The Gay Prophet : Homosexuality as Liminality in Ursula K. Le Guin's The Dispossessed

Ursula Le Guin’s novel The Dispossessed depicts a utopian society that is radically egalitarian, both economically and sexually. However, the novel is subtitled An Ambiguous Utopia, and Le Guin is careful to show its flaws. This complex novel has drawn some fierce criticism for being heterosexist, not least from fellow science fiction author Samuel Delany, and a few other queer critics that echo Delany. In this essay I study the novel’s only named homosexual character, Bedap, who plays a crucial role in the development of the main character Shevek. Bedap is the one who opens his eyes to the authoritarian tendencies latent in the radical democracy of their home planet Anarres, enabling him to journey to the capitalist twin planet to complete his world-changing theory of physics. Bedap’s intervention helps Shevek break through the obstacles that keep him from fully developing his ideas. I endeavour here to show that Bedap, while not a fully fleshed out character, is not depicted as a tragic gay man (as Delany claims), but rather as an ascetic thinker committed to social change, a prophet. For this purpose, I use the anthropological concept of liminality as well as Didier Eribon’s theory about how gay identity is shaped by the threat of social stigma, to illuminate both Bedap’s own character and the forces shaping him. In fact, Bedap’s queerness is a form of liminality that has made him more aware of the defects of his society, giving him a unique perspective.