This week I explored Ursula Le Guin's The Left Hand of Darkness, I found this story to be incredibly interesting because like most fiction its commentary is about the nature of humanity and in this case the ideas of masculine, feminine, androgyny, peace and war. When a Terran man named Genly is sent to a planet called "Winter" (spoiler its always cold there) he encounters a race of people who are primarily androgynous and "ambisexual" only taking on sexual characteristics of either gender once a month. Coincidentally, or more likely not, Winter has never experienced war and is being asked to join an interplanetary alliance by Genly.
I think this book is interesting because it really makes the case that ideas about gender identity, fluidity, sexuality, masculinity, femininity, reproduction and their affects on society are ANYTHING but new. While I believe they are coming more and more to the forefront of the world's discussion table people have had thoughts and opinions that have changed throughout time as long as there have been people.
This book also touches on the ideas of government and society's role in the policing of people's bodies and sexuality, when sterilization is intended to be used as a form of punishment after committing an offense. While it is illegal these days to force someone to be sterilized it was not long ago at all that it was common practice along with lobotomy and chemical castration.
I think this book does a good job on commenting on these things as well as telling an interesting story set in a science fiction world of alien races and far away galaxies.
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