The name of the world is forest

the name of the world Forêt ( The Word for World is Forest ) is a Romance of Science-fiction, published in 1976 by Ursula Guin (the United States). It belongs to a cycle entitled the Cycle of Ekumen .

Summary

Athshe, planet at 27 light-years of the Earth, was first colonized once, a million years ago, by the people of Hain.

Redécouverte by the land ones, it is covered then with water and forests, the gasolines of trees being land (ash, oak,…).

She is inhabited by a race humanoïde, one height meter, and covered with a green fur. Its population is estimated at 3 million.

The Earth, planet independent at the time to colonize it, there sees an inexhaustible wood resource, and begins gigantic cuts in the forest, at the point to make uninhabitable an island, Rendlep (the Island of the Dump), victim of deforestation.

The natives, little organized, apathetic, dreamers, are treated quasi like slaves, to see cattle, but a first revolt of their share, the destruction of a camp of logger and the massacre of those mark a turning in their perception of the world.

A vessel, then orbits, will intervene and install ansible about it, which will make it possible the land colony to dialog directly with the Earth, learning creation from the League, and having to release all Athshéens in the camps of work. This vessel will leave then for a close planet, returning only 3 years later.

A captain land, eager to clean this world of this species, begins, in spite of the orders, a systematic destruction of various indigenous villages, which will cause the 2nd revolt of Athshéens and the destruction of the principal colony and the ansible one. The women between-other will be systematically killed to prevent that the human ones cannot reproduce, the men being partly saved.

Like peace agreement, it will be decided that the human ones will be able to continue to live in deforested, Ashthées, in the forest. More no cut being authorized.

A last remote station, refusing the orders, will continue to massacre Athshéens, which will cause 3rd and last massacre of human.

Final peace will then be concluded by the return from the vessel, the departure of all the human ones, and the promise of the League more not to intervene on this planet during 5 generations, and that then, perhaps, some ethnologists would renew contacts.

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