R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots)

By Karel Čapek

We have Czech writer Karel Čapek to thank for the invention of the word robot and generally for the introduction of the idea of artificial intelligence to the world of literature. His play, "R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots)" was first performed in 1921 and was an instant success. While the "robots" of the play could be more accurately described as cyborgs, Čapek's influence on the science fiction genre with this play would be profound. "R.U.R." describes a future where robots have become universal and all of humanity is now dependent on the labor that they provide. Everything is perfect until the robot's are stirred into revolt. "R.U.R." is Čapek's prophetic and dark dystopian vision of the future which would solidify his place in literary history.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Digireads.com Publishing
• Release date: Jan 1, 2014
• ISBN: 9781420949681

Karel Čapek

Karel Capek was born in 1890 in Czechoslovakia. He was interested in visual art as a teenager and studied philosophy and aesthetics in Prague. During WWI he was exempt from military service because of spinal problems and became a journalist. He campaigned against the rise of communism and in the 1930s his writing became increasingly anti-fascist. He started writing fiction with his brother Josef, a successful painter, and went on to publish science-fiction novels, for which he is best known, as well as detective stories, plays and a singular book on gardening, The Gardener’s Year. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize for Literature several times and the Czech PEN Club created a literary award in his name. He died of pneumonia in 1938.

Book preview

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R.U.R. (ROSSUM'S UNIVERSAL ROBOTS)

BY KAREL ČAPEK

TRANSLATED BY PAUL SELVER AND NIGEL PLAYFAIR

Print ISBN 13: 978-1-4209-4967-4

eBook ISBN 13: 978-1-4209-4968-1

This edition copyright © 2014

Please visit www.digireads.com

CONTENTS

CHARACTERS

ACT I.

ACT II.

ACT III.

EPILOGUE.

ROBOTS OF THE WORLD! THE POWER OF MAN HAS FALLEN!

A NEW WORLD HAS ARISEN: THE RULE OF THE ROBOTS!

MARCH!

CHARACTERS

HARRY DOMIN

SULLA

MARIUS

HELENA GLORY

DR. GALL.

MR. FABRY

DR. HALLEMEIER

MR. ALQUIST

CONSUL BUSMAN

NANA

RADIUS

A SERVANT

HELENA

PRIMUS

FIRST ROBOT

SECOND ROBOT

THIRD ROBOT

FOURTH ROBOT

ACT I.

[Central office of the factory of Rossum's Universal Robots.]

[Entrance on the right. The windows on the front wall look out on the rows of factory chimneys. On the left more managing departments. DOMIN is sitting in the revolving chair at a large American writing table. On the left-hand wall large maps showing steamship and railroad routes. On the right- hand wall are fastened printed placards. ("Robot's Cheapest Labor," etc.) In contrast to these wall fittings, the floor is covered with a splendid Turkish carpet, a sofa, leather armchair, and filing cabinets. At a desk near the windows SULLA is typing letters.]

DOMIN. [dictating.] Ready?

SULLA. Yes.

DOMIN. To E. M. McVicker and Co., Southampton, England. We undertake no guarantee for goods damaged in transit. As soon as the consignment was taken on board we drew your captain's attention to the fact that the vessel was unsuitable for the transport of Robots, and we are therefore not responsible for spoiled freight. We beg to remain for Rossum's Universal Robots. Yours truly.

[SULLA, who has sat motionless during dictation, now types rapidly for a few seconds, then stops, withdrawing the completed letter.]

Ready?

SULLA. Yes.

DOMIN. Another letter. To the E. B. Huyson Agency, New York, U.S.A. We beg to acknowledge receipt of order for five thousand Robots. As you are sending your own vessel, please dispatch as cargo equal quantities of soft and hard coal for R. U. R., the same to be credited as part payment of the amount due to us. We beg to remain, for Rossum's Universal Robots. Yours truly.

[SULLA repeats the rapid typing.]

Ready?

SULLA. Yes.

DOMIN. Another letter. Friedrichswerks, Hamburg, Germany. We beg to acknowledge receipt of order for fifteen thousand Robots.

[Telephone rings.]

Hello! This is the Central Office. Yes. Certainly. Well, send them a wire. Good.

[Hangs up telephone.]

Where did I leave off?

SULLA. We beg to acknowledge receipt of order for fifteen thousand Robots.

DOMIN. Fifteen thousand R. Fifteen thousand R.

[Enter MARIUS.]

Well, what is it?

MARIUS. There's a lady, sir, asking to see you.

DOMIN. A lady? Who is she?

MARIUS. I don't know, sir. She brings this card of introduction.

DOMIN. [reads the card.] Ah, from President Glory. Ask her to come in.

MARIUS. Please step this way.

[Enter HELENA GLORY. Exit MARIUS.]

HELENA. How do you do?

DOMIN. How do you do.

[Standing up.]

What can I do for you?

HELENA. You are Mr. Domin, the General Manager.

DOMIN. I am.

HELENA. I have come—

DOMIN. With President Glory's card. That is quite sufficient.

HELENA. President Glory is my father. I am Helena Glory.

DOMIN. Miss Glory, this is such a great honor for us to be allowed to—welcome our great President's daughter, that—

HELENA. That you can't show me the door?

DOMIN. Please sit down. Sulla, you may go.

[Exit SULLA. Sitting down.]

How can I be of service to you, Miss Glory?

HELENA. I have come—

DOMIN. To have a look at our famous works where people are manufactured. Like all visitors. Well, there is no objection.

HELENA. I thought it was forbidden to—

DOMIN. To enter the factory. Yes, of course. Everybody comes here with someone's visiting card, Miss Glory.

HELENA. And you show them—

DOMIN. Only certain things. The manufacture of artificial people is a secret process.

HELENA. If you only knew how enormously that—

DOMIN. Interests me. Europe's talking about nothing else.

HELENA. Why don't you let me finish speaking?

DOMIN. I beg your pardon. Did you want to say something different?

HELENA. I only wanted to ask—

DOMIN. Whether I could make a special exception in your case and show you our factory. Why, certainly Miss Glory.

HELENA. How do you know I wanted to say that?

DOMIN. They all do. But we shall consider it a special honor to show you more than we do the rest.

HELENA. Thank you.

DOMIN. But you must agree not to divulge the least...

HELENA. [standing up and giving him her hand.] My word of honor.

DOMIN. Thank you. Won't you raise your veil?

HELENA. Of course. You want to see whether I'm a spy or not. I beg your pardon.

DOMIN. What is it?

HELENA. Would you mind releasing my hand?

DOMIN. [releasing it.] I beg your pardon.

HELENA. [raising her veil.] How cautious you have to be here, don't you?

DOMIN. [observing her with deep interest.] Hm, of course—we—that is—

HELENA. But what is it? What's the matter?

DOMIN. I'm remarkably pleased. Did you have a pleasant crossing?

HELENA. Yes.

DOMIN. No difficulty?

HELENA. Why?

DOMIN. What I mean to say is—you're so young.

Reviews for R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots)

[nosajeel · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The origin of the word robots, although they are not so much robots as golems. Only there are lots and lots and lots of them -- eventually millions. It all starts out well but ends epicly badly. It suffers somewhat from a certain didacticism about technology, Communism, and other themes, that I don't remember in War with the Newts and other Capek books. That said, it is a classic that I've been meaning to read for a long time and am glad I finally got around to it.

[john257hopper · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is a science fiction play published in the 1930s which is most famous for first coining the word "robot" to describe an artificial man or woman. The robots produced by Rossum's Universal Robots are not made of metal or plastic though (despite the cover of this SF Masterworks edition), but with a mysterious substance discovered by the company's founder which behaves exactly like living protoplasm but which has a different chemical composition. These robots have flesh, bones and organs composed of this alternative substance, so one might say they are a slightly different species of human, rather than what we would understand today by the word "robot" (which comes from the Slavic root "rob/rab" which relates to work, worker, slave). The play covers a wide range of ethical issues raised by the mass production of these artificial men and women, which have been further developed of course by many other writers, in particular Isaac Asimov. Asimov's three laws of robotics don't apply here, as the robots decide they are superior to humans and take over, killing their former masters. There is a whole spectrum of high drama and tragedy here in this fairly short three act play. Deservedly a seminal science fiction text.

[sarahehwilson · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Brilliant, bizarre play. The first "cylons" (as in Battlestar Galactica) and a wicked skewering of both capitalism and communism, from 1920s Czechlands.

[jasonlf · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The origin of the word robots, although they are not so much robots as golems. Only there are lots and lots and lots of them -- eventually millions. It all starts out well but ends epicly badly. It suffers somewhat from a certain didacticism about technology, Communism, and other themes, that I don't remember in War with the Newts and other Capek books. That said, it is a classic that I've been meaning to read for a long time and am glad I finally got around to it.

[nx74defiant · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This play is credited as the first use of the term as robot.Since it is a play a lot of the the action of the revolt and attack of the robots happens off stage.The way all the men fall in love with Helena is so over the top I see it as played for laughs.You see the origin of a lot of the troupes of the genre set up here.

[gbill_7 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It’s fascinating to me that R.U.R. was written in 1920, and is highly relevant nearly one hundred years later, with the very real concerns of robots replacing human workers and Artificial Intelligence posing a possible threat to the human race in the news. In addition to using the play to make comments about humanity, and the dehumanizing effects of science and mass manufacturing, Karel Čapek was clearly ahead of his time. Right up there with his masterpiece ‘War With The Newts’, and very enjoyable.