Thread: New Leaf January 2019 Discussion • The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin
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Old 02-13-2019, 02:32 AM   #109
gmw
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ralph Sir Edward View Post
Having read the thread (and the book twice in the past), I must disagree that The Left Hand Of Darkness was a "ground breaking" work. A major, (and superior writer) covered most of these topics in a S/F novel in 1959!

The book - Venus Plus X

The Author - Theodore Sturgeon.

A bit clunky? Yes, but no more so that Le Guin's work. The difference was the times it was released in. . .
It does not do to dismiss "the times it was released in" too lightly. Most "ground breaking" things only break ground when the ground is ready to be broken. Besides which, some of the previous posts agree that ground breaking is not precisely the right term anyway - more like ice-breaking (as in breaking the ice so the conversation could start). But the same problem arises, people will only start talking when they're ready. 1959 was too soon. 1969, it seems to me, was running a little late. Added to all that, I think Le Guin's gender - and her personality - plays a part in her work being the one chosen to open the discussion.
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