I, Robot (Isaac Asimov, 1950)

[madali]

I, Robot (Isaac Asimov, 1950)

In my world, there are two kinds of people in this world. Those who love Asimov and everyone else, and everyone else suck balls for not loving Asimov, and that is why I’m not totally against mass genocide.

The most frustrating thing for me about science-fiction books/movies is that science is always the bad guy. The morale of their story seems to always be that there are some things we shouldn’t know or man shouldn’t play God or some other bullshit. In science-fiction, robots are always either props, become evil, or want to know the true meaning of love.

In “I, Robots”, Asimov tells the tale of the introduction of robots on earth in space of a few decades and his robots are not the cliché of the above. All the robots have to adhere to the Laws of Robotics, which are imprinted on every robot’s manufactured brain,

1.   A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
2.   A robot must obey orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
3.   A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

The stories are usually based on the application on these laws but these laws are never broken. Asimov stays true to his own style and doesn’t use easy plot devices by making robots that want to kill humans. His stories are for the most part like small puzzles where the character has to figure out why something is going wrong and through out all of the stories, Asimov writes in a simple and charming manner. There is just a…niceness to his style that I have always been in love with.

4/5

[theoddball]

One of my favorite book series of all time.

[madali]

We do seem  to have a few Asimov fans here!

[theoddball]

Yes. Everyone else sucks balls, of course.

[madali]

They'll be against the wall when the revolution comes...

[theoddball]

Quoting some Radiohead there, I see.

[madali]

That didnt originate from Radiohead!

[theoddball]

I KNOW! I just happened to be listening to them while reading your post.

So you're a Douglas Adams fan too?

[madali]

Of course

[fizz]

Good book this, and made the movie look so embarrassing in comparison.

[shariqq]

embaressing is too pacified a word. The movie, except for the title and a character's name, has absolutely no Asimov's I, Robot in it.

Asimov's Robot series (I, robot + The Complete Robot + Robot Dreams) are the best sci-fi books ever written featuring robots in them. The series then flows into the 4 detective novels of Elijah Bailey which only makes things better. The Empre and Foundation series themselves continue to inhabit the entire universe over 21 books or more to make this the best fictional universe I have ever been to - Middleearth and Galactic Empire included.

[madali]

its a shame that no good movie adaptation has ever been made of Asimov's titles

[shariqq]

I've just finished reading Asomiv's Gold. It's a good book as any of Asimov's, although  not his best. It's got three sections:
- Part One: The Final Stories -- a collection of arbitary short stories, some with some without robots. Some are only 1 page long.
- Part Two: On Science Fiction  -- a bunch of essays about SF itself.
- Part Three: On Writing Science Fiction -- Another bunch of essays, these about Asimov's approach to writing sci-fi and the different themes involved.

It's a good book for Asimov fans to read, to add to their collection and knowedge of his literature. Most importantly, i fyou haven't read some new Asimov stuff for sometime, it just brings back the fire-in-the-belly that the other books gave on first read.

After finishing it, I've embarked on a millenia-long journey, starting from Elijah Baley's intro to R. Daneel Oliwav that'll go on right to the time Daneel Olivaw is found in his moon base by Trevize.

[madali]

I need to reread the Foundations again

[shariqq]

I took your above comment from a few months ago to heart.

I've re-read the Robot books - from I, Robot to Robot Dreams. I've just completed the 4 detective novels (Caves of Steel, The Naked Sun, Robots of Dawn, Robots & Empire). I will be starting with the Empire series now, and then on to the whole set of Foundation books.

Btw, madali, if you haven't yet read it, read Mirror Image. It is a short story featuring Elijah Baley and R. Daneel Olivaw that takes place between The Naked Sun and Robots of Dawn.