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Foreshadowing
Frame Story
Explanation and Analysis—As Fancy Bids:
Le Guin uses a literary technique called a “frame story” to engage the reader as they learn about the city of Omelas. Through this, she emphasizes the disconnection between the narrator and the reader and makes readers highly conscious that they’re being told a tale that contains a moral quandary:
O miracle! But I wish I could describe it better. I wish I could convince you. Omelas sounds in my words like a city in a fairy tale, long ago and far away, once upon a time. Perhaps it would be best if you imagined it as your own fancy bids, assuming it will rise to the occasion, for certainly I cannot suit you all.
In this quotation, the narrator openly acknowledges the limitations of their ability to describe the city for the reader. They’re suggesting here that properly conveying the nature of Omelas might be beyond their storytelling abilities. Indeed, they imply, it might be more productive for the reader to imagine Omelas however they can picture it best, “as [their] own fancy bids.” This direct address to the reader highlights the fact that they are being told a story. It makes them into participants in the telling. By inviting readers to envision Omelas according to their own preferences, the narrator points to the fact that Omelas itself is not the point of the story at all. It is more important, they imply, that the reader understand the idea of a utopia like Omelas than the reality of Omelas itself. This framing also deepens the reader's engagement with the story, as they become active participants in creating the world of Omelas in their minds.
Related Themes:
