Tehanu
.png) Cover of 2012 edition (hardcover) with corrected title. | |
| Author | Ursula K. Le Guin |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Series | Earthsea |
| Genre | Fantasy |
| Published | 1990 (Atheneum), 2012 (Saga) |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | Print (hardcover and paperback) |
| Pages | 226 |
| Award | Nebula Award for Best Novel (1990), Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel (1991) |
| ISBN | 0-689-31595-3 |
| OCLC | 19975630 |
| [Fic] 20 | |
| LC Class | PZ7.L5215 Te 1990 |
| Preceded by | The Farthest Shore |
| Followed by | Tales from Earthsea |
Tehanu /təˈhɑːnuː/,[1] initially subtitled The Last Book of Earthsea, is a fantasy novel by the American author Ursula K. Le Guin, published by Atheneum in 1990. It is the fourth novel set in the fictional archipelago Earthsea, published almost twenty years after the first three Earthsea novels (1968–1972), and not the last, despite its subtitle.[2][a] It won the annual Nebula Award for Best Novel[3] and the Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel.[4]
Tehanu continues the stories of Tenar, the heroine of the second book of the Earthsea series The Tombs of Atuan, and Ged, the hero of the first book, A Wizard of Earthsea.
Plot summary
[edit]Tenar lives alone because her farmer husband Flint has died, and her two children, Apple and Spark, are grown. A burned child is brought to her at Oak Farm, and she saves her life. The burns leave scarring on the face, and the fingers of one hand fused into a claw. Tenar adopts her and gives the child the name Therru, which means flame.
Tenar learns that Ogion requests her presence at his deathbed in Re Albi. She sets out to visit him with Therru. On the way, she encounters a group of ruffians, one of whom is Handy, who claims to be Therru's uncle. Tenar stays with Ogion, tending to him in his last days. He instructs her to teach Therru. After his death, she stays on at his cottage, assisted by Moss, a local witch, and Heather, a simple village girl. Ged (also called Sparrowhawk) arrives on the back of the dragon Kalessin, unconscious and near death, having spent all his wizardly powers in sealing the gap between the worlds of the living and the dead created by the evil sorceror Cob. Tenar nurses Ged back to health, but when the new king Lebannen sends envoys to bring him back to Havnor for the coronation, Ged cannot face them. He accepts Tenar's offer to return to Oak Farm to manage things there in her absence and once more takes up life as a goatherd. While at Re Albi, Tenar is confronted by the local lord's wicked mage, Aspen, who attempts to put a curse on her, but is thwarted.
Tenar informs the king's men that she cannot reveal Ged's whereabouts, and they accept the situation and depart. Tenar is threatened by both Aspen and Handy, and she flees with Therru. Confused by Aspen's magic, Tenar is almost overtaken by Handy, but escapes to Gont Port, taking refuge in the king's ship. Lebannen takes Tenar and Therru to Valmouth, where Tenar eventually returns to Oak Farm to find that Ged is away tending goats in the mountains for the season. Tenar settles back into life on the farm, until one night when Handy and his men attempt to break into the house. They are driven off by Ged, who nearly kills one of them with a pitchfork. Tenar and Ged begin a relationship, acknowledging that they had always loved each other. Ged wants to settle down and live an ordinary life. Together, they teach and care for Therru and manage the farm. Tenar's son Spark returns home from the sea and demands the farm. Under Gontish law Oak Farm belongs to him.
Tenar receives word that Moss is dying and wants to see her. She, Ged and Therru leave for Re Albi. However, the message was a trap set by Aspen, who reveals himself to be a follower of Cob. Tenar and Ged are led to the lord's mansion controlled by Aspen's magic. Therru runs to the cliff behind Ogion's cottage, where she calls to the dragon Kalessin for help, and reveals her true nature: she is in fact "a double being, half human, half-dragon". Aspen and his followers bring both Tenar and Ged up to the clifftop. Under the influence of Aspen's spell, they are both moving to jump to their deaths when the dragon Kalessin arrives, burning Aspen and his men. Kalessin addresses Therru by her true name Tehanu, calling her its own daughter, and asks her if she would like to leave with it. Tehanu decides to stay with Tenar and Ged. All three settle down to a simple life at Ogion's old cottage.
Major characters
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- Tenar
- Former priestess of the Tombs of Atuan, and White Lady of Gont. Called Goha by the locals.
- Ged
- Archmage of Roke. Called Sparrowhawk.
- Erisen
- A twisted mage and follower of Cob. Called Aspen.
- Kalessin
- The eldest dragon.
- Tehanu
- A burned child, a woman-dragon. Called Therru.[5]
Reception
[edit]The style of Tehanu differs from the initial Earthsea trilogy. Where the initial trilogy was written around the classic fantasy tropes of perilous quests, heroic actions and larger-than-human forces, Tehanu studies social interaction and emotional resonance. The pace is slower, the mood darker and more introspective.[6][7]
The initial trilogy focuses on the character and quests of Ged, with Tenar introduced as the central character of the second book. Tehanu uses the lens of everyday events and a strong anti-patriarchal viewpoint to not only explore the future of these two characters—and of Earthsea itself—but to reinterpret them. According to Sharada Bhanu, Le Guin sees this reinterpretation as a more balanced view of the world of Earthsea, which is written in the first three books from an implicitly patriarchal (or at least, male) viewpoint.[8]
The Kirkus Reviews comments that "Yes, there are dragons; but the human story and its meaning are primary here. Unlike Ged's, Le Guin's power is undiminished." The review notes that Ged and Tenar are "past middle age", reflecting the slower action, but "even young readers will be beguiled by the flawless, poetic prose, the philosophy expressed in thoughtful, potent metaphor, and the consummately imagined world".[9] The Science Fiction Review summarized the novel as "Great things happen to great people, whatever their station in life, and wherever they may be. An excellent story and a fine capstone to Earthsea."[10]
Tehanu won the 1990 Nebula Award; this made Le Guin the first person to win three Nebula Awards for Best Novel.[11][b] It also won the Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel, and was nominated for the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award.[13]
Notes
[edit]- ^ Two short stories set in Earthsea preceded the trilogy. A fifth novel and a collection of stories and essays were published about ten years after Tehanu. See Earthsea Cycle series listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database.
- ^ Joe Haldeman would go on to equal this number in 2006, winning his third Nebula for Camouflage. Three years later, Le Guin received a fourth Nebula for Powers. As of 2021, she holds the record for the most Best Novel Nebulas.[11][12]
References
[edit]- ^ Le Guin, Ursula K. (October 10, 2010). Ursula K. Le Guin reads from "The Wizard of Earthsea" (Reading). Washington Center for the Performing Arts: Timberland Regional Library. Event occurs at 1:05:45. Retrieved December 28, 2022.
- ^ Tehanu title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database (ISFDB).
- ^ "1990 Nebula Awards". The Nebula Awards. Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America. Retrieved August 19, 2021.
- ^ "Locus Awards 1991". Science Fiction Awards Database. Locus Science Fiction Foundation. Retrieved August 19, 2021.
- ^ Petty, Anne C. Dragons of Fantasy: The Scaly Villains & Heroes of Tolkien, Rowling, McCaffrey, Pratchett & Other Fantasy Greats, (Cold Spring Harbor, NY: Cold Spring Press, 2004)
- ^ Walton, Jo (February 1, 2010). "A woman on Gont: Ursula Le Guin's Tehanu". Tor.com. Macmillan.
- ^ Guynes, Sean (February 24, 2021). "Tehanu: Le Guin's Return to Earthsea — and Her Best Novel". Tor.com. Macmillan.
- ^ Tehanu: A Return to the Source, by Sharada Bhanu Archived 2007-10-11 at the Wayback Machine excerpt on the Ursula K. Le Guin website
- ^ "Kirkus Review: Tehanu". Kirkus Reviews. 15 January 1990. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
- ^ "Science Fiction Review: Tehanu: The Last Book of Earthsea". Science Fiction Review. 1 (2): 75. Summer 1990.
- ^ a b "Nebula Awards Winners By Category". Science Fiction Awards Database. Locus Science Fiction Foundation. Retrieved August 17, 2021.
- ^ Troughton, R. K. (May 14, 2014). "Nebula Awards by the Numbers". Amazing Stories. Archived from the original on January 27, 2020. Retrieved August 19, 2019.
- ^ "Ursula K. Le Guin Awards". Science Fiction Awards Database. Locus Science Fiction Foundation. Retrieved August 19, 2021.
Sources
[edit]- Bernardo, Susan M.; Murphy, Graham J. (2006). Ursula K. Le Guin: A Critical Companion (1st ed.). Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. ISBN 0-313-33225-8.
- Cadden, Mike (2005). Ursula K. Le Guin Beyond Genre: Fiction for Children and Adults (1st ed.). New York, NY: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-99527-2.
- Drout, Michael (2006). Of Sorcerers and Men: Tolkien and the Roots of Modern Fantasy Literature (1st ed.). China: Barnes & Noble. ISBN 978-0-7607-8523-2.
- Martin, Philip (2009). A Guide to Fantasy Literature: Thoughts on Stories of Wonder & Enchantment (1st ed.). Milwaukee, WI: Crickhollow Books. ISBN 978-1-933987-04-0.
- Mathews, Richard (2002). Fantasy: The Liberation of Imagination (1st ed.). New York: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-93890-2.
- Petty, Anne C. (2004). Dragons of Fantasy: The Scaly Villains & Heroes of Tolkien, Rowling, McCaffrey, Pratchett & Other Fantasy Greats (1st ed.). Cold Spring Harbor, New York: Cold Spring Press. ISBN 978-1-59360-010-5.
External links
[edit]- Tehanu title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
- Tehanu: The Last Book of Earthsea at Worlds Without End