''The Eye of the Heron'' is a 1978

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

novel by American author

Ursula K. Le Guin Ursula Kroeber Le Guin (; October 21, 1929 – January 22, 2018) was an American author best known for her works of speculative fiction, including science fiction works set in her Hainish universe, and the '' Earthsea'' fantasy series. She was ...

which was first published in the science fiction

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically cate ...

'' Millennial Women''.

Plot introduction

''The Eye of the Heron'' is a science fiction novel set on the fictional

planet A planet is a large, rounded astronomical body that is neither a star nor its remnant. The best available theory of planet formation is the nebular hypothesis, which posits that an interstellar cloud collapses out of a nebula to create a you ...

of Victoria in a speculative future, probably sometime in the 22nd century, when the planet has been colonized for about a century and has no communication with

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's sur ...

. The

protagonist A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a st ...

is a young woman called Luz but the story is told in the third person and the reader sees events from the point of view of several different

characters Character or Characters may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''Character'' (novel), a 1936 Dutch novel by Ferdinand Bordewijk * ''Characters'' (Theophrastus), a classical Greek set of character sketches attributed to The ...

. ''The Eye of the Heron'' is usually treated as one of Le Guin's minor novels although it exhibits her characteristic prose style and themes.

Title

The title is a reference to a fictional animal on the planet Victoria which early colonists called heron because of some superficial similarities to Earth

heron The herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 72 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genera ''Botaurus'' and ''Ixobrychu ...

. The characters' encounters with these animals occur at moments of significant introspection, particularly when they are considering that which they perceive as alien, or other, in relation to themselves.

Plot summary

The planet of Victoria received two waves of colonists from Earth: first two prison

ships A ship is a large watercraft that travels the world's oceans and other sufficiently deep waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research, and fishing. Ships are generally distinguished ...

founding a

penal colony A penal colony or exile colony is a settlement used to exile prisoners and separate them from the general population by placing them in a remote location, often an island or distant colonial territory. Although the term can be used to refer to ...

and then one

ship A ship is a large watercraft that travels the world's oceans and other sufficiently deep waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research, and fishing. Ships are generally distinguished ...

of political

exile Exile is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons and peoples suf ...

s. The descendants of the prisoners mostly inhabit the City. The descendants of the political exiles, the "People of Peace", inhabit Shantih Town, which is known to the City dwellers as Shanty Town. The Shantih Towners, whose primary occupation is farming, want to settle another valley further away from the City. The City "Bosses" do not want to lose the control they believe they have over the Shanty Towners and so they take action to try to prevent any settlement beyond their sphere of influence.

Characters

City characters

* Luz Marina Falco Cooper * Luis Burnier Falco (Luz's father and a Boss) * Herman Macmilan * Captain Eden

Shantih Town characters

* Vera Adelson * Lev Shults * Southwind * Andre * Hari * Elia

Major themes

The major themes in ''The Eye of the Heron'' are common to much of Le Guin's fiction and include the social constructions of

gender Gender is the range of characteristics pertaining to femininity and masculinity and differentiating between them. Depending on the context, this may include sex-based social structures (i.e. gender roles) and gender identity. Most culture ...

, interactions between individuals from different societies, intra-actions within societies, and contact with that which is perceived as alien or other. The novel also explores different forms of social and political organization by juxtaposing

pacifist Pacifism is the opposition or resistance to war, militarism (including conscription and mandatory military service) or violence. Pacifists generally reject theories of Just War. The word ''pacifism'' was coined by the French peace campai ...

anarchism Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not neces ...

with violent

oligarchy Oligarchy (; ) is a conceptual form of power structure in which power rests with a small number of people. These people may or may not be distinguished by one or several characteristics, such as nobility, fame, wealth, education, or corporate ...

. The characters' metaphorical internal journeys are reflected in literal external journeys throughout the plot. When asked, in a 1995 interview, what role the

feminist movement The feminist movement (also known as the women's movement, or feminism) refers to a series of social movements and political campaigns for radical and liberal reforms on women's issues created by the inequality between men and women. Such ...

had played in her writing, Le Guin situated ''The Eye of the Heron'' in the context of her development as a writer:

Allusions in other works

''The Eye of the Heron'' contains the phrase "beginning place". Le Guin incorporated it into the title of her 1980 novel '' The Beginning Place''.

Awards and nominations

* 1979,

Locus Award The Locus Awards are an annual set of literary awards voted on by readers of the science fiction and fantasy magazine ''Locus'', a monthly magazine based in Oakland, California. The awards are presented at an annual banquet. In addition to the p ...

, Best SF Novel category, 21st place.

Release details

* 1978, in '' Millennial Women'', edited by Virginia Kidd, U.S., Delacorte Press (

Dell Publishing Dell Publishing Company, Inc. is an American publisher of books, magazines and comic books, that was founded in 1921 by George T. Delacorte Jr. with $10,000 (approx. $145,000 in 2021), two employees and one magazine title, ''I Confess'', and so ...

), , pp. 305, 1978, hardcover * 1979, in '' Millennial Women'', edited by Virginia Kidd,

, , April 1979, serial? * 1980, in ''The Eye of the Heron and Other Stories'', edited by Virginia Kidd, UK,

Panther Books Panther Books Ltd was a British publishing house especially active in the 1950s and 1960s, specialising in paperback fiction. It was established in May 1952 by Hamilton's Ltd and titles carried the line "A Panther Book" or "Panther Science Ficti ...

(Granada Publishing), , pp. 251, 5 June 1980, paperback * 1982, ''The Eye of the Heron'', UK,

Victor Gollancz Sir Victor Gollancz (; 9 April 1893 – 8 February 1967) was a British publisher and humanitarian. Gollancz was known as a supporter of left-wing causes. His loyalties shifted between liberalism and communism, but he defined himself as a Chris ...

, , pp. 122 or 144, 30 September 1982, hardcover * 1982, ''The Eye of the Heron'', U.S.,

Harper & Row Harper is an American publishing house, the flagship imprint of global publisher HarperCollins based in New York City. History J. & J. Harper (1817–1833) James Harper and his brother John, printers by training, started their book publishin ...

(

HarperCollins HarperCollins Publishers LLC is one of the Big Five English-language publishing companies, alongside Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, and Macmillan. The company is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of News C ...

), , pp. 179, December 1982, hardcover * 1984, ''The Eye of the Heron'',

Bantam Books Bantam Books is an American publishing house owned entirely by parent company Random House, a subsidiary of Penguin Random House; it is an imprint of the Random House Publishing Group. It was formed in 1945 by Walter B. Pitkin, Jr., Sidney B. ...

(

Random House Random House is an American book publisher and the largest general-interest paperback publisher in the world. The company has several independently managed subsidiaries around the world. It is part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by Germ ...

), , pp. 179, 1 August 1984, paperback * 1988, ''The Eye of the Heron'', U.S., J. Curley, , pp. 246, 6 January 1988,

large print Large-print (also large-type or large-font) refers to the formatting of a book or other text document in which the typeface (or font) are considerably larger than usual to accommodate people who have low vision. Frequently the medium is also increa ...

, paperback, * 1991, ''The Eye of the Heron'', U.S., Harper Paperbacks (

), , pp. 198 or 208, 1 January 1991, paperback * 1991, ''The Eye of the Heron'' with '' The Word for World is Forest'', UK, VGSF (

), , pp. 256 or 301, 6 June 1991, paperback * 2000, ''The Eye of the Heron'', Thorndike Press ( Thomson Gale), , pp. 204, January 2000,

?, hardcover * 2003, ''The Eye of the Heron'', Starscape Books (

Tor Books Tor Books is the primary imprint of Tor Publishing Group (previously Tom Doherty Associates), a publishing company based in New York City. It primarily publishes science fiction and fantasy titles, and is the largest publisher of Chinese scienc ...

), , pp. 192, September 2003, paperback

References

;Notes ;Bibliography * *

External links

''The Eye of the Heron'' page, including excerpt, at Tor Books
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Eye of the Heron, The 1978 American novels Novels by Ursula K. Le Guin 1978 science fiction novels Feminist science fiction novels American science fiction novels Anarchist fiction Cengage books Delacorte Press books