Conditions On Earth In Ursula Leguin's 'The Dispossessed'

Ambassador Keng’s reaction to Urras in Ursula LeGuin’s The Dispossessed implies the conditions on Earth are truly deplorable at the time the story takes place. Her inclusion of Earthlings directly comments on LeGuin’s perception of the state of the Earth at the time she was writing The Dispossessed, and the Earthlings’ reaction to Urras supports LeGuin’s claim that what is viewed as utopic depends upon the viewer. Keng speaks little of what life is like on Earth, but it is clear from what she does say, and from her reaction to Urras, that life on Earth in her time is terrible. Throughout the book, the reader is exposed to many experiences on Urras that lead Shevek to call it Hell. However, Keng explains that, “To me, and to all my fellow Terrans who have seen the planet, Urras is the kindliest, most various, most beautiful of all the inhabited worlds. It is the world that comes as close as any could to Paradise.” (LeGuin 347). The two offer immensely different views of the same planet; views fueled by their experiences living on their home worlds. That Keng views Urras a paradise, clearly implies that life on her planet must be far worse than life on Urras or Anarres.
Keng, like Shevek, is an outsider on Urras: “We are both aliens here, Shevek.” (347). Both hail from different foreign planets and are therefore removed from the culture of Urras. But despite this shared experience, they have vastly different views of the planet. To Shevek, “Urras is Hell” (347). Shevek