Slightly departing from the central themes of the course, I was very interested in the concept of mental illness on Gethen. Obviously, insanity acts as a catalyst in the novel, simply by leading the king to order Estraven's exile. However, madness is less abhorred than respected in this culture, something that the narrator seems to find distasteful: he asks, confused "if these two psychopaths could not be cured" (Le Guin 63). There is a definite admiration found in the Karhider's voice when he responds, "Would you cure a singer of his voice?" (Le Guin 63).