The novel has eight chapters, narrated by each of the three main characters in turn. Davidson narrates chapters 1, 4, and 7; Selver narrates chapters 2, 6, and 8; and Lyubov narrates chapters 3 and 5.[50] This alternation emphasizes both the differences between the characters and their isolation within their societies. Lyubov and Davidson's chapters are narrated from a limited omniscient point of view, making their chapters seem like internal monologues.[50] Davidson's belief in the inferiority of the Athsheans and his adversarial attitude towards the planet are directly presented to the reader, along with Lyubov's struggle to do his job dispassionately while following his personal morality.[50] In contrast, Selver's chapters are written from a truly omniscient point of view, allowing Le Guin to give the reader information about the planet and its people. Selver has no extensive monologues; instead, several other Athsheans also feature prominently in his chapters.[50]
Although the novel is an anti-war novel portraying a military conflict, unusually, it does not describe most of the action, planning, and strategy. Instead, most of the action happens off the page, and the novel focuses on the decisions being made about the conflict in the minds of the principal characters.[50] The language used within each chapter shifts with the protagonist, revealing the way they think about the events of the book. Davidson's monologues are filled with the derogatory language he uses; the Athsheans are referred to by the slang term "creechie", the women in the colony are "prime human stock," and so forth.[50]
Le Guin herself later said she was unhappy with the "strident" tone of the novel. She had been troubled by the Vietnam War, but was living in London when she wrote the novel, cut off from the anti-war movement she had been a part of in Oregon. Written in these circumstances, The Word for World is Forest became what Le Guin called a "preachment".[50] She stated that writing the book was like "taking dictation from a boss with ulcers".[61] She said that she had wanted to write about forests and dreaming, but that the "boss" had made her write instead about ecological destruction.[61] Charlotte Spivack stated that the book was an "angry work", that ended on a note of futility and despair.[21]
