Compare/Contrast: I, Robot & Robot Dreams
Sonya Cisneros
HUMN424 Science Fiction
Devry University
Robots or the idea of a machine that can emulate human movements has been a fascination with man. Numerous films and stories have been dedicated to this fascination. One particular writer, Issac Asimov, wrote a series of books dedicated to robots and their development.
In Robot Dreams, the plot is based on the fact the robot Elvex has had a dream. This dream came about because Dr. Linda Rash made changes to the robots positronic brain. The changes made the robot Elvex aware of itself. As in the film, I,Robot, Sonny has became aware of itself because Dr. Lanning created Sonny to do this. Although the plot in the short story focuses on the one robot, the plot of the film is more complex in that it has two robots that become aware, one that is made to be self aware and one that develops its self awareness. It becomes good vs. evil.
In the film there are several characters that contribute to the story. The main character Del Spooner has a deep dislike for robots and does not trust them. Although his arm, shoulder and some of his chest have been replaced with robotic type parts. He doesn’t like the idea of the number robots being injected into every aspect of human society. He feels that the robots will eventually turn bad and is very suspicious of them. Other characters such as Susan Calvin, Lawrence Robertson, and Dr. Lanning believe the robots are safe and are needed to help society. In the short story there are only three characters mentioned Dr. Linda Rash, Dr. Susan Calvin and Elvex. Both doctors are fascinated that the robot had a dream, but at the same time seem to be afraid. This is apparent when Dr Calvin states “As we would say of a human being, not consciously. But who would have thought there was an unconscious layer beneath the obvious positronic brain paths, a layer that was necessarily under the control of the Three Law? What might...