Le Guin 1: The Hideous Bargain

15 Aug 2025

Episode 6.09 – Le Guin 1: The Hideous Bargain

At last we settle in to think about Le Guin’s Omelas story and set aside some common approaches to it. The first of several parts.

We also discuss how the obvious question posed by the story may not be the place to start, and how philosopher/historian/critic Rene Girard’s scapegoat theories played a role in Le Guin’s thought.

Our Main Text:

• Ursula K. Le Guin: “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”: https://archive.org/download/the-ones-who-walk-away-from-omelas-ursula-k-leguin/The%20Ones%20Who%20Walk%20Away%20from%20Omelas%20-%20Ursula%20K%20LeGuin.pdf

Complete Resources: https://waywordsstudio.com/project/le-guin-omelas/

CHAPTERS

00:00     I Walk Away
06:29     Opening Theme
07:12     A Moral Gauntlet
14:32     Omelas: The Story
21:23     The Giant Omelas in the Room
27:36     Dilemmas False and True
35:53     Narrative as Moral Test
39:14     Her Party, Her Rules: Scapegoats and Archetypes
46:05     So What Do We Do?
49:12     Closing Credits

===

New to Literary Nomads? Check out episode 5.00 to find out what we’re all about: https://waywordsstudio.com/podcasts/waywords_podcast/an-introduction-and-irony/

Transcript:  https://waywordsstudio.com/general/transcript/6-09-le-guin-part-1

Have a Question? Literary Nomads Mailbag: https://forms.gle/WKGp1YWrazNZ3TLt8 

===

Literary Nomads is the primary program of Waywords Studio (https://waywordsstudio.com). The podcast posts new material each week, with thought-provoking examinations of literature around selected questions or themes and several smaller supplemental episodes in between the larger programs: history, writing, and contemporary applications of ideas.

Visit us for expanded resources for guests and the Waywords community, for other programs and writing, and for opportunities to support our goal to expand reading. Resources available can include full bibliographies of material referenced, full and partial texts, annotated editions, supplemental and expanded episodes, fictional explorations, teaching and learning resources, additional essays, and online courses.

Website:  https://waywordsstudio.com

Newsletter: https://waywordsstudio.kit.com/

Instagram: @WaywordsStudio

Facebook: Waywords.Studio

YouTube: Waywords Studio

LinkedIn: Waywords-Studio

CREDITS:

Original music by Randon Myles (https://randonmyles.com/)

Chapter headings by Natalie Harrison and Sarah Skaleski

USING THIS WORK:

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. It is open to be used and adapted for all not-for-profit uses with proper attribution.

MLA CITATION:

Chisnell, Steve. “Le Guin Part 1: The Hideous Bargain,” Literary Nomads. Waywords Studio, 15 August 2025, https://waywordsstudio.com/project/le-guin-omelas/.