Reviews

The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin

debmo79's review against another edition

5.0

One of the most beautiful and profound books I have ever read. It's so full of ideas, of hope, of truth and humanity. It isn't a long book, but I spent a long time reading it, because there was so much to take in. One of those books that challenges you to change how you think about the world.

Slow to get going, but I find that's true for a lot of Le Guin's books. Worth persisting, though, as it always is with this author.

transguyrudy's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark inspiring mysterious reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I read this for a bookclub, and it was one that demanded that I take my time with it. It was arresting and challenging, imagining a world that felt palpable. People have told me that I would like Le Guin's books for years, and I regret that it's taken me so long to pick one up! I will definitely be reading her others.

somethinggood666's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful inspiring reflective fast-paced

smeef's review against another edition

5.0

Everyone should read this book. It's not a story to entertain but in true Ursula fashion, it's to make you think. Very eerie to read it almost 50 years after it was published and see a lot of similarities between the world of Urras and ours. As with all of Le Guin's books, this is a story to digest slowly, take in each word (none of which are wasted) and feel forever changed by its' wisdom.

isa_levogira's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional reflective fast-paced

5.0

sarapocher98's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

jlynaebennett's review against another edition

adventurous challenging inspiring reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

sidharthvardhan's review against another edition

5.0

“revolution begins in the thinking mind.”

Urras is very much like Earth of cold-war times – it has a state very much like United States ( A-Io) with a capitalist economy and another very much like the Soviet Union (represented by Thu), with an authoritarian socialism. There are also opposition left-wing parties in A-Io, one of which is closely linked to the rival society Thu, as were communist parties in the US. There is also a region very much like Southeast Asia - a third major, though underdeveloped, area called Benbili—when a revolution supported by Thu breaks out there, A-Io invades, generating a proxy war. The author takes her digs at both capitalism and socialism.

However some time before novel began, a revolution was started and as a result some anarchists traveled to and settled in a different world called Anarres, These anarchists come to create what might be thought of as Utopia, an idealist dream or future of the world– no property, no religion, no marriage, no necessity to work, no laws, no social hierarchies, no exams, no competition, no government, no taxes, no family.

One of the worst things that can happen to a revolution, as we know from animal farm, is that it might succeed. Revolutions strive for perfect societies – and even if perfect societies are once created, they soon get corrupted. A revolution should thus ideally be a never ending process to avoid such corruption.

“the will to dominance is as central in human beings as the impulse to mutual aid is, and has to be trained in each individual, in each new generation.”

And by corrupt, we here mean that society comes to claim too much from the individual:

“With the myth of the State out of the way, the real mutuality and reciprocity of society and individual became clear. Sacrifice might be demanded of the individual, but never compromise”

This happens in Anarres too. A society that was born of a change, a revolution now resists them. While common traditional tools of control are no longer present, yet pressure of social expectations is enough to control behavior of people. Any behavior even slightly undesirable to society is termed as ‘egoizing’ and seen down upon. Those who can't be controlled that way are institutionalized for mental problems.

The protagonist Shevek, a physicist, has life and problems very much like intellectuals of our own times - he is made to do a work he can’t enjoy, has to deal with a bureaucracy that he can’t understand, and literally no one understands his subject, his senior, although you can’t technically called him his seniors, want to have credit for his work etc. What makes it worse for him is that he can't complaint without being accused of egoising. In the end, he decided there is something wrong within his own society and in reality only perfect society can be one that rebels against itself and doesn't resist change. He wants to start a revolution. However his task is rather more difficult because what he is rebelling against is not laws or governments rather a way of thinking:

“An archist can break a law and hope to get away unpunished, but you can’t ‘break’ a custom; it’s the framework of your life with other people.”

________________

More quotes:

“the strongest, in the existence of any social species, are those who are most social.”

“A scientist can pretend that his work isn’t himself, it’s merely the impersonal truth. An artist can’t hide behind the truth. He can’t hide anywhere”

“Those who build walls are their own prisoners.”

“where there’s property there’s theft”

“They preserved autonomy of conscience even at the cost of becoming eccentric. “

“To make a thief, make an owner; to create crime, create laws."

“Suffering is dysfunctional, except as a bodily warning against danger. Psychologically and socially it’s merely destructive.”

“Wasn’t it immoral to do work you didn’t enjoy?”

eksathe's review against another edition

challenging reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

shkaff's review against another edition

5.0

Это однозначно одна из лучших книг, прочитанных мною в последние годы и я очень жалею, что не прочитал ее в подростковом возрасте. Сюжет в целом довольно простой: есть некоторая планета, в целом похожая на Землю по устройству и всему прочему. А на местной Луне люди устроили анархо-коммунистическое общество, и вот уже сотню лет не общаются с основной планетой. Мы следим за жизнью великого ученого, который работает над физической теорией. Завершение этой теории полностью поменяет расстановку сил не только на планетах, но и в других мирах. На своей луне он никому не нужен, поэтому он улетает на планету и наблюдает за жизнью местного общества, пытаясь закончить теорию.

Собственно, текст представляет собой философские зарисовки о жизни общества, о сексуальности и феминизме, о возможности (и опасностях) разных экономико-политического устройства, о роли личности и о природе знания и науки. Они встроены в сюжет очень искусно, мы переживаем за героев, повествование нелинейно - нам показывают разные этапы жизни героя. Но тем не менее, это остается философским трактатом. В нем, однако, не дается однозначных ответов, ни одна идея не выставляется верной или лучшей. Мы наблюдаем за развитием воззрений героя, но при этом нам показывают и его ошибки, что позволяет самим решать, насколько все эти его идеи адекватны. Этот баланс оказывается ужасно интересным сам по себе - просто отслеживать, как писательница умудряется не превратить текст в пафосный манифест анархизма (феминизма, капитализма, etc.), а сделать его многогранным и вдумчивым. И печальным.

Отдельно хочу сказать о том слое повествования, где ученый пытается понять, в чем смысл его занятий наукой, какова роль вдохновения, и как наука взаимодействует с обществом. Мне это было ужасно близко (и местами больно), и весь процесс научного познания описан по-настоящему здорово.

В общем, это лучший философский роман, который я читал - по крайней мере именно в форме художественного романа. Он не занудный, увлекательный, полный новых идей и смыслов. Его можно читать и как научную фантастику о других мирах, и как трактат-утопию, все зависит от желания и настроения. The Dispossessed - это образец того, как надо писать философский роман, золотой слиток в потоках того, что порою выдают за таковые (я на тебя смотрю, Роберт Пирсиг).