Beyond the Sixth Stage: Moral Development and the Limits of Justice in Ursula K. Le Guin's ‘The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas

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Published ID: IJNRD2607220

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Astha

Keywords: Kohlberg, moral development, Heinz dilemma, Ursula K. Le Guin, Omelas, moral reasoning, higher-level morality, the idea that the good of the majority can justify harm to a few, ethics of refusal, literature and psychology

Abstract Ursula K. Le Guin’s short story “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” (1973) presents a complex moral issue at the core of a seemingly perfect society: the happiness of an entire city is based on the continuous suffering of one child who is left in terrible conditions. This paper studies the story using Lawrence Kohlberg’s theory of moral development, starting with the famous Heinz dilemma. While many readers interpret the story as a critique of the idea that the good of the majority can justify harm to a few, this study suggests that Kohlberg’s approach offers a different way of looking at the moral reasoning behind the citizens' choices. The townspeople who stay in Omelas are shown to think in ways that reflect conventional and early higher-level moral reasoning, using social order and rationalised social contracts to justify the suffering of the child. The ones who leave the city appear to represent the highest stage of moral reasoning, based on universal ethical principles. However, Le Guin does not give a clear explanation of where they go or why they leave, which challenges Kohlberg’s model. The paper concludes that the story both fits and questions Kohlberg’s framework, suggesting that some moral responses cannot be neatly categorised. This analysis adds to the use of moral development theory in literature while highlighting the limits of such approaches in accounting for complex moral choices.

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Astha (July-2026). Beyond the Sixth Stage: Moral Development and the Limits of Justice in Ursula K. Le Guin's ‘The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF NOVEL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT, 11(7), c192-c194. https://ijnrd.org/papers/IJNRD2607220.pdf

Volume 11 Issue 7, July-2026

Pages : c192-c194

Paper Reg. ID: IJNRD_327023

Published Paper Id: IJNRD2607220

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Author Type: Indian Author

Country: South Delhi, Delhi, India

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