1954 short stories (Book Guide)

Source: Wikipedia. Commentary (stories not included). Pages: 23. Chapters: Genius of the Species, The Last of the Masters, Adjustment Team, The Cold Equations, Sucker Bait, The Golden Man, The Turning Wheel, Upon the Dull Earth, All Summer in a Day, Shell Game, The Immortal Bard, Breakfast at Twilight, Lamb to the Slaughter, Fondly Fahrenheit, Meddler, The Return, The Way Up to Heaven, The Houses of Iszm, The Destructors, It's Such a Beautiful Day, A World of Talent, Sales Pitch, The Short Happy Life of the Brown Oxford, A Temple of the Holy Ghost, A Circle in the Fire, The Adventure of the Deptford Horror, The Pause, Prize Ship, The Five-Forty-Eight, The Adventure of the Highgate Miracle, The Father-thing, Let's Not, Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, Exhibit Piece, Strange Eden, The Blue Film, The Crawlers. Excerpt: "The Last of the Masters" (aka "Protection Agency") is a science fiction novelette by Philip K. Dick. The original manuscript of the story was received by the Scott Meredith Literary Agency on July 15, 1953, and the story was published by the Hanro Corporation in the final issue of Orbit Science Fiction in 1954. It has since been reprinted in several Philip K. Dick story collections, beginning with The Golden Man in 1980. "The Last of the Masters" depicts a society 200 years after a global anarchist revolution has toppled the national governments of the world (the exact year is unstated). Civilization has stagnated due to the loss of scientific knowledge and industry during the now-legendary revolt. Elsewhere, the last state, governing a highly centralized and efficient society, conceals itself from the Anarchist League, a global militia preventing the recreation of any government. When three agents of the League are sent to investigate rumors of the microstate's existence, the government arranges for them to be killed, leading to the death of one and the capture of another. Tensions rapidly escalate after the agents of the state realize that the third has escaped. Assuming he will report the state's existence, the government mobilizes for total war. In actuality, the surviving anarchist elects to attempt his comrades' rescue and assassinate the head of state: the last surviving "government robot". The primary theme of the story is the conflict between anarchism and statism, the political and ethical dimensions of which are explored through the characters' dialogue. Though the attention the story received was limited prior to the author's death in 1982, it has since seen greater circulation in Philip K. Dick story collections, and has been reviewed and analyzed for its postmodern critique of technology and its political implications. The title character, Bors, a 200-year-old "government integration robot"-and the last in existence-awakens after a routine maintenance