❄️🌓 The Left Hand of Darkness — A discussion on Gender, Loyalty

## ❄️🌓 The Left Hand of Darkness — Gender, Loyalty & Survival on Gethen

Please read the summary provided.
Printed terms & prompts available at the door. Speak or listen—both fine. Pass is OK.
Description
Ursula K. Le Guin drops us on Gethen (Winter), where people are ambisexual and politics move at the pace of snow. A lone envoy (Genly Ai) must win trust in two rival states—Karhide and Orgoreyn—while learning a culture built on shifgrethor (face, indirection) and a faith that prizes unknowns. At the center: a dangerous friendship with Estraven and a brutal trek across the ice that turns ideas into scars. We’ll treat the novel like a living world: gender, language, power, and what it takes to trust across difference.
What we’ll explore

• Gender without gender roles: kemmer, care, work, and war—what actually changes?
• Power & indirection: shifgrethor, diplomacy, propaganda; Karhide vs. Orgoreyn.
• Friendship under pressure: Genly & Estraven—loyalty, exile, and the cost of belief.
• Faith & uncertainty: Handdara vs. Yomesh; why “not‑knowing” can be a virtue.
• Environment as character: how Winter shapes time, politics, and courage.

How we’ll do it

• 8‑minute primer (map + key terms).
• Guided prompts → open floor; short quote cards provided.
• Close: one sentence you’ll keep, or one belief that shifted.

When & where
🗓️ Sunday, Jan 18, 2026 - 3:00 PM - 4:30 PM
📍 Central Library - Meeting Rooms - L4 North (492) Meeting Room
🎟️ Cap 12–15 + waitlist • Friendly, curious crowd.