7 ms·
I am not trying to say that I was happy, during those weeks of hauling a sledge across an ice-sheet in the dead of winter. I was hungry, overstrained, and often
by macrael 9y ago
I am not trying to say that I was happy, during those weeks of hauling a sledge across an ice-sheet in the dead of winter. I was hungry, overstrained, and often anxious, and it all got worse the longer it went on. I certainly wasn't happy. Happiness has to do with reason, and only reason earns it. What I was given was the thing you can't earn, and can't keep, and often don't even recognize at the time; I mean joy.
—The Left Hand Of Darkness
- stcredzero 9y agoIf you like Sci-Fi that likes to speculate on the nature of sex and gender, also check out Octavia E. Butler's Xenogenesis saga.
- KingMob 9y agoButler's books made my skin crawl in the best possible way. I can't think of another author in SF who so thoroughly conveyed the feeling of rape to a man who'd never experienced it. Her books were potent brews of control, acceptance, family, and love. I keep hoping Kindred will be made into a mini-series one day.
- stcredzero 9y agoI'm from the 90's, partially. I hope your username is a reference to The Invisibles.
- teachrdan 9y agoWhen I was deep into The Invisibles, I looked up "King Mob" and learned the character was likely inspired by the real-life radical group of the same name from 60s-70s London.[0] 0 [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Mob https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Mob]
- KingMob 9y agoYep! Love that comic.
- Freak_NL 9y agoI always liked John Varley's take on those topics — in some of his short stories in particular (collected in The Persistence of Vision, The Barbie Murders, and Blue Champagne, amongst others).
- Maultasche 9y agoI loved that book. I read it once and never forgot it. I immediately remembered what part of the book that quote was from even though it's been 20 years since I read it.
- DrTung 9y agoMore than 40 years has passed since I read it, but I still remember that last part of the book, where he goes skiing down to the waiting guards. You know when you read the last sentence that it was the last sentence of the book, no need to turn another page.
- clebio 9y ago"We ask the hospitality of the Domain." Noise, buzz, confusion, alarm, welcome. "We came over the Gobrin Ice." More noise, more voices, questions; they crowded in on us. "Will you look to my friend?" I thought I had said it, but Estraven had. -- [The Left Hand of Darkness], Ursula K. Le Guin
- Sinidir 9y agoThat book was awesome and mind expanding.
- labster 9y agoThere's a lot in The Left Hand of Darkness, but the thing I got out of it is there are some things that can't be learned by being told the answer. I could tell you what the left hand of darkness is right now, but if you didn't read the book, you'd be none the wiser. Some things can only be taught through experiencing it yourself, or through the proxy of storytelling. Storytelling is the greatest tool we have for passing down wisdom to the next generation. Ursula LeGuin, we celebrate what you have taught us and will continue to teach us, and we mourn your passing.
- downvote_me 9y agohttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dispossessed https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dispossessed one of her best as well.
- drmpeg 9y agoDrawing to go with the quote. https://twitter.com/JessFink/status/955938603921702912 https://twitter.com/JessFink/status/955938603921702912