The story is set in a universe where there are 2 sister planets, which run on completely different ideologies:
Urras: an Earth-like planet, with many states, the most powerful one described as a capitalist one
Anarres: an arid planet with an anarchic society: no rulers, no private property, and no government.
A rat looked through a crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife opening a package. What food might it contain? He was aghast to discover that it was a rattrap. Retreating to the farmyard the rat proclaimed the warning; “There is a rat trap in the house, a rat trap in the house!”
When she looked ahead, Florence Chadwick saw nothing but a solid wall of fog. Her body was numb. She had been swimming for nearly sixteen hours.
Already she was the first woman to swim the English Channel in both directions.
An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer – contractor – of his plans to leave the house building business and live a more leisurely life with his wife enjoying his extended family. He would miss the pay cheque, but he needed to retire. They could get by.
