The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas

Some inhabitants of a peaceful kingdom cannot tolerate the act of cruelty that underlies its happiness.

The story "Omelas" was first published in New Dimensions 3 (1973), a hard-cover science fiction anthology edited by Robert Silverberg, in October 1973, and the following year it won the prestigious Hugo Award for best short story.

The work was subsequently printed in Le Guin's short story collection "The Wind's Twelve Quarters" (1975).