A review by will_cherico
The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas by Ursula K. Le Guin

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This is a very powerful and very disturbing story. The writing itself is spectacular - the description of Omelas is one so utopian and vague enough to fit anyone's idea of paradise that the one "stipulation" for the city's happiness is such a jarring and shocking switch. The thrust of the story is an interesting philosophical question (is a utopia a utopia if someone has to suffer for it to succeed?) and it examines the way that many people seem to tolerate injustice if they're benefitting from it, seeing it as a "necessary evil." Le Guin describes those who turn their back on the city as walking towards a place even less imaginable to us than Omelas - implied to be one free of such inequality - and even though this destination is a mysterious and faint one, "they seem to know where they are going." That's powerful, and this story warrants rereading to see what else is happening in it because it feels like a very loaded vignette.