The novel “Planet of Exile” by Ursula Le Guin was published for the first time in 1966.
The natives of the planet Werel and the descendants of the Hainite colonists tend not to mix, but when young Rolery’s path crosses that of Jakob Agat Alterra, the situation turns out to be out of the ordinary. He warns Rolery that she must speak with Wold, an elderly chief of a community belonging to the Tevar tribe.
Jakob Agat Alterra’s motive for contacting Elder Wold is that he has received very disturbing information regarding the Gaal tribes. These nomadic tribes have started moving south, as they do every time winter begins. However, this time, they have united in an army capable of devastating cities like Tevar and the city of Landin, home to the descendants of the Hainites.
“Planet of Exile” is part of the Ekumen Cycle, or Hainish Cycle, whose works are generally independent since they’re usually set on different planets in different eras. There are many references to the fact that some of the characters are descendants of a Hainite colony; otherwise, there are no connections to the rest of the cycle.
Within the fictional universe she created, Ursula Le Guin tells a story that addresses the classic theme of difficult relationships with the Other. In this case, the natives of the planet Werel and the descendants of the Hainite colony are too genetically different to interbreed, so their populations have remained separated for centuries. The colonists were abandoned on Werel and, following their own laws, gave up using advanced technologies so as not to influence the native civilization, which was still technologically primitive.
Both the natives and the descendants of the colonists tend to consider only members of their own species as human, and this speaks volumes about the relationships between them. The Hainish remain aliens on the planet Werel in many ways, and this is stressed in several cases in relation to the planet’s biology.
The difficulties in these relationships become evident when rationality would lead the two populations to join forces to defend themselves from an unprecedented attack by the nomadic Gaal. Jakob Agat Alterra is ready to put aside the long history of mistrust that exists between the two species, but several leaders of other communities of the Tevar tribe are unable to move beyond that history, even when that would benefit their own interests.
A complication arises from the relationship that develops between Jakob Agat Alterra and Rolery, which is viewed negatively by most natives. On the surface, it seems like love at first sight between two very different people. A crucial factor is the fact that Jakob is telepathic, and Rolery is among the very few natives capable of perceiving him in her mind.
Ursula Le Guin subtly develops other characteristics of Rolery as well. A girl living in a society based on traditional male chauvinism doesn’t have high expectations for her life, especially if she bonds with an alien. She’s not a warrior, yet she shows her inner strength by making choices that go against her tribe’s traditions. One could say she follows the author’s Taoist path to feminism.
The threat of the Gaal nomads remains in the background for almost the entire novel. Even when it comes to open conflict, it’s only briefly described. If you’re looking for big battles, you’ll be sorely disappointed, because Ursula Le Guin is interested in telling something else, and “Planet of Exile” has developments that are in some ways the opposite of those typical of this type of story.
In the end, “Planet of Exile” is a novel that develops introspective elements typical of Ursula Le Guin. Today, it would be considered a novella due to its limited length, so the generally slow pace isn’t an obstacle to its reading. I think she developed certain themes better in her later masterpieces, but I believe a novel by this extraordinary author is always worth reading. You can find it on Amazon USA, UK, and Canada.
