The Humanoids is a 1948 dystopian science fiction novel by Jack Williamson.[1] The novel expands on the hugely influential and award-winning novelette "With Folded Hands..." that Williamson published in the celebrated pulp magazine Astounding Science-Fiction in 1947.[2] Both works tell the story of robots called humanoids, so perfect and efficient that human beings are left with nothing to do, and life is reduced to meaninglessness.[3] Williamson followed with a sequel, The Humanoid Touch, published in 1980.[4]

Background

The story takes place thousands of years in the future when humankind has spread out and settled much of the galaxy. A powerful new technology called rhodomagnetics has emerged.[5] On a distant planet called Wing IV, the new science resulted in weapons that wiped out most of the population. The inventor, wracked with guilt, then used rhodomagnetics to build the "humanoids", perfect sleek black androids, all identical and all controlled by a central transmitter on Wing IV.[6] He imbued them with a Prime Directive: "To Serve and Obey, And Guard Men From Harm". But the robots were too powerful and their prime directive robbed human life of meaning wherever they went. They are rapidly spreading throughout the galaxy, and they appear to be irresistible.[7]

Plot

On an unnamed planet a physicist named Forester heads a secret government project tasked with creating a "rhodomagnetic bomb" to stave off an invasion by a neighboring planetary system. When the humanoids arrive on his world they gently but relentlessly enforce their prime directive. Forester's research is halted because it is considered too dangerous. Everything new or exciting is utterly forbidden if it has even the slightest potential of harming human beings. When his wife complains of boredom, the humanoids respond by giving her a mind-erasing drug, which leaves her lobotomized but "happy". Horrified, Forester joins a secret group of rebels.[7]

The rebels are misfits who have "paraphysical" powers derived from the theory of rhodomagnetics. Their abilities include teleportation, telekinesis and telepathy. The teleportation is so effective that individual members are even able to transport to distant parts of the universe. They resolve to go to Wing !V, hack into the central humanoid computer, and change or eliminate the Prime Directive. Despite the rebel groups paraphysical powers, they ultimately fail in toppling the humanoid hegemony.

Themes

The robots of the story interpret their Prime Directive too literally and end up turning people into passive sheep. They don't permit any form of risk-taking, or indeed, anything new or exciting.[1] Even solitude is off limits because unaccompanied humans might accidentally hurt themselves. This leads to a stifling of the human spirit, freedom, and creativity. Humans are not allowed to be human. Jack Williamson summed it up by noting, "A perfect machine would prove to be perfectly destructive."[8] and that "The best possible machines, designed with the best of intentions, become the ultimate horror".[5]

The story is a warning that we should be careful not to let technology become so powerful that it controls us, and that we should not blindly accept the idea of a utopian society without thinking about what it might mean for the quality of human life. In an interview Jack Williamson said, "The ending of the novel was to be a tragic conclusion seen from the viewpoint of the people who had been brainwashed into thinking they were happy. But my ending proved to be ambiguous and unsatisfactory. I got reviews from probably 50 different newspapers, and no two reviewers read the ending in the same way. In my sequel, The Humanoid Touch,[4] I tried to work out an alternative."[8]

Reception

Fantasy Literature said, "It is a finely written, suspenseful, action-packed yarn that is at the same time chock-full of interesting scientific speculations. It has been called Williamson’s “greatest science fiction novel."[2] A study by the University of Michigan concluded, "Jack Williamson's novel, The Humanoids (1949), is considered to be one of the most important stories about robots and humanity.[5] Damon Knight said, "Without doubt one of the most important science-fantasy books of its decade".[7]

References

  1. 1 2 The Humanoids by Jack Williamson Kirkus Reviews, May 19, 2010
  2. 1 2 The Humanoids Fantasy Literature
  3. ↑ The Work of Jack Williamson: An Annotated Bibliography and Guide by Richard A. Hauptmann, NESFA Press, August 1998, ISBN 1-886778-12-4
  4. 1 2 The Humanoid Touch: by Jack Williamson LibraryThing
  5. 1 2 3 Robots in Literature University of Michigan
  6. ↑ Jack Williamson: The Humanoids Goodreads
  7. 1 2 3 The Humanoids by Jack Williamson Macmillan ISBN 9780312852535
  8. 1 2 Jack Williamson interviewed by Larry McCaffrey, July 1991.

See also

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