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The Dispossessed: A Novel (Harper Perennial Olive Edition) Paperback – September 29, 2015

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Ursula K. Le Guin (Author)
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Ursula K. Le Guin (Author)
4.3 out of 5 stars 285 customer reviews
Book 5 of 7 in the Hainish Cycle Series
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Product Details

  • Series: Harper Perennial Olive Edition
  • Paperback: 400 pages
  • Publisher: Harper Perennial; Limited edition (September 29, 2015)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0062421077
  • ISBN-13: 978-0062421074
  • Product Dimensions: 4.5 x 1 x 7.1 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (285 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,323 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Top Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsPolitics and corruption on two contrasting worlds
By D. Cloyce Smith on May 30, 2003
Format: Mass Market Paperback
"The Dispossessed" is a utopian/dystopian novel along the lines of "Brave New World" or "The Handmaid's Tale." Although Le Guin creates an atmosphere of tension, there's not a lot of action (at least for the first three quarters of the book)--so readers expecting more "traditional" science fiction or surprising plot twists will certainly be dissatisfied. This unashamedly political novel portrays one character torn between two worlds with disparate political and economic systems, and it focuses on the highlights and the inadequacies of both those worlds.

Shevek, an unappreciated scientist from Anarres, travels to Urras, whose inhabitants seem to value better his discoveries in physics. Annares, the home of the "Dispossessed," is a 175-year-old rebel outpost of anarchists who have established "an experiment in nonauthoritarian communism" that emphasizes community and cooperation and who must make the most of the limited resources on their desert planet to avert the constant threat of starvation. Anarres's mother planet, Urras, boasts a triumvirate of strong and repressive governments, the most important of which is the capitalist government of A-Io with its impressive wealth, cultural accomplishments, and scientific achievements.

But all is not what it seems on either world. Le Guin alternates chapters detailing Shevek's early years of disenchantment on his lawless but peaceful native planet with chapters describing his growing realization that Urras has a significant "dispossessed" population as well. The novel is, of course, deeply informed by the Cold War--it was published in 1974--and each world features its own "ambiguous utopia" (the book's subtitle).Read more ›
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5.0 out of 5 starsOne of Le Guin's best and a must-read sci-fi classic
By Joanna D. #1 HALL OF FAMETOP 10 REVIEWERVINE VOICE on February 22, 2001
Format: Mass Market Paperback
A group of revolutionaries settles the dry desert moon of a rich, Earthlike planet. Their founding philosophy is based on the writings of Odo, a woman who never sees the moon colony created on her ideas, which are based loosely on pure Communism. Odonianism tries to change human nature, by inculcating the principle of sharing and non-possesiveness, with the interesting twist of removing the possessive word "mine, ours" from language and substituting "the one I use." The Odonians create a somewhat impoverished but vigorous society on the moon Anarres and for two centuries have been isolated from their Urras roots except for trade contact at the spaceport. In fact, Anarres is a mining colony for Urras and is left alone as long as valuable minerals are shipped back to the mother planet.
The Anarresti use a language created by a computer and using their philosophical beliefs. People when born are given a two syllable name from the computer. The society is free, all sexual activity is allowed as long as the partners agree. Marriage is not uncommon, but not the norm either. Children are raised communally, a bit like the first kibbutzim in Israel. Work is assigned from a labor pool with a computerized system of allocating assignments wherever they are needed. But anyone can choose any occupation that suits them, and is free to refuse a posting, or even work at all. Once in every ten days, an Anarresti participates in volunteer labor that's needed by the community. Only a sense of responsibility, taught from birth, a conscience, keeps everyone working for everyone else and free from "propertarianism" or the desire to accumulate possessions and wealth.Read more ›
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5.0 out of 5 starsThoughtful and compelling
By John S. Ryan on September 16, 2003
Format: Mass Market Paperback
Quick -- name three SF literary portraits of functional societies founded on principles of anarchism.
I come up with Eric Frank Russell's Gands in _The Great Explosion_ (" . . . And Then There Were None"), Robert A. Heinlein's Loonies in _The Moon is a Harsh Mistress_, and Ursula K. Le Guin's Anarresti in _The Dispossessed: An Ambiguous Utopia_.
Oh, there are a handful of others, notably James Hogan's _Voyage from Yesteryear_ (which was itself strongly influenced by Russell). But most of the rest are thinly disguised libertarian propaganda without a great deal of literary merit (though your mileage may vary).
Of these three, Le Guin's is in some ways the most compelling. In part that's because she's just such a fine writer. But it's also because she's probably the _least_ "ideological" of all the SF writers who have ever tackled this subject.
On Le Guin's somewhat Taoistic approach, each of the contrasting societies contains the seeds of the other, and she lets the reader see both their "good" and "bad" points. She clearly likes the Anarresti society (and on the whole it comes off rather better than its Urrasti foil). But she doesn't hesitate to show the reader some of its critically important drawbacks. Its childrearing practices, for example, recall Ira Levin's _This Perfect Day_, and its treatment of original thinkers (and their "egoizing") even recalls Ayn Rand's tub-thumpingly propagandistic _Anthem_.
In general, then, Le Guin is pretty well immune to the usual salvation-by-ideology claptrap. And as her subtitle suggests, her utopia really _is_ ambiguous. For her, people aren't "saved" by adopting the correct philosophical position or social principles.Read more ›
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsThis is an excellent read for anyone who enjoys looking at things from...

This is an excellent read for anyone who enjoys looking at things from a distinct social perspective. Read more

Published 15 days ago by Timothy Nott
5.0 out of 5 starsTwo worlds are better than one

I am reading all of the Nebula Award winning novels in chronological order. This is my 11th, the winner for 1975. Read more

Published 17 days ago by Melanie D. Typaldos
5.0 out of 5 starsDystopian Setting OP

The book jumps around a lot. All depends whether you like a linear story or one that's all over the place.
Dystopian worlds are the best though.

Published 1 month ago by Naruto
5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

An excellent, thought-provoking and intriguing book.

Published 1 month ago by Steve W. Heim
5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

A

Published 1 month ago by Pink C.
5.0 out of 5 starsThe Dispossessed The Magnificent New Epic of An Ambiguous Utopia by...

The two thought lines of politics with very different forms of government created here by the author are incredible enough to create two wonderfully believable worlds, especially... Read more

Published 1 month ago by Marie
5.0 out of 5 starsGood

Good book, condition as expexted

Published 1 month ago by Julia
5.0 out of 5 starsThis is a beautifully well-crafted story

This is a beautifully well-crafted story. Loved it.
Got to the end and actually flipped to the first page and started reading again. I love everything about this book.

Published 2 months ago by A Reader
5.0 out of 5 starsUnbelievable and incredible

This book will make you think differently about anarchy, relationships, physics, economics, international reations, and individuality among many other subjects. Read more

Published 2 months ago by Jordan Denning
5.0 out of 5 starsRead Le Guin - that is all I have to say

Ursula K. Le Guin is a highly skilled writer and her imagination knows no bounds. This story is also relevant to today's world.

Published 2 months ago by Talor

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