1. If you have read either or both of the other books in The Earthsea Trilogy, compare Arren with young Ged and/or Tenar in the ways they grow. What meanings do you see in these similarities and differences?

2. A Wizard of Earthsea opens by announcing that Ged is a great hero of Earthsea's past. Discuss Ged as a hero. What qualities count as heroism in Earthsea? If you have read the other books in this trilogy, write a discussion of his development. How has he come to be such a hero?

3. Write a summary of the main ideas Arren learns while on this quest. These ideas should form a kind of education manual for young rulers. Discuss the value and importance of these ideas to ruling well in Earthsea, in our own world, or even in a school.

4. It is difficult to understand why Cob's success at achieving immortality should lead to the destruction of his world. How would you explain the connections between these two events?

5. A story in The Wind's Twelve Quarters, "Darkness Box," has similarities to The Farthest Shore. Read the story and write about an interesting and important way in which the two are related.

6. Le Guin uses several rich symbolic settings, for example: Hort Town, the raft village, and the dry land. Choose one of these settings or another that interests you. Write an explanation of some of the meanings Le Guin attempts to convey by means of this setting.

7. There are many ways, religious and nonreligious, for dealing with the fact that all humans must die. Le Guin's view in this novel is that people do not really live on in any conscious form after their deaths. According to Ged, why should people try to live good lives if they are just going to die finally anyway?

8. Do you agree or disagree with the ideas about death and life that Ged expresses? Choose one or two ideas to state clearly, then give and explain your main reasons for agreeing or disagreeing.