It is good to have an end to journey towards; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.
Ursula K. Le GuinRead
If women had power, what would men be but women who can't bear children? And what would women be but men who can?" "Hah!" went Tenar; and presently, with some cunning, she said, "Haven't there been queens? Weren't they women of power?" "A queen's only a she-king," said Ged. She snorted. "I mean, men give her power. They let her use their power. But it isn't hers, is it? It isn't because she's a woman that she's powerful, but despite it.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote explores gender power dynamics and questions the true nature of power in relation to gender.
In this quote, Ursula K. Le Guin delves into the complexities of gender and power, suggesting that power is often a construct defined by societal norms. Through the dialogue between Tenar and Ged, Le Guin highlights the idea that even when women attain positions of power, such authority is frequently contingent upon the acceptance and support of male counterparts. The underlying message challenges the essence of power and its true ownership, raising critical questions about gender roles and equality.
Themes
GenderPowerEqualitySocietyRoles
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used in a discussion about women's rights and gender equality at a conference.
More from Ursula K. Le Guin
All quotes →In reading a novel, any novel, we have to know perfectly well that the whole thing is nonsense, and then, while reading, believe every word of it. Finally, when we're done with it, we may find - if it's a good novel - that we're a bit different from what we were before we read it, that we have changed a little... But it's very hard to say just what we learned, how we were changed.
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Reason is a faculty far larger than mere objective force. When either the political or the scientific discourse announces itself as the voice of reason, it is playing God, and should be spanked and stood in the corner.
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The only thing that makes life possible is permanent, intolerable uncertainty; not knowing what comes next.
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We read books to find out who we are. What other people, real or imaginary, do and think and feel... is an essential guide to our understanding of what we ourselves are and may become.
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When he found that the administrators were upset, he laughed. “Do they expect students not to be anarchists?” he said. “What else can the young be? When you are on the bottom, you must organize from the bottom up
Ursula K. Le GuinRead
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