Chapter 2 Summary and Analysis

Chapter 2 - The author peers into a hypothetical near future, in which humans launch an ocean-liner-sized rocketship toward a distant planet. This rocket, due to photon propulsion, is able to travel up to 99% the speed of light. It arrives at a planet with conditions similar to Earth. The rocket has exhausted its fuel, thus the crew must land and find "fissionable material" from which to create fuel. Once landed, they encounter humanoid "semi-savages" (very much like our own ancestors), who can only explain these strange visitors and their seemingly miraculous vehicles and powers as "gods." The author further foresees that the rocketship crew teaches the semi-savages rudimentary tenets of civilization and agriculture. The crew attempts to explain that they are not gods but only an advanced civilization, but this is far beyond the comprehension of the simple semi-savage, and he maintains...