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lizzieer's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism
Moderate: Death, Misogyny, Mass/school shootings, and Classism
Minor: Child death, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail
reads2cope's review
4.0
Only the third Le Guin I've read, and the parts I disliked were the same things I disliked in Left Hand of Darkness - a strange focus on sex and too much time debating complex politics (in Left Hand) and physics (in Dispossessed)
I also was confused by the flashbacks at the beginning, possibly because I listened to it rather than having an eBook or physical copy. However, the way anarchism is described on Annares, and especially contrasted with the capitalism on Urras, was very interesting. I hated Shevek, which by the time he gets to Vea's party I hope the reader is supposed to do, but still, even that felt like a push too far. However, the last third of the book really paid off and the excitement of the ending might get me to continue the Hainish Cycle... we shall see.
I also was confused by the flashbacks at the beginning, possibly because I listened to it rather than having an eBook or physical copy. However, the way anarchism is described on Annares, and especially contrasted with the capitalism on Urras, was very interesting. I hated Shevek, which by the time he gets to Vea's party I hope the reader is supposed to do, but still, even that felt like a push too far. However, the last third of the book really paid off and the excitement of the ending might get me to continue the Hainish Cycle... we shall see.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Classism
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Abandonment
deathmetalheron's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I've only read The Ones Who Walk From Omelas for LeGuin so I knew that I had to read up on The Dispossessed when I was looking for a space opera.
It's hard to indicate how incredible The Dispossessed is. It is a dense book with a lot of references to various political movements and ideas but its nonlinear storytelling and characterization really makes it something special. Shevek the scientist slowly morphs into a man both cynical and idealist about the future of both his people and his ideology.
What really works about these worlds is that it critiques ideas of anarchist society without letting the "old ways" of capitalism and hierarchy exhibited in A-Io. LeGuin is careful not to simply wave away problems with equality-oriented ideologies.
I also appreciate two big "little things"--the cultural hallmarks of each society were both well-defined and treated with sincerity but still unique and alien. The bald culture of A-Io with the very hairy Anaressti, the depictions of parenthood in Anaressti society. I have to say as a new father, Sheveks excitement when it comes to seeing his daughter Sadik is very emotional and made me tear up a little bit--a resounding moment of humanity in an otherwise technical and rhetorical epic of a book.
And that's the core of the book--epic political treatise that is profoundly human.
It's hard to indicate how incredible The Dispossessed is. It is a dense book with a lot of references to various political movements and ideas but its nonlinear storytelling and characterization really makes it something special. Shevek the scientist slowly morphs into a man both cynical and idealist about the future of both his people and his ideology.
What really works about these worlds is that it critiques ideas of anarchist society without letting the "old ways" of capitalism and hierarchy exhibited in A-Io. LeGuin is careful not to simply wave away problems with equality-oriented ideologies.
I also appreciate two big "little things"--the cultural hallmarks of each society were both well-defined and treated with sincerity but still unique and alien. The bald culture of A-Io with the very hairy Anaressti, the depictions of parenthood in Anaressti society. I have to say as a new father, Sheveks excitement when it comes to seeing his daughter Sadik is very emotional and made me tear up a little bit--a resounding moment of humanity in an otherwise technical and rhetorical epic of a book.
And that's the core of the book--epic political treatise that is profoundly human.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism
Moderate: Rape
Minor: Death, Gun violence, Mental illness, Violence, Xenophobia, Excrement, Colonisation, and War
jelliclejules's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement
Moderate: Sexism, Xenophobia, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, and Classism
kemrick19's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Confinement, Gore, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
careinthelibrary's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
inspiring
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
The moral, political, and narrative complexity here. It was difficult to read, but a gift to me.
The Dispossessed is one that shines because of its message more than the plot or characterization. There are lots of long, philosophical conversations about ownership, capitalism, the inequality of gendered experience, and anarchism. The protagonist Shevek is a vessel for Le Guin's mind.
Ursula K. Le Guin was one of the best of our time and her intellect being captured in her numerous works is the only solace for our loss.
The Dispossessed is one that shines because of its message more than the plot or characterization. There are lots of long, philosophical conversations about ownership, capitalism, the inequality of gendered experience, and anarchism. The protagonist Shevek is a vessel for Le Guin's mind.
Ursula K. Le Guin was one of the best of our time and her intellect being captured in her numerous works is the only solace for our loss.
"You cannot buy the revolution. You cannot make the revolution. You can only be the revolution. It is in your spirit, or it is nowhere."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism and Classism
Moderate: Bullying, Death, Gun violence, Misogyny, Racism, Sexual violence, Violence, Police brutality, Mass/school shootings, Alcohol, and War
Minor: Confinement and Suicidal thoughts
imperatorprincess's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Le Guin remains decades ahead of her contemporaries and modern writers alike in the thought she puts into the societies of her fictional worlds. The dynamics of Urras and Anarres are fascinating, and the book turns an appropriately critical eye on both. Unfortunately, all this is weighed down by a true clunker of a story. Shevek is a boring and emotionally unconvincing main character; I didn't care about whether anything he did succeeded until the ending, which is far too late. (Also, he's a rapist. Fucking hooray.) Huge chunks are him farting around in past or present while the book vaguely gestures at really intriguing conflicts it could explore and then doesn't. The last 10% gets interesting just in time for the book to be over. The side characters are complete blank slates, so it's nigh-impossible to get attached to them either. I can see why some people love this book, because it does a few things exceptionally well. It's a very cool story to talk about in abstract--but actually reading it is a monotonous slog peppered with occasionally compelling scenes and disturbing misogyny that the book never calls out. Come for the ideas it posits and nothing else.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Violence, Police brutality, Mass/school shootings, and Classism
mr_engineer's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
An incredible thought experiment about an anarchist civilization able to grow and thrive on a planet's moon.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault and Police brutality
Moderate: Violence and Classism
edurnehaeon's review against another edition
challenging
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
immm going crazy i would give this 6 stars out of 5 if i could... this definitely makes le guin one of my favorite authors. this book made me think so much, and want to write too, but also think that i could never write anything as good as this. life changing. i kept thinking about it in the moments i couldn't read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Police brutality and Classism
Moderate: Sexism and Pregnancy
serena_hien's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Violence, Xenophobia, Vomit, Police brutality, Pregnancy, War, and Classism
Minor: Miscarriage and Misogyny