The Three Laws of Robotics form the basis for this
book and other
Robot Novels by Isaac Asimov.
First
Law : A robot may not injure a
human being or through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
Second Law : A robot must obey the orders given to it by human
beings except when such orders would conflict with the first law.
Third Law : A robot must protect it's own existence as long as
such protection does not conflict with the First or the Second Law.
Dr.Han Fastolfe(first appeared in Caves of Steel),a famous robot
scientist on
Planet Aurora, has been accused of mentally 'freezing' a
humaniform robot(a unique robot type which only he can design and
'freeze') .He openly admits that he is the only person on Aurora with
the capability to do so but denies doing it.The matter is further
complicated by the fact that he is a self-proclaimed moderate and an
advisor to the government there.The extremist Opposition members are
using this situation as a plank to gain the upper hand.Elijah Baley, a
detective on
Earth is called upon via special diplomatic channels to
solve the case.
The book keeps you glued from page one.The narration is excellent.It is
well known that Isaac Asimov was afraid of flying and this phobia had
influenced many of his fiction works.I believe he 'expresses' this fear
via Elijah Baley, giving a detailed description of Baley's unpalatable
experience with the Astrosimulator en route to Aurora.The description
of certains events like Bailey's experience in the 'open' WashRoom on
Aurora makes you feel as if you are right there in his place.
Asimov hardly experimented with vulgarity and sex in the 400 plus books
that he wrote.This is his first novel where the hero(Baley) and the
heroine(Gladia Delmarre, his romantic interest in The Naked Sun) have
sex minus the clinical details.According to Asimov's Memoir, after the
release of this novel in 1983, parents in some town in the state of
Washington found themselves appalled by the book and demanded it be
withdrawn from the school library simply based on heresay.
The book also gives a valuable insight on one possible effect of long
life spans on human psyche and behavior.At the end of the novel the
reader gets a good idea of what life would be like on a technologically
advanced planet with Robots as fellow citizens. The book is an
excellent proof as to why Isaac Asimov was and is The GrandMaster of
Science Fiction.
A person reading this book without having read the earlier Robot series novels needs to know the following atleast:
Spacers
The first human beings to emigrate to space.A millenium
thereafter, they severed political ties with earth and embraced low
population growth as a means for a high standard of living, in
combination with using a large number of Robots as servants.They as
physiologically and intellectually superior to the human beings on
Earth and have a life span of 200-300 years.
Aurora
The first world settled by the spacers.Originally named 'New Earth' it
was later renamed Aurora which means 'Dawn', to signify the dawn of a
new age.
Earthlings have stopped living on the planets surface and are burrowed
down under the planet.It has become impossible for them to live on the
planets surface and are suffering from Agoraphobia or the fear of
public places or of situations often associated with these places.