Project Gutenberg 2019-05-06 Public domain in the USA. 178 Godwin, Tom 1915 1980 Godwin, Thomas William Orban, Paul 1896 1974 The Barbarians Produced from Worlds of If Science Fiction, December 1955 Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net "The Barbarians" by Tom Godwin is a science fiction short story originally published in the mid-20th century. The narrative revolves around the conflict between the highly advanced Tharnarian civilization and the Terrans, who are viewed as barbaric invaders. The story explores themes of cultural superiority, fear of the unknown, and the consequences of stagnation in a once-great civilization. In the story, two Terrans, Bob Randall and Virginia, find themselves on Tharnar after their exploratory mission leads them to a confrontation with the Tharnarians. Captured and sentenced to execution, they represent a youthful race brimming with vitality in stark contrast to the complacent Tharnarians, who have not known war for millennia. As Tal-Karanth, the Supreme Executive of Tharnar, grapples with the decision to execute them, he begins to recognize that the true threat is not the Terrans themselves, but rather the stagnation and decay inherent in his own civilization. Ultimately, Tal-Karanth's decision to spare the Terrans marks a pivotal moment for Tharnar, suggesting that new life and vigor may come from the very "barbarians" they feared. The narrative concludes with the Terrans embarking on their quest for knowledge, signifying hope and the possibility of revitalization for both races. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 80.5 (6th grade). Easy to read. en Science fiction Short stories Human-alien encounters -- Fiction PS Text Category: Short Stories Category: Science-Fiction & Fantasy 72859 2025-06-23T14:51:48.861262 text/html 69318 2019-05-06T18:21:56 text/html 273799 2025-06-23T14:51:51.012248 application/epub+zip 272646 2025-06-23T14:51:49.308286 application/epub+zip 93810 2025-06-23T14:51:49.051269 application/epub+zip 315371 2025-06-23T14:51:52.526295 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 307867 2025-06-23T14:51:50.772243 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 129310 2022-09-26T23:40:57.625485 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 65796 2025-06-23T14:51:48.705261 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 65690 2019-05-06T18:21:56 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 19692 2025-06-23T14:51:52.871233 application/rdf+xml 30978 2025-06-23T14:51:49.146273 image/jpeg 5327 2025-06-23T14:51:49.098251 image/jpeg 587949 2019-05-06T18:21:58 application/octet-stream application/zip 24371 2019-05-06T18:21:56 application/octet-stream application/zip 590448 2025-06-23T14:51:48.877321 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia