In the science fiction short story "The Wretched and the Beautiful" by E. Lily Yu, an alien spaceship lands on a popular tourist beach. Inside are strangely shaped alien refugees (the wretched) who claim that they are fleeing for their lives from "a cleansing in their star system." They want peace, a place to rest, and a power source for their translator. Human reaction is mixed, but most people see them as an inconvenience and a burden. The narrator represents the human viewpoint in blaming the aliens for spoiling their vacations. When the aliens are relocated (split up instead of kept together as they request), they are criticized and envied for being taken care of by governments.

When other aliens arrive in sleek silver ships, they are nothing like these refugees. Their shapes become human—only more beautiful. Their obvious physical superiority to the refugee aliens causes humans to believe them when they claim that these supposed refugees are actually escaped criminals that need to be apprehended and returned. The humans comply, as they are glad to be relieved of the burden of their care.

This story is an allegory that is meant to deliver a message about our real world and its attitude towards helpless refugees. This is evident in the introduction to the original magazine appearance of the story in Terraform, in which it is announced that the writer, the artist, and the editor are all donating their fees for the story to the International Rescue Committee, an organization founded in 1933 to assist refugees.

The primary theme of this story is the importance of compassion for those less fortunate. Accompanying this theme is another theme of the inherent selfish nature of humankind; the author clearly brings out how easy it is to ignore the plights of others when we are caught up in our own selfishness. In the story, only a very few people are willing to stand up for the wretched aliens and attempt to unselfishly help them, especially when their physically beautiful oppressors are so smooth and convincing.