000 02445cam a22003733u 4500
001 67497
003 UtSlPG
005 20260610134546.0
006 m
007 cr n
008 260607r20221956utu|||||o|||||||||||||| d
040 _aUtSlPG
041 7 _aen
_2iso639-1
050 4 _aPS
100 1 _aMason, David,
_d1924-1974
245 1 4 _aThe Fool
264 1 _aSalt Lake City, UT :
_bProject Gutenberg,
_c2022
300 _a1 online resource :
_bmultiple file formats
336 _atext
_btxt
_2rdacontent
337 _acomputer
_bc
_2rdamedia
338 _aonline resource
_bcr
_2rdacarrier
490 1 _aProduced from Infinity Science Fiction, August 1956
500 _aRelease date is 2022-02-25
508 _aGreg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
520 _a"The Fool" by David Mason is a science fiction short story written in the mid-20th century. The narrative revolves around Duncan, an inept human teacher on a distant alien planet inhabited by the Tarchiki, a species known for their violent tendencies and brutal customs. The story explores themes of cultural misunderstanding, the folly of idealism, and the unintended consequences of one individual’s actions within a foreign society. In this tale, Duncan, despite his failures and foolishness, attempts to instill Earthly morals and ethics into the Tarchiki, who find humor and absurdity in his teachings. His misguided efforts culminate tragically when he destroys their deity, Kachan, leading to his own death at the hands of a Tarchik high priest. In the aftermath, the Tarchiki, misinterpreting his last words as messages of forgiveness, erect a statue in his honor and adopt him as a new god, creating a religion around his silly antics and misguided ideals. This ironic twist highlights the disparity between Duncan’s intentions and the realities of the Tarchiki's culture, illustrating the complexities and humorous absurdity of cross-cultural encounters. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
534 _pOriginally published:
_cUnited States: Royal Publications, Inc, 1956
653 _aScience fiction
653 _aShort stories
653 _aHuman-alien encounters -- Fiction
653 _aLife on other planets -- Fiction
653 _aReligion -- Fiction
830 0 _aProduced from Infinity Science Fiction, August 1956
856 4 0 _uhttps://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/67497
999 _c108319
_d108319