The occasion of this blog post is the sad passing of the esteemed author Ursula Le Guin. While she wrote serious science fiction and fantasy for adults, her books are often discovered early by voracious adolescent readers. As a result, Dr. Bickmore’s YA Wednesday Blog wanted to honor her accomplishments.
To that end, I thought of the work of Margaret Ann Robbins. I know that she works from a feminist poststructual framework and has a deep interest in graphic novels, fantasy, science fiction, and popular culture. You just might find her at a Comic-Con event. Last summer, I heard her presentation at the CEE conference--we will include it in this post. Thanks Margaret
To that end, I thought of the work of Margaret Ann Robbins. I know that she works from a feminist poststructual framework and has a deep interest in graphic novels, fantasy, science fiction, and popular culture. You just might find her at a Comic-Con event. Last summer, I heard her presentation at the CEE conference--we will include it in this post. Thanks Margaret
Reading about the Life and Accomplishments of Ursula Le Guin
| Ursula Le Guin passed away on Monday, January 22, in Portland, Oregon, at age 88. The New York Times Obituary by Gerald Jonas (with contributions by Daniel E. Slotnik) acclaimed Le Guin as a writer who “ brought literary depth and a tough-minded feminist sensibility to science fiction and fantasy”. According to The New York Times Obituary by Jonas, Le Guin was highly prolific and wrote more than 20 novels, a dozen books of poetry, over 100 short stories, seven essays, 13 children’s books, and five volumes of translation. She won the Hugo and Nebula awards for both The Left Hand of Darkness in 1970 and The Dispossessed in 1975, which also won the Locus Award. The Guardian obituary described The Dispossessed as “intellectually formidable,” and it conveyed through fiction “her speculations about human nature and nurture.” Le Guin gained a Twitter presence in 2016 for refusing to blurb an all-male science fiction anthology. Throughout her work, Le Guin addressed sociocultural and sociopolitical issues that were ahead of her time, and her work warrants continued study. |  |
The Lasting Influence of Ursula Le Guin: Novels Worth Exploring and Parallel YA/Comic Texts
| Literature becomes timeless when its themes are still relevant many years after publication. Ursula Le Guin has multiple works of speculative fiction that are worthy of study in classroom settings. My colleague Jennifer J. Whitley and I wrote a book chapter for the book Fantasy Literature: Challenging Genres (Critical Literacy Teaching Series: Challenging Authors and Genres) on teaching Fledgling by Octavia Butler and The Left Hand of Darkness by Le Guin in secondary classrooms, with feminist poststructuralism as the primary theoretical perspective in mind. Please read our book chapter for more theoretical and pedagogical ideas on these and other speculative fiction works.  |   |
As aforementioned, The Left Hand of Darkness won the Hugo and Nebula Awards in 1970. I believe young people today would be interested in the novel for the following reasons:
The timely messages about immigration and respect for people from other lands: When Genly Ai comes to the planet Winter, or “Gethen,” to try to convince the people of the planet to join the government system of Ekumen (83 planets total), he has to learn to respect the customs of a land that is different from his. The idea of trying to persuade a planet to join a larger governmental body is akin to the imperialistic nature of the United States and other major world powers: We believe our ways of ruling to be superior and want to obtain more power by having more territories under our rule, or at least under or sphere of political influence. Students could have thoughtful discussions about how imperialism, both in literature and in current events, should be re-examined to avoid the danger of “us” and “them” binaries regarding foreign and political events.
The timely messages about immigration and respect for people from other lands: When Genly Ai comes to the planet Winter, or “Gethen,” to try to convince the people of the planet to join the government system of Ekumen (83 planets total), he has to learn to respect the customs of a land that is different from his. The idea of trying to persuade a planet to join a larger governmental body is akin to the imperialistic nature of the United States and other major world powers: We believe our ways of ruling to be superior and want to obtain more power by having more territories under our rule, or at least under or sphere of political influence. Students could have thoughtful discussions about how imperialism, both in literature and in current events, should be re-examined to avoid the danger of “us” and “them” binaries regarding foreign and political events.
Sexuality issues: In this novel, the human-like beings of Gethren are androgynous have the option to choose to be male or female at the height of their sexual cycle. This idea could spark discussions about assigned biological sex versus gender and how society could be different if people had more choice and freedom in both regards. As gender neutral bathrooms are becoming more common and gender binaries continue to be questioned, it is important for students to develop empathy for people who do not fit typical male/female binaries for gender performance and sex
Accessible language and short chapters: This novel, although not originally marketed as a Young Adult literature narrative, has chapters that are engaging with a solid mix of dialogue and description and that, with their fast pace, very much mimic the style of many YA speculative fiction novels I have read. I felt as though I was watching a movie while recently re-reading this novel and believe that young people would be drawn to the writing style.
Outstanding world building: For the Hainish Cycle, the larger series of which this novel is a part, Le Guin created new planets and a whole entire new universe. The planet of Winter/Gethren is so beautifully described, I as a reader felt like I was there with the characters. It serves as an outstanding mentor text to students and aspiring writers in that regard, particularly those interested in speculative fiction universes.
Social issues being addressed: Jennifer J. Whitley and I elaborated on this idea in our chapter, and I also did so in my dissertation work. A trend I have noticed in this genre is that authors tackle social issues in alternative universes, such as race, gender, sexuality, and politics, that would be more difficult to do in realistic fiction for fear of hitting too close to home. When reading about these “tough topics” in other worlds, we as readers can remove ourselves enough to look at the social justice issues with a degree of objectivity, yet the resultant empathy building can apply to current world situations.
Parallels to other YA Texts: Many YA novels and comics have similar themes to this novel, such as Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell, Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins, and the new Ms. Marvel series by G. Willow Wilson. As I explained in my 2017 CEE Presentation, the characters in these narratives do not fit all of society’s expectations of their assigned gender and race, and through coming-of-age narratives, they achieve a sense of empowerment to be who they really are. The covers of these works are interesting to study in connection with discussions about race, gender, and political status in society.
As follow-up, I now plan to read the first book of Le Guin’s Earthsea series known as A Wizard of Earthsea (1968). The next two novels of the series are The Tombs of Atuan (1970), and The Farthest Shore (1972), followed by the later novels Tehanu (Book 4 in the Earthsea series), Tales from Earthsea (a collection of shorter narratives) and The Other Wind (the final Earthsea novel). These novels are considered important in children’s and YA literature circles. Many of them won awards, including both the Nebula Award and the Locus Award for Tehanu, the National Book Award for The Farthest Shore, and the World Fantasy Award for The Other Wind, among other accolades. I look forward to exploring these stories and hope that other educators and librarians will do the same, in order to honor Ursula Le Guin’s important legacy.
Back to Dr. Bickmore again. I have known Margaret for awhile, but had the chance to hear her presentation at the 2017 CEE conference. In her talk she mentioned some of the books that she included in this blog post. The title was Analyzing and Complicating Young Adult Literature: Characters Who Challenge Traditional Gender Roles. She has graciously allowed me to include the powerpoint of her presentation below.
Margaret A. Robbins has a PhD in Language and Literacy Education from The University of Georgia. She is a National Writing Project Teacher-Consultant and a Teacher-Scholar at Mount Vernon Presbyterian School in Atlanta, Georgia. She has peer-reviewed journal articles published in The ALAN Review, SIGNAL Journal, Gifted Child Today, Social Studies Research and Practice, and The Qualitative Report. She also has a chapter in the book Fantasy Literature: Challenging Genres, Edited by Mark A. Fabrizi, and a chapter in the recently published book Comic Connections: Reflecting on Women in Popular Culture, Edited by Sandra Eckard. Her research interests include comics, Young Adult literature, fandom, critical pedagogy, literacy communities, and writing instruction/practices. She can be contacted at: mar.writer@gmail.com
RSS Feed