“The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” and “The Fluted Girl”

In the stories “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” by Ursula K. Le Guin and “The Fluted Girl” by Paolo Bacigalupi, both describe oppressed societies. In the stories it is obvious that there is some type of totalitarianism such as in “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”, there is a child locked in a closet; the child will not be allowed out for the sake of the city of Omelas. In “The Fluted Girl”, there are two girls who have been genetically altered and are slaves for the profit of Belari.

In each, the children and even the city are aware of their enslavement, but they do not believe that they will survive without it. Therefore, in a city full of beauty and laughter, would misery be defeated or remain present.

 “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”

In “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”, the writer describes the city as a fairytale, although there are limitations. In the city of Omelas, according to the writer, the description of a happy man can no longer be identified; although there were happy children (259).

The thought of happiness is considered selfish. How can one be so happy with the knowledge of their happiness being dependent on the misery of a feeble-minded child locked in a closet somewhere in the city? How can one accept that the child is there? The thought of happiness in the city of Omelas does not fill the citizens with guilt, in fact they are unrepentant.

Get quality help now

KarrieWrites

Verified

Proficient in: The Fluted Girl

5 (339)

“ KarrieWrites did such a phenomenal job on this assignment! He completed it prior to its deadline and was thorough and informative. ”

+84 relevant experts are online

Hire writer

The child in the broom closet symbolizes much more than the narrator describes; the child represents humanity in a way. For instance, without the child, the city of Omelas will be destroyed. When the narrator states that the happiness of the city depends on the misery of the child, it means that someone may always suffer for the happiness of others. In many ways, the story represents the world that we live in today. For instance, in the phrase “to praise despair is to condemn delight, to embrace violence is to lose hold of everything,” (259); the narrator is stating that if someone other than the people themselves are suffering or in pain that they tend to accept despair. As stated in the story, the child in the broom closet is often visited. The child is not always treated kindly and it is important for other children to know that it exists. Towards the end of the story the narrator states that “Some people who visit the child tend to go silent and leave home after a day or two. Those who refuse to accept the suffering of the child, for the happiness of others, tend to walk away from Omelas with no knowledge of where they are going” (262). It is clear that the narrator wants the readers to understand that those few who walk away do not believe or encourage the suffering or misery of someone for the happiness of themselves or others. In the city of Omelas misery is indeed defeated, although it remains present in the few who stay.

 “The Fluted Girl”

In “The Fluted Girl” Bacigalupi attempts to draw the readers into a dystopian world with a story about human enhancement. Bacigalupi goes on to tell a story about two fragile girls; he states that, “Her legs were beginning to ache. She wondered if they could snap from the strain… Sometimes she was surprised at what broke her. A gentle bump against a table and she was shattered” (25). It feels as if the narrator is giving the readers an idea of how fragile the girl is, and how painful her suffering must be. The narrator in “The Fluted Girls” goes on to describe the day before the big recital in which the girls perform. The agony here in this story is completely different from “Omelas”. The fluted girls are accepting of their misery. “I’m going to be a star. Belari will float us on the markets” says Lidia endorsing it (37). The two girls are willing to serve and please at any cost; even if it means being genetically altered. In a sense the two girls are not the only ones who are enslaved, but Belari as well as the entire fief. The characters’ minds are enslaved with the thought of being without Belari, nothing would be possible. Finally, Lidia begins to realize their predicament, she states, “We perform pornography. Pornography for the profit of Belari.” (41). For the first time it seems as if Lidia has realized that she is indeed a slave. She is a slave who is willing to risk humanity to become a star. She performs pornography for the profit of Belari. Two young girls whose genetic features were frozen at the age of thirteen; whose eyes have been removed and replaced with foreign ones. Two young girls who are pleased to play each other for the profit of Belari, who believe that they will be floated on the market for good behavior. In this story there is a lot of symbolism. As in “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas”, the girl’s minds are in the broom closet. Lidia acknowledges it and decides at the end of the story when she makes the offering that she was done being Belari’s slave. Lidia has decided to walk away from Omelas. She refused to be trapped in a broom closet for the rest of her life being someone else’s toy. Lidia refused to accept the treatment that Belari offered; she defeated misery.

Imagery

In both stories, the narrators convey many different types of imagery such as in Omelas, the child in the broom closet, the old lady handing out flowers, the ones who walk away as well as the ones who stay, and the child who plays the flute. The narrator is typically comparing a utopian society with a dystopian society; the message of this story is that no matter where people go or how perfect everything seems to be, someone is always suffering somewhere for the happiness of others, and there may be nothing that can be done. In “The Fluted Girl”, there is the same message just a different story. In many different aspects the stories are the same; the ones who walk away for instance, refuse to allow one to suffer for the happiness of many others. The ones who walk away refuse to be enslaved. They walk away to be liberated and amicable.