A Feminist's Call for Anarchy

Abstract

While Ursula Le Guin’s novel The Dispossessed has been categorized as a science fction and utopian
novel, I argue that it should also be considered a feminist utopia. With infuences from feminism
and Marxism, Le Guin uses both theories to create a comparison between two political systems—
anarchy and democracy—to ultimately reveal that anarchy is more conducive for feminism. The
anarchic system of government provides women with more agency than capitalism, because
women are free from class and gender oppression. Theorists such as Lewis Call and Daniel Jaeckle
defne the anarchy that is established in The Dispossessed. The distinct female characters in The
Dispossessed demonstrate the clear diferences between the two political systems. Additionally,
I argue that The Dispossessed is a feminist text with the ultimate purpose of demonstrating how
women can reach equality and ultimate agency in an anarchic state due to Le Guin's example