Cultural Values in The Left Hand of Darkness, The Fellowship of the Rin

Shaping of Cultural Values Through Environment in The Left Hand of Darkness, The Fellowship of the Ring, and Dune      Ã‚   Ursuala K. LeGuin's The Left Hand of Darkness was written after J.R.R. Tolkien's The Fellowship of the Ring and Frank Herbert's Dune. One of the most interesting comparisons between the three novels is how the authors treat the issue of cross-cultural misunderstandings. All three works contain many incidents where people of one race or planet encounter people of a different race or from a different planet. Tolkien treats this issue in a 'specisitc' or physiological manner. The cultural misunderstandings and clashes that arise in The Fellowship of the Ring are due to the differing physiology of the characters. Herbert deals with cultural misunderstandings in an environmental manner. In Herbert's world, cultural values depend less on which species a character belong to (because all characters seem to be "roughly" human) and instead depend on environmental variables. In The Left Hand of Darkness, LeGuin combines both approaches. The cultural misunderstandings betwe en Genly Ai and Gethenians are due both to difference in physiology and different cultural values imprinted by environmental factors .   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Tolkien's physiological approach is best seen by examining the hobbits attitude towards the outside world. The hobbits are suspicious of, and generally do not understand, non-Hobbits. This can be seen by the Shire's constant suspicion of Bilbo's past adventures. The miller Sandyman comments on Bilbo's adventures: "Elves and Dragons! I says to him. Cabbages and potatoes are better for me and you. Don't go getting mixed up in the business of your betters, or you'll land in trouble too... ...iologically different from the Gethenians and comes from a planet with a totally different environment. Both of these factors lead to numerous misunderstandings in LeGuin's novel. The difference in the three authors approaches may be seen in the debate between genetics and environment may be the broader issue. Tolkien seems to take the genetics side, Herbert takes the environmental side, and LeGuin, being the daughter of an anthropologist, realizes that both genetics and environment determine cultural values. These values often come into conflict, and when they do, misconceptions and misunderstandings are almost inevitable.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚   Works Cited Herbert, Frank. Dune: 1984, Chilton Book Company LeGuin, Ursula L. The Left Hand of Darkness: 1969, Ace Book Company Tolkien, J.R.R. The Fellowship of the Ring: 1993, Houghton Mifflin Company  Ã‚  Ã‚