Previous
Athshean
Cetian is a term used to refer to a race of non-Terran humans. In the novella, Mr. Or is Cetian and accompanies Mr. Lepennon to oversee the colony on World 41. Cetians resemble Terran humans but are stockier and have gray skin. The novella suggests that the Cetians are less polite than the Hainish and are also skilled inventors, responsible for the creation of the ansible.
Cetian Quotes in The Word for World is Forest
The The Word for World is Forest quotes below are all either spoken by Cetian or refer to Cetian. For each quote, you can also see the other terms and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter Three
Quotes
“No,” said the Cetian. “That’s done with. A colony like this had to believe what passing ships and outdated radio-messages told them. Now you don’t. You can verify. We are going to give you the ansible destined for Prestno. We have League authority to do so. Received, of course, by ansible. Your colony here is in a bad way. Worse than I thought from your reports. Your reports are very incomplete; censorship or stupidity have been at work. Now, however, you’ll have the ansible, and can talk with your Terran Administration; you can ask for orders, so you’ll know how to proceed. Given the profound changes that have been occurring in the organization of the Terran Government since we left there, I should recommend that you do so at once. There is no longer any excuse for acting on outdated orders; for ignorance; for irresponsible autonomy.”
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire The Word for World is Forest LitChart as a printable PDF.
Cetian Term Timeline in The Word for World is Forest
The timeline below shows where the term Cetian appears in The Word for World is Forest. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter One
...enemy camp or another planet, and the latter seems likelier. Maybe it’s the humanoids (the Cetians and Hainish), whom Davidson never trusted.
(full context)
Chapter Three
...humans. When he introduces himself, he finds that one of the men is a Hairy Cetian named Mr. Or, and one is a Hainishman named Mr. Lepennon. Lepennon compliments Lyubov’s research...
(full context)
Chapter Four
...have planted these messages, since the men on Earth are more practical than this. The Cetians are probably trying to take over the Terran Government, and the Hainish are in on...
(full context)
