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'''"Winter's King"''' is a short story by [[Ursula K. Le Guin]], originally published in the September 1969 issue of ''[[Orbit (anthology series)|Orbit]]'', a fiction anthology. The story is part of the [[Hainish Cycle]] and explores topics such as the human effect of space travel at nearly the speed of light, as well as religious and political topics such as [[feudalism]].<ref>Spivack, Charlotte, ''Ursula K. Le Guin'', (Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1984), page 50.</ref> |
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"Winter's King" is notable because it was one of four nominees for the 1970 [[Hugo Award for Best Short Story]]. |
"Winter's King" is notable because it was one of four nominees for the 1970 [[Hugo Award for Best Short Story]]. |
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Le Guin revised the story, focusing on pronoun gender, for its inclusion in her 1975 short story collection, ''[[The Wind's Twelve Quarters]]''. |
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==Conception== |
==Conception== |
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==Plot== |
==Plot== |
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{{Expand section|date=July 2011}} |
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"Winter's King" tells the story of Argaven, a Gethenian who visits another planet. |
"Winter's King" tells the story of Argaven, a Gethenian who visits another planet. |
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Revision as of 22:12, 16 July 2011
| "Winter's King" | |
|---|---|
| Short story by Ursula K. Le Guin | |
| Land |  Vereinigte Staaten |
| Sprache | Englisch |
| Genre(s) | Fantasy |
| Publication | |
| Published in | Orbit, volume 5 |
| Publication type | Anthology |
| Publisher | G.P. Putnam's Sons |
| Media type | |
| Publication date | 1969 |
| Series | Hainish Cycle |
"Winter's King" is a short story by Ursula K. Le Guin, originally published in the September 1969 issue of Orbit, a fiction anthology. The story is part of the Hainish Cycle and explores topics such as the human effect of space travel at nearly the speed of light, as well as religious and political topics such as feudalism.[1]
"Winter's King" is notable because it was one of four nominees for the 1970 Hugo Award for Best Short Story.
Le Guin revised the story, focusing on pronoun gender, for its inclusion in her 1975 short story collection, The Wind's Twelve Quarters.
Conception
The story takes place on Gethen, the same planet shown in more detail The Left Hand of Darkness. It was in fact Le Guin's first vision of that place:
- "When I wrote this story, a year before I began the novel The Left Hand of Darkness, I did not know that the inhabitants of the planet Winter of Gethen were androgynes. By the time the story came out in print, I did, but too late to amend such usages as 'son', 'mother', and so on..."
- "In revising the story for this edition... I use the feminine pronoun for all Gethenians - while preserving certain masculine titles such as King and Lord, just to remind one of the ambiguity... The androgyny of the characters has little to do with the events of the story."[2]
Plot
![[icon]](/wiki/File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small} | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (July 2011) |
"Winter's King" tells the story of Argaven, a Gethenian who visits another planet.
Literary significance and criticism
Charlotte Spivack points out that the story's winter theme precedes and produces the story's androgeny theme.[3]
Susan Wood deems the story notable because of its scientific extrapolation of topics such as sub-lightspeed travel and alien biology, topics which "provide a framework for powerful psychological studies."[4]
It has been noted that ideas in "Winter's King" resemble Le Guin's earlier short story "Semley's Necklace", but with additional complications.[citation needed]
References
- Notes
- ^ Spivack, Charlotte, Ursula K. Le Guin, (Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1984), page 50.
- ^ Le Guin, Ursula, The Wind's Twelve Quarters, (New York, Harper & Row, October 1975), story introduction.
- ^ Spivack, Charlotte, Ursula K. Le Guin, (Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1984), page 48.
- ^ Wood, Susan, Ursula K. Le Guin, (New York:Chelsea House, 1986), page 186.
- Bibliography
- Bloom, Harold, ed. (1986). Ursula K. Le Guin (1st ed.). New York, NY: Chelsea House. ISBN 0877546592.
- Cadden, Mike (2005). Ursula K. Le Guin Beyond Genre: Fiction for Children and Adults (1st ed.). New York, NY: Routledge. ISBN 0415995272.
- Le Guin, Ursula (1975). The Wind's Twelve Quarters (1st ed.). New York, NY: Harper & Row. ISBN 0060125624.
- Spivack, Charlotte (1984). Ursula K. Le Guin (1st ed.). Boston, MA: Twayne Publishers. ISBN 0805773932.