| "Sur" | |
|---|---|
| Short story byUrsula K. Le Guin | |
| Country | USA |
| Genre | Science fiction |
| Publication | |
| Published in | The New Yorker |
| Publication type | Periodical |
| Media type | |
| Publication date | February 1, 1982 |
"Sur" is a short story by the American writerUrsula K. Le Guin, first published inThe New Yorker on February 1, 1982.[1][2] It was included inThe Compass Rose, a collection of stories by Le Guin first published in July 1982.[3]
The subtitle is "A Summary Report of theYelcho Expedition to the Antarctic, 1909–1910"; the story describes an expedition to the South Pole by a group of women from South America.
The title "Sur" (Spanish "South") may be compared withSouth, the title ofErnest Shackleton's account of the Antarctic expedition of 1914–1917.
The narrator, a woman inLima, Peru, does not write for publication; this account of her adventure will be kept in a trunk in the attic, to be found by future generations.
Upon reading about the voyage of theBelgica, she was inspired by the undertaking of expeditions to Antarctica, particularlyThe Voyage of the Discovery,Captain Scott's book about his expedition of 1902–1904. She plans, with several friends, a similar expedition. They find a benefactor, and the nine women, from Peru, Chile, and Argentina, meet inPunta Arenas in Chile in August 1909.
They have hired theYelcho, a steamer commanded byCaptain Pardo. They sail to theRoss Sea, and atHut Point they visitCaptain Scott's hut; not liking the state it is in, they eventually decide to set up camp onthe Great Ice Barrier, digging out cubicles in the ice. Grouped into two sledge teams and a support team, they journey south, covering about 15 miles (24 km) a day on level ice, and ascending the Florence Nightingale Glacier, as they have named it – shown on maps as theBeardmore Glacier. They reach the South Pole on 22 December 1909.
On returning to base camp, they realize that one of the group, Teresa, is pregnant. A baby girl is delivered, and Teresa names her Rosa – Rosa del Sur (Rose of the South). TheYelcho returns to their camp as promised, and the group returns home.
After the narrator learns of theYelcho's role in rescuing Shackleton's men from Elephant Island, she writes to congratulate Captain Pardo, and thank him again. "Never one word has he breathed of our secret. He is a man of honor, Luis Pardo."
"Sur" won theLocus Award for Best Short Story in 1983,[4] and it was nominated for theHugo Award for Best Short Story in that year.[1] It was also included inThe Best American Short Stories 1983 alongside “The Professor‘s Houses,” also by Le Guin.[5]
Francine Prose wrote that it was "my favorite story by Ursula K. Le Guin.... "Sur"... typifies what she does best: construct a lightly ironic, playful and more or less fantastic fiction of ideas, with an interest in ... the different methods by which men and women apprehend and respond to the world".[6]
Anne K. Kaler argues that the story provides a cleverly coded map for women striving to be professional writers; to illustrate the paths that women writers must take into the tundras ruled by male writers, she uses the devices of disorder, dislocation, and reversal in the journey/journal.[7]