con esa fantasía valiente, reivindicativa y dispuesta a crear posibilidades de futuro, derribando muros con un enfoque humanista brutal. En ocasiones rozando el panfleto retador, poniendo el dedo en la llaga con precisión sobre muchos de los problemas que siguen igual o peor 50 años después de haber sido escrito.
También me encanta el cuidado que tiene con las palabras, en este caso evitando los posesivos y modelando una forma de pensar. En Terramar las palabras también son importantes. Es maravilloso notar cómo trabaja esto.
En definitiva, aborda muchos de los temas que me preocupan en una fantasía …
Qué maravilla de libro... Me ha encantado, y me ha dado mucha pena terminarlo.
Muy importante el momento en que ha llegado a mí, ya habiendo leído muchos libros de la gran Úrsula, comprendiendo mejor su escritura y las obsesiones alrededor de los que gira.
Por otra parte el tema del libro, con esa fantasía valiente, reivindicativa y dispuesta a crear posibilidades de futuro, derribando muros con un enfoque humanista brutal. En ocasiones rozando el panfleto retador, poniendo el dedo en la llaga con precisión sobre muchos de los problemas que siguen igual o peor 50 años después de haber sido escrito.
También me encanta el cuidado que tiene con las palabras, en este caso evitando los posesivos y modelando una forma de pensar. En Terramar las palabras también son importantes. Es maravilloso notar cómo trabaja esto.
En definitiva, aborda muchos de los temas que me preocupan en una fantasía propositiva, retadora y genial escrita, con una maravillosa filosofía taoísta de fondo.
Un 10.
The cover blurb for The Dispossessed makes it sound like a thrilling exciting narrative, filled with tension and action:
Shevek, a brilliant physicist, decides to take action. He will seek answers, question the unquestionable, and attempt to tear down the walls of hatred that have isolated his planet of anarchists from the rest of the civilized universe. To do this dangerous task will mean giving up his family and possibly his life—Shevek must make the unprecedented journey to the utopian mother planet, Urras, to challenge the complex structures of life and living, and ignite the fires of change.
But that's not what it is, and it's certainly not Le Guin's focus. This is clear in the way she avoids what might be the more dramatic elements of the story, or distances us from them in how they are portrayed. The story is bookended by two examples of that. The opening …
The cover blurb for The Dispossessed makes it sound like a thrilling exciting narrative, filled with tension and action:
Shevek, a brilliant physicist, decides to take action. He will seek answers, question the unquestionable, and attempt to tear down the walls of hatred that have isolated his planet of anarchists from the rest of the civilized universe. To do this dangerous task will mean giving up his family and possibly his life—Shevek must make the unprecedented journey to the utopian mother planet, Urras, to challenge the complex structures of life and living, and ignite the fires of change.
But that's not what it is, and it's certainly not Le Guin's focus. This is clear in the way she avoids what might be the more dramatic elements of the story, or distances us from them in how they are portrayed. The story is bookended by two examples of that. The opening sees Shevek - although we don't know it's him at this stage - leaving his homeworld and causing quite a bit of upset, seen from the viewpoint of a minor character who never reappears. And the book ends abruptly with no certainty of an outcome.
The capitalist society on the planet Urras that Shevek travels to felt too much like 1950s America rather than some far flung society thousands of years in the future. Other elements of the novel such as Shevek's unfortunate sexual dalliance, the possibility of defecting from the capitalist society to a nearby communist society, and getting caught up in a riot really don't amount to much and the plot as a whole is quite thin.
What I did like about the book was Le Guin's vivid portrayal of a functioning anarchist society on Shevek's homeworld Anarres. And Shevek himself was a likeable character.
The book is more concerned with the question of whether a truly anarchist society can survive, given the generally acquisitive nature of humanity, and during the story there is an indication that even this utopia will fall foul of the general tendency for all systems of government to move towards a hierarchy of control. Shevek struggles against this tendency: "We’ve been saying, more and more often, you must work with the others, you must accept the rule of the majority. But any rule is tyranny. The duty of the individual is to accept no rule, to be the initiator of his own acts, to be responsible. Only if he does so will the society live, and change, and adapt, and survive."
We never know if Shevek achieves what the cover blurb says. There's not much indication that the capitalist society will change because of him, though the anarchist society may survive if they take the example of his life to heart. But with no certainty about how the story ends, all we are left with is a political thought experiment.
very deep personal relationship with this book
