I just finished the third book of Earthsea trilogy. Its the middle of the day, Im in a bus, and I cry while reading the last pages. Its so beautiful, so different from anything Ive ever read, it feels so real, and yet so distant, like a dream. LeGuin is an incredible writer, I cant wait to read Tehanu.
So I just got done with my reread of book three of Earthsea and for some reason I find myself strangely attached to one of the minor characters of the previous book, Penthe. I felt pity for her but I also found her quite entertaining. I was just wondering if she showed up again, since it's been a while since I've read the entire thing.
I recently finished reading A Wizard of Earthsea and I absolutely loved it. It was a completely different journey than what I expected, but I enjoyed all of it. Ged is a really amazing character, his growth is one of the best arcs I've read yet. I also throughly loved the magic and world, mysterious enough to feel magical while still getting into enough detail to feel real and engaging.
Notice. Please don't be aggressive if something I ask or say seems silly or unpleasant. If so, it's genuine ignorance, and I'd appreciate any corrections. I'm somewhat unfamiliar with these topics.
When I first read The Dispossessed, in the episode with Shevek and Vea, I didn't think about abuse. I admit that was partly because I was somewhat absorbed in other parts of the novel (and I admit I was more focused on Shevek's drunken and confused experience than on his actions).
Then I came across this forum and saw that it was described as attempted sexual abuse. I looked it up again and I think I understand why they say that; I think they're right, although it still bothers me. I'm not sure why (maybe I'm justifying Shevek because he was drunk?). I wanted to talk about it, listen, and understand. Perhaps expand on it to other works.
I recently read A Man of the People (Four Paths to Forgiveness) and I was disgusted by a certain scene near the end. Reading Ursula's comments about Tehanu, I seem to recall her mentioning that the men who tried to enter Ogion's old house were trying to abuse Tenar and/or Tehanu, something that didn't occur to me when I read the novel.
I'm not trying to trivialize anything; I simply want to hear other opinions, both regarding The Dispossessed and Ursula's work in general. Thank you for your understanding.
Just finished The Telling and one thing bothered me very much: Since the Ekumen is active, I assume we are in the timeline after "The left hand of darkness" and consequently after "The City of Illusions".
In the city of Illusions, we see Earth after at least 12 centuries of Shing rule and there is no memory of old Terra.
However in The Telling, it seems Earth is at a state of maybe a couple of hundred years after present time as there are infinite references to different cultures and literature and cities (Vancouver?!!).
What do you think the reason for this was? Le Guin just didn't care about continuity and wanted to place this novel in this timeline?
I've loved Estarriol since the first time I read it. I mean, I identify more with Ged (a foolish boy who grows into a good man, albeit still a fool), but Estarriol is my aspiration, the friend I want to be.
Since Roke School, he looked after and helped Ged, even though he was somewhat foolish. And although accompanying Ged on his crusade was probably a bit irresponsible toward his people, as a friend he's unbeatable—that loyalty, courage, and prudence. I love him. The fact that Ged (and Ursula herself) thought of him in his final days is both beautiful and a little sad, because I would have loved to see him one more time, perhaps accompanying Ged to the dead world in The Farthest Shore, or visiting him during Tehanu or The Other Wind.
I just wanted to express my affection for Ursula's characters, one in particular. Any other expositions of beloved characters (preferably non-protagonists) are welcome.
>! have sex !<or was it self censorship?
I could see it going either way.
They knew each other briefly in the late 90s
Just read the chapter. Here is a draft.
I’m thinking of reading Le Guin for the first time. My reading time is quite limited so I’d like to know what people love about her writing? Which book would you suggest starting with? I like books that raise hard moral questions and let me work them out the implications for myself and a friend suggested this author. TIA
Welcome to the /r/ursulakleguin "What Le Guin or related work are you currently reading?" discussion thread! This thread will be reposted every two weeks.
Please use this thread to share any relevant works you're reading, including but not limited to:
Books, short stories, essays, poetry, speeches, or anything else written by Ursula K. Le Guin
Interviews with Le Guin
Biographies, personal essays or tributes about Le Guin from other writers
Critical essays or scholarship about Le Guin or her work
Fanfiction
Works by other authors that were heavily influenced by, or directly in conversation with, Le Guin's work. An example of this would be N.K. Jemisin's short story "The Ones Who Stay and Fight," which was written as a direct response to Le Guin's short story "The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas."
This post is not intended to discourage people from making their own posts. You are still welcome to make your own self-post about anything Le Guin related that you are reading, even if you post about it in this thread as well. In-depth thoughts, detailed reviews, and discussion-provoking questions are especially good fits for their own posts.
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So, I was reading up on Gnostic motifs in "Shōjo Kakumei Utena" (as one does) and I found an interesting tidbit about Herman Hesse's "Demian". I've never read it, but, from what I gather, a recurrent theme in it is the idea that light and shadow shouldn't oppose each other, but rather complement each other. And one of the examples that it uses to illustrate that is the Gnostic deity Abraxas, who embodies both holy and evil. In the following line, that I believe will be recognizable both to readers of "Demian" and to viewers of "Shōjo Kakumei Utena":
>The bird breaks the egg's shell, the egg is the world. To break free, one must destroy a world. The bird flies to god, the god's name is Abraxas.
The bird is a sparrowhawk, which made me immediately think of Ged. Not only because of the climax of "A Wizard of Earthsea", but also because of all the dualities that permeate Ursula's work. I tried (not very hard) to find interviews and analyses commenting on possible connections between Ursula LeGuin and Herman Hesse but didn't find any. Does anybody know if this parallel was proposital on her part, or if they both happened to drink from the same sources, or if it was just a coincidence? I don't know a whole lot about the history of the symbolism of sparrowhawks, but I thought it was worth asking.
or do you think this was done to serve the tragedy of it?
https://archiveofourown.org/works/84435091
I hope this is not considered advertising since I am making no attempt at all to monetize this. The fanfic is free to read.
Thanks to members of this sub who contributed feedback to prior versions.
As the summary says, the story happens after the conclusion of the series and concerns the journey of a young witch to find out why women aren't allowed at the school on Roke. It has prominent feminist themes.
It obviously contains spoilers for the Earthsea books.
While I tried to be reasonably faithful to the canon, I feel compelled to offer the disclaimer that there are undoubtedly things in here to offend people who are religiously devoted to the series as it stands, or those who want Ged to be portrayed as an unambiguous hero. If you didn't like the last three books in the series, you will probably not like this fanfic. I didn't try to get things like the timeline exact.
In general, this was written for fun and I made no attempt to edit it to professional standards nor make everyone happy with it. At this time I feel done with it and don't plan to make any further edits.
Having said all that, I hope at least some people have half as much fun reading it as I had writing it!
