Conclusion 13

References 14

1 Introduction

The Left Hand of Darkness, written by a great female science fiction pioneer Ursula Kroeber Le Guin, was published in 1969, not only winning the Hugo and Nebula Awards for the best science fiction novel of the year, but also arousing an ever-lasting wave of discussion and research on the book from home and abroad.

1.1 An Introduction to the Author and the Book

Ursula K. Le Guin is one of the most important writers in American science fiction, and is known as the queen of the fantasy. The ideas of anarchism, environmentalism, feminism and Taoism are often hidden behind her works portraying futuristic or imaginary alternative worlds in natural environment, gender, religion, sexuality and anthropology. 

Ursula K. Le Guin, daughter of A. L. Kroeber (anthropologist) and Theodora Kroeber (author), was born in Berkeley, California in 1929. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Renaissance French and Italian literature from Radcliffe College in 1951, and Master’s degree in French and Italian literature from Columbia University in 1952. Later, Le Guin won a Fulbright grant and continued her studies in France from 1953 to 1954. After her marriage with a French historian Charles Le Guin, she returned to Portland, Oregon and continued her writing career. 

She is a prolific writer with works in multiple genres like science fiction, fantasy, essay, children’s literature and drama, etc. She developed her interest in literature because of her parents’ encouragement along with the influence of her parents’ dynamic friend group. Her first fantasy story was written at the age of nine, while her first science fiction story submitted for publication in the magazine Astounding Science Fiction at the age of eleven. Until now, she has published 7 volumes of poetry, 22 full-length novels, more than 100 short stories, 4 collected works, 12 children’s books and 4 translation works. The most famous fantasy of Le Guin is the Earthsea Cycle including A Wizard of Earthsea (1968), The Tombs of Atuan (1971), The Farthest Shore (1972), Teharu (1990), The Other Wind (2001) and Tales from Earthsea (2001), which was translated into 16 languages and was spread all over the world. Other awards she received including a National Book Award for Young People’s Literature, 5 Hugo Awards, 6 Nebula Awards, 19 Locus Awards, Pulitzer Prize, Kafka Award, Pushcart Prize, Newbery Honor, Margaret A. Edwards Award and Howard Vursell Award. In 2014, Le Guin was awarded the Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters by the National Book Foundation, a lifetime achievement award.

Among Le Guin’s science fiction and fantasy, The Left Hand of Darkness is generally regarded as one of her highest literary achievement. Le Guin received wide recognition for her novel The Left Hand of Darkness (1969).

This universe is now known as The Ekumen setting in the Hainish cycle starting with Le Guin’s first novel Rocannon's World (1966), and The Left Hand of Darkness now can be listed as The Ekumen 04. The protagonist is the envoy of Ekumen called Genly Ai, sending to the forbidding, ice-bounding planet of Gethen (or Winter). Besides the unbearable coldness, the most confusing thing is the absence of gender of Gethenians. The Gethenians, born androgynous, can become male or female during each mating cycle called kemmer, and this is something that humans find incomprehensible. Ai tries to convince the King Argaven XV of Karhide, to join the Ekumen, but the king refuses his invitation, at the same time exiles the Prime Minister of the kingdom, Estraven because of his support to Genly Ai. But Ai later is saved by Estraven, the two cross the Gobrin Glacier back to Karhide, finally reaches an understanding to become the best friends after meeting with great difficulties. Ultimately, Karhide joins the Ekumen with great efforts being done by them, though Estraven dies at last.  《黑暗的左手》女性主义解读当大男子主义遇上双性同体(2):http://www.751com.cn/yingyu/lunwen_55664.html