Blessed are the meek

"Blessed are the meek" by G. C. Edmondson is a mid-20th century science fiction story that looks at what it means to be a servant, set on a far-off planet where a human crew, led by Griffin, meets a race of humanoids including one called Joe. As the humans dig into the planet and get to know these humanoids, they discover Joe's people have been servants for thousands of years, switching between different masters. The tale follows Griffin as he tries to understand the beliefs of Joe's people, who believe that just living and continuing their race is the most important thing, so they put up with being servants, which brings up questions about freedom and whether technology or personal choice is more important, making the reader consider what impact historical dominance and submission has on people.