An Ecocritical Analysis of Ursula Krober Le Guin’s The Dispossessed

Abstract

Concern for environmental issues has always been a central theme in literature. Various eminent
creative artists have raised their concerns for the degrading and depleting resources of the mother
nature through their works of art. Ursula Krober Le Guin a prominent American science fiction
writer and winner of several literary awards has also highlighted the devastating effects of such
an obliteration. Le Guin has a deep sensitivity to nature, and is considered one of the remarkable
figures in the rejuvenation of utopian writing starting in the 1970s. Science fiction as a genre of
critical interrogation presents: 1. How things are, not as they seem to be 2. How they should be
for a better world to function effectively and 3. What if things are not changed accordingly.
Therefore science fiction not only highlights the issues relevant to humanity but also prophecises
where these issues can lead us to in near future if not addressed adequately. The selected textThe
Dispossessed: An Ambiguous Utopialike many of Le Guin’s texts is environmentally oriented
and depicts the oppression of mother nature by thankless humans. This paper seeks to
demonstrate a dual world of tantalizing ecotopia and repulsive dystopia in relation to the
functioning and management of both the worlds. Phenomenon of environmental justice and
environmental discrimination by analysing the functioning of two contrary planets Anarres and
Urras where the latter one is much like our planet Earth, thus signifying the urgency to respect
flora and fauna of mother nature in benevolent and thankful manner.
Keywords: Environmental justice, Sustainable development, Environmental equity,
Environmental discrimination, Utopia, Dystopia.