The Bicentennial Man

A novelette by Isaac Asimov 

Isaac Asimov is one of the leading American writers in the field of science fiction literature. Having a rich scientific education, this author managed to successfully combine literary fiction and scientific anticipation, offering in his writings, at the same time, the scientific coherence necessary for the SF (science-fiction) branch and a gentle but feverish state of the epic thread.

"The Bicentennial Man" is a short novella by the author in question that was originally published in 1976 in English, along with other writings of his in a collection of texts. This writing was positively appreciated by the literary critics and of course, by the reading fans, it also won in 1977 two prizes, namely: the Nebula Award for the best novelette and the Hugo Award for the best novelette.

In this work, the author portrays a world, an epoch and a society formed by the communion of the biological intellect with the artificial one. It is not specified when exactly the events contained in the opera take place, but we find out that the world went through extraordinary technological revolutions so that many of the impossible achievements of the twentieth century were now a commonplace fact, well established in the society described by the short novella. The whole story revolves around the character Andrew Martin. He is a beloved member of the Martin family, in whose bosom he will live all his life and even inherit their possessions after the last inbred heir dies. Andrew Martin will live exactly two hundred years, hence the title of the book: "The Bicentennial Man". He will begin his life story as a humble servant of the Martin family but will progress rapidly from this status to that of family friend and then family member. Respected and loved by all the people of the Martin house, he will always have the right to his own opinion and at the same time he will be listened to and supported.

Andrew Martin will become an avid researcher of human consciousness. This subject as well as its attributes such as human freedom, the human condition have been thoroughly researched by Andrew for six human generations or even more. From all this he formed an ideal, an ideal which he pursued with such adoration that it sometimes seemed a diabolical adoration, as this paragraph also records:

"But perhaps you can hint that by seeing me they may head off a campaign by Feingold and Martin to strengthen the rights of robots further."

"Wouldn't that be a lie, Andrew?"

"Yes, Paul, and I can't tell one. That is why you must call."

"Ah, you can't lie, but you can urge me to tell a lie, is that it? You're getting more human all the time, Andrew."

If it is not yet clear then I must mention that Andrew Martin is a robot, a humanoid robot that has its own consciousness and free will. The paragraph states that Andrew Martin asks for the favor of his friend Paul to tell a lie in his place because he cannot do so. The situation in question is linked to the three fundamental laws of robotics, which any robot had to comply unconditionally in that society.

The Three Laws of Robotics

1. A robot may not injure a human being, or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.

2. A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.

3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

Andrew's life had several stages that pervaded by virtue of his intention to transform the robot itself into a de jure recognized man in human society. He started as a metal robot and fought to gain his individual freedom as against humans or other robots as well as certain rights such as right to human non-violence for robots. Having these prerogatives worthy until then only of the human race, he continued by studying robobiology (prosthetics), by writing a history of robots or by influencing public opinion in legislative matters. The second stage of his life began when he achieved the success of becoming an android, ie a robot endowed with a body made of synthetic human tissues, in other words, a robot that in appearance could not be very different from a real human individual. The third stage of Andrew's life takes place as this android "lives" with the impetuous need to become human in the smallest details, be they of a physiological or psychological nature, as the given fragment relates:

"Perhaps, if I did not expect to go further. Self cleaning is not impossible. In fact, I am working on a device that will deal with solid food that may be expected to contain incombustible fractions- indigestible matter, so to speak, that will have to be discarded."

"You would then have to develop an anus."

"Or the equivalent."

"What else, Andrew?"

"Everything else."

"Genitalia, too?"

"Insofar as they will fit my plans. My body is a canvas on which I intend to draw-"

Magdescu waited for the sentence to he completed, and when it seemed that it would not be, he completed it himself. "A man?"

"We shall see," Andrew said.

"That's a puny ambition, Andrew. You're better than a man. You've gone downhill from the moment you opted to become organic."

"My brain has not suffered."

"No, it hasn't. I'll grant you that. But, Andrew, the whole new breakthrough in prosthetic devices made possible by your patents is being marketed under your name. You're recognized as the inventor and you're being honored for it- as you should be. Why play further games with your body?"

Andrew did not answer.

The third (last) stage of Andrew's life continues with his mania to become accepted into society as a human being. He initiates a new campaign to influence public opinion in this matter, but he faces immeasurable opposition so that those he asks for help express their skepticism about the cause he is fighting for. Now his robot intelligence was being tested because he had to understand human nature in order to fulfill his cause. In the end, here's what Andrew made when he had a ridiculous chance of success:

Li-hsing said, "The final vote will come this week, Andrew. I've been able to delay it no longer, and we must lose. And that will be it, Andrew."

"I am grateful for your skill at delay. It gave me the time I needed, and I took the gamble I had to."

"What gamble is this?" Li-hsing asked with open concern.

"I couldn't tell you, or even the people at Feingold and Martin. I was sure I would be stopped. See here, if it is the brain that is at issue, isn't the greatest difference of all the matter of immortality. Who really cares what a brain looks like or is built of or how it was formed. What matters is that human brain cells die; must die. Even if every other organ in the body is maintained or replaced, the brain cells, which cannot be replaced without changing and therefore killing the personality, must eventually die.

"My own positronic pathways have lasted nearly two centuries without perceptible change, and can last for centuries more. Isn't that the fundamental barrier? Human beings can tolerate an immortal robot, for it doesn't matter how long a machine lasts, but they cannot tolerate an immortal human being since their own mortality is endurable only so long as it is universal. And for that reason they won't make me a human being."

What Andrew tells above is actually the personal experience of a revelation. And following this revelation he decides to undergo an irreversible operation on his brain by which his immortal capacity will be annulled. Within a year his robot brain will progressively deteriorate and all the functions of his android body will cease and then he will die. Here is how he justifies this radical decision:

"What is it you're leading up to, Andrew?" Li-hsing asked.

"I have removed that problem. Decades ago, my positronic brain was connected to organic nerves. Now, one last operation has arranged that connection in such a way that slowly- quite slowly- the potential is being drained from my pathways."

Li-hsing's finely wrinkled face showed no expression for a moment. Then her lips tightened. "Do you mean you've arranged to die, Andrew? You can't have. That violates the Third Law."

"No," said Andrew, "I have chosen between the death of my body and the death of my aspirations and desires. To have let my body live at the cost of the greater death is what would have violated the Third Law."

Li-hsing seized his arm as though she were about to shake him. She stopped herself. "Andrew, it won't work! Change it back."

"It can't be done. Too much damage was done. I have a year to live more or less. I will last through the two-hundredth anniversary of my construction. I was weak enough to arrange that."

"How can it be worth it? Andrew, you're a fool."

"If it brings me humanity, that will be worth it. If it doesn't, it will bring an end to striving and that will be worth it, too."

Andrew Martin, the immortal robot who voluntarily became a mortal man turns two hundred years old, while in his artificial mind he tries to keep the thought that fascinated and intrigued him the most throughout the two centuries - "Man!". Being in the agony of death, in a wheelchair, semi-conscious and trembling, he attends the ceremony dedicated to him and there, finally, he is honored with the title of Bicentennial Man by the President of the Earth himself.