The Dispossessed

The Dispossessed Summary | Plot Summary

Shevek, a scientist from the desert planet Anarres, travels to the neighboring planet Urras, an Earthlike planet of capitalism, war and economic inequity. He goes there with the plan of learning, teaching and sharing his world and beliefs with the Urrasti. Shevek comes from a society founded on the beliefs of the Urrasti philosopher Odo and settled by revolutionaries from Urras who called themselves Odonians. The Anarresti have no government or economy, and their survival is only guaranteed by everyone working together to feed and clothe the society.

Shevek is struck by the "splendor" in which so many Urrasti seem to live, compared to the austerity in which he and his fellow Anarresti live. He soon starts to feel at home at Ieu Eun University, in the nation of A-Io, where he lives during his visit. He tours the nearby cities, meets some of the "contented poor," who do not live in the squalor in which he has been taught that Urrasti poor live, and experiences new things such as shopping, drinking alcohol, and visiting museums. He teaches and works on his temporal theory, his life's great work, but months pass without his managing to share his world with the Urrasti. He attempts to explain his world to people like Dr. Atro and Vea, his friend Oiie's sister; he explains the concept of "mutual aid," in which everyone works for the common good and not their own personal gain, the Anarresti's lack of possessions, and the freedom with which they conduct their lives and relationships. Everyone he speaks to seems confused about his world; they want their possessions and especially their laws, which keep people in their proper places.

It is not until he meets some of the "real" poor that Shevek fully sees the problems of Urras. The urban poor in the capital city of Nio Esseia live in appalling conditions and do not have access to decent health care. They want better pay and better opportunities, but more than this they want freedom. Like the original Odonians who settled Anarres, these revolutionaries want a world without government oppression. They latch onto Shevek as the perfect symbol of their revolution. At a demonstration in the city, he sees how dire the fight between the "haves" and "have-nots" has gotten. Helicopters fire at the crowd, killing and wounding many. Shevek escapes the city only by being smuggled out under the backseat of a taxi.

Shevek makes his way to the Terran Embassy, where he meets Ambassador Keng. She is sympathetic to his troubles and offers to help him get home. Before he leaves, Shevek gives her his temporal theory. He has learned that the scientists at Ieu Eun only want to steal his theory, which will enable A-Io to build time travel device enabling instantaneous travel - a good weapon for a world that wants to dominate all others. Shevek ultimately heads back to Anarres on a ship provided by aliens from Hain, an evolved and enlightened society. The first mate of the ship asks to visit Anarres with him, and Shevek agrees because the time has come for the isolated Anarres to start interacting with other civilizations.

Woven into this plot is the story of Shevek's life before he left for Urras. We see him as a precocious child, an idealistic teenager who defends his society's values blindly, and ultimately as a man who has discovered that that society is flawed and does not accomplish what it was set out to do. A serious drought causes widespread suffering on the planet. People starve, and families are split up as emergency work assignments are handed out. Separated from his partner, Takver, and their daughter for four years, Shevek begins to question whether he is really free. Ultimately, he decides that no one is working for the common good because everyone is suffering too much and finding their choices in life to be few. With the help of some like-minded friends, he sets out to make Anarres better. Part of this plan comes to involve breaking down communication barriers between themselves and the Urrasti.