The Dispossessed | Social Concerns & Themes

The Dispossessed Social Concerns/Themes

The Dispossessed, which the author calls an "ambiguous Utopia,"more concerned with social and political issues than most science fiction. It is set in two contrasting worlds, a colony on the moon called "Anarres" ("without things"), and its neighboring planet Urras. The colony is an experiment in total socialization, with no private property, no class or rank, with even names of the new-born chosen by computer. This experiment in idealistic anarchy contrasts with the older society of Urras based on wealth and class.

A physicist from the austere colony, lacking in even basic resources, visits the capitalistic world in order to discuss the implications of his new temporal theory for all settled worlds. The result is not a clear-cut preference for either world but rather a thoughtful comparison of the weaknesses and strengths of each.

Along with the theme of capitalism vs. socialism, the novel deals with...
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