One of the things that was touched on in class recently was the way in which Genly Ai often characterized the ways the Gethenieas acted around him. Particularly interesting to me were the ways that appeared derogatory towards woman, and what this conveys about him and the 'Ekumenical' society he comes from.
The first that caught my attention appeared on page 48-9, when Genly is describing the Karhiders' absence of war. He says that, "They lacked…the capacity to mobilize. They behaved like animals in that respect; or like woman. They do not behave like men, or ants." In this comparison, he act in a similar manner to Starship Trooper's Johnny, placing woman on a level seemingly below men when it comes to being able to fight wars. This is on an even larger scale though; whereas Johnny discredits them as not being infantry or front-line fighters, Genly appears to not seem a woman capable of mobilizing towards war at all. Similarly, near the end of the novel (pg 299), he describes the first person he meets in the Estre Hearth as so silent that, "no girl could keep so grim a silence as he did." This is an oddly conspicuous comment, especially with so little basis in why he would think this way. This little off-hand remark helps lets us infer much about Genlys background. Later in the novel, Genly confesses to Estreven that he understands very little about woman at all, inferring some trouble he may have had in the past in relationships or meetings with woman in general. He has his own perception of woman from is own experience, not some grandiose utopian notion of equality or acceptance. Does this reflect then more on his personal experience, or on the nature of the Ekumen he comes from?
In my opinion, the fact that he makes these observations makes the society from which he comes from much more believable as a human future. At first, at least to me, the Ekumenical system he is from seems overly optimistic. A large, constantly expanding society with sizeable gaps in technology among several different races, even those with a common genetic background, seems unlikely to be so peaceful, and this makes it unbelievable to me. Were it not for Genlys infrequent, not-so-PC references, I would have a lot of trouble connecting to the society as a whole. The references themselves are what make him a human, imperfect and opinionated.