Priroda bića da bude biće prirode
The Nature of Being as a Being of Nature

Summary/Abstract: The analysis and a reading recommendation of the short novel „The Word for World“ is Forest by the American writer Ursula K. Le Guin is inspired by feminist and postcolonial readings. This article focuses on the interpretation of key elements of the novel shaped around problems of gender and race, exploitation and colonialism, but also environmentalism and language. The method suggested in this analysis is that of “reverse” reading, where students and teachers should identify “both sides of the story”. This should be done by contrasting invasive (human) and native (alien) culture in order to discover inauthentic behaviours of main characters, distribution of gender roles in human and alien culture and manners in which the language constitutes the experience. This way, readers can reach the basic meanings of novel and try to give their answers to the question – what is considered natural in contrast to cultural? In what manner do our social and gender roles, along with language and natural environment we live in, make us who we are?

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