Review of "Robbie" by Isaac Asimov
Asimov is known for his book "I, Robot" which is a collection of stories about robots. He created his own rules known as "the three laws of Robotics". Which are as follows:
- A robot may not injure a human being, or, through inaction all a human to come to harm.
- A robot must obey the orders given it by humans except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
- A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First and Second Law.
Summary
Outside a house in the country, a little girl named Gloria is playing hide and seek with her robot friend she calls Robbie. When called by her mother to the dinner table, Gloria insists that Robbie stay with her so she can finish telling him the story of Cinderella. Her mother, Mrs. Weston says no and that if Robbie does not leave now, then Gloria cannot play with him for a week. Later that night Mrs. Weston told her husband that she wants to get rid of Robbie because she wants Gloria to grow up normally. Mr. Weston says no and after a few weeks continues to say no to Mrs. Weston's request. Until one day they take Gloria out to a show and when they return Robbie is gone. Clearly upset, Gloria mopes around the house for a month.
In order to get over Robbie, Mrs. Weston convinces her husband to take a trip to New York city. Gloria is excited to go, but only because she thinks they are going to look for Robbie. After a month in the city, taking in shows, and visiting museums and zoos, Gloria is still not happy. Mr. Weston decides to take Gloria on a tour of a robot factory. Mrs. Weston thinks that will help Gloria get over Robbie. When they get there they find robots that are helping build other robots. Gloria looks in the crowd of workers and there she sees her robot, her friend, Robbie. She runs to him but does not see a tractor coming her way. Mr. Weston makes a move towards his daughter but Robbie is closer and rushes at the girl. He then grabs her just before the tractor goes by. Gloria and Robbie hug, and Mrs. Weston finally decides that he can stay.
The story portrays Mrs. Weston as a person who is more strict and concerned about societal pressures. She is not a bad person, she just wants the best for her daughter. Only that she cannot accept that Robbie the robot might be just what Gloria needs. The father comes across as a man who is less concerned because he knows that Robbie makes his daughter happy. In the end, he is the one to take action and give Gloria her friend back. Even though he is described as being a business man, he is not the parent who is stern and restrictive. While being a housewife Mrs. Weston is less warm and caring. This is a good reversal of the traditional characterization of parents and gender roles.
Mrs. Weston raises the idea that people are afraid of robots and that something dangerous could go wrong. This is when Mr. Weston reminds her that the laws of robotics will prevent Robbie from ever harming their daughter. In the end, Robbie does indeed comply with the first law of robotics by preventing Gloria from getting hurt. The other way to look at that is that Robbie cares for Gloria and would have saved her regardless of the laws.
The story does raise a good question, in that how much exposure to technology is too much? At what point will technology turn on people? Robbie is always depicted as a semi-shy robot that enjoys hearing stories and likes to gently play with his friend Gloria. He is never shown as doing anything to disobey his human owners. In the revision of the story, there is a scene in a museum in which Gloria approaches a machine that is called "The Talking Robot". That "robot" is merely a mechanical machine that can talk and spout off random facts and answer simple questions. However, when faced with the notion that it, it not unique but a part of a group known as robots, the machine breaks down. This is the only sign that there could be potential problems for robots. These ideas are explored more in the rest of Asimov's works in "I, Robot".
Thoughts
This is a story that I really enjoy because as a woman it reminds me of when I was a little girl and really attached to my things. I never had a robot, but I did have hamsters and I was so sad every time one died I got a new one to try to replace it. For anyone that has something they love taken away from them suddenly, you can relate to that feeling of sadness that Gloria has. In this case, the story does have happy ending, which is something I like to see in science fiction stories.
The ending was a bit of a surprise and it was nice that the father arranged for a reunion between Gloria and Robbie. I really like that the father doesn't judge Gloria's relationship with Robbie and he just wants his little girl to be happy. Again that appeals to the little girl in me that loves her dad. I also like the settings in the story. First being the country house, then in New York we get the museum and the robot factory. This is a story that moves and travels and in doing so makes it feel real.
The other thing I like is the idea of robots in existence in what feels like a story set in the 1950's. The story states that Robbie is a robot who was built for and sole purpose is to be a companion for a child. At the factory, there is mention that robots can be used as labor workers. So there are many different types of robots that exist in this world. I have not read the "I, Robot" series but if it delves deeper into this world and setting with the laws of robotics, I think I would really enjoy those stories.
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