Blog 5

Seeing as we have finished The Left Hand of Darkness, I figured that it would be best to describe the book as a whole and what has been learned so far.

In the beginning of the book, I was always left confused and scratching my head. I could never understand who these people were, where they were from, their gender or the way they reproduced. I'm sure that I didn't understand crap about this book up until about Ch. 12 or 13 when Genly was sent to the Pulem Farms. 

Since then, I've been able to take the book in  and understand what I have read. Part of me even enjoyed reading the book, much to my dismay. I think it took a while for me to understand what was happening because I wasn't enjoying the book. So once I got into it, it was much easier for me to take in the knowledge.

The question that keeps popping up in my head is whether or not Estraven and Genly have romantic feelings for each other.  They did spend at least 3 or 4 months together and were each other's only company. Also, when Estraven was in the tent, the readers could definitely  feel the sexual tension happening between the two. Maybe it's a matter of whether or not either of them would react on their feelings for the other. It's possible. When Estraven dies, we can see the sadness in Genly while reading Ch. 20. It seems like someone ripped part of his life off of his body when Estraven was shot and killed in front of his eyes. 

I also find it strange that the King decided not to immediately declare Estraven a non-traitor. One would think that once someone has brought a guest back to where  he was staying that he would be marked a hero. Or even the fact that he helped bring the other Ekumen down from their space craft. Without Estraven, none of what happened in chapter 20 would have happened at all. It would only be fair that Estraven is given credit, or at least have him being called a traitor stopped.

Another question that seems to be on my mind is Genly's sexuality. I can't decide if he's gay or not. He has been surrounded by "males" for quite some time and he says that it's weird for him to hear and see a female. Also, whether or not his feelings for Estraven play a role in sexuality. Even Faxe, when we see Genly "checking" him out. 

I guess my questions are answered according to how people read the book and some people may agree or disagree, but still. It would be nice to know what Le Guin wanted to her readers to take in as she wrote this book.