Tuesday, September 14, 2010
The adventure in many different ways...
After reading The Left Hand of Darkness (123-220), I have a new little outlook on how I feel about the book. I have to say I had a real hard time enjoying the book in the beginning but now I have been enjoying the book a bit more. I like a story with a lot of action that keeps me interested and until this section I just read , I wasn't really enjoying the reading. I enjoy the two main characters Genly Ai and Estraven/Harth. I think they both bring something interesting to the book. I like that they are completely different characters and begin to understand each other a bit more. I think it is so interesting that it shows both sides of their thoughts as a narrator, but at times got very confusing on who was talking. I at times would be reading and thought it was one character, when actually it was the other one. Something would not make sense and then I had to kind of think back what I had just read and that can get a bit annoying. I now find it very cool that Genly Ai and Estraven are on similar thought processes, or at least for this moment in the book. I am much more involved and excited to see what happens on their journey back to Karhide. I like the fact that they have almost become somewhat friends and now look out for each other. Estraven I think is really trying to provide and help Ai in surviving and making their way back, hopefully for all the right reasons, and not selfish ones. The only other little complaint I have about The Left Hand of Darkness, is that many of the words are difficult and I don't understand the meanings. Yes, some words can be looked up but many the sci-fi vocabulary can be very confusing. Many of the names are so odd and sometimes similar, it at times left me wondering who that person was.
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I feel the same way, about how the story was a bit boring until now. I do enjoy the character Estraven. I find him very complex and interesting. When reading, I feel as though when they talk about this character, I read him as if he is a man and not a person without gender. Which can be annoying as well because you have to keep reminding yourself that he is not exactly a he or a she but then again Genly said that you can’t consider him as an it either. I do struggle with that just as Genly does throughout the book.
ReplyDeleteThe back and forth narrating is very confusing as well. Today I was reading and was becoming very confused because I kept forgetting that it was Estraven narrating not Genly. It was very frustrating and confusing.
It is interesting how Estraven and Genly are becoming “friends”. I put the word friends in quotes because, of what Genly was saying in chapter 15 about “what is a friend, in a world where any friend may be a lover...” (213). When he says this, it really makes you think about what kinds of relationships the people of Karhide have with each other.
The words in this book are extremely hard to read. Especially the names and planets. Sometimes I’m unsure which ones are names and which ones are planets. I also don’t understand where what place is and what connects. I need a character list and a map while I read so I can just keep track of whats what.
I agree with both of these statements as well. The beginning of the book is a little slow on the uptake but once it starts it's actually a fairly interesting story.
ReplyDeleteI also have trouble with deciphering whether it is Estraven or Genly that is narrating but it's usually not all that difficult to pick up on. And I like that they have both narrating, it gives us both sides to the story, both point of views when you normally would only get a sort of one sided story.
I was rather confused at the point of Genly being in prison, I didn't realize right off the bat that Estraven was the guard.
I think the gender issue for us is that man is normally seen as superior and like um...kind of the breadwinners so we automatically think of nongender specific items/people as being male. Even with inanimate objects I tend to think of them as male (my cars name is Chuck).
I also agree with Anna in terms of needing a map while reading this. I can't for the life of me figure out what is where.
I'm a little torn because everytime I think I start to understand what is going on she throws me for a loop.