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R.U.R.—written in 1920, premiered in Prague in 1921, and first performed in New York in 1922—garnered worldwide acclaim for its author and popularized the word robot. Mass-produced as efficient laborers to serve man, Capek’s Robots are an android product—they remember everything but think of nothing new. But the Utopian life they provide ultimately lacks meaning, and the humans they serve stop reproducing. When the Robots revolt, killing all but one of their masters, they must strain to learn the secret of self-duplication. It is not until two Robots fall in love and are christened “Adam” and “Eve” by the last surviving human that Nature emerges triumphant.

#outer_postBodyPS { display: none; } #psGradient { display: none; } #psPlaceHolder { display: none; } #psExpand { display: none; } R.U.R.—written in 1920, premiered in Prague in 1921, and first performed in New York in 1922—garnered worldwide acclaim for its author and popularized the word robot. Mass-produced as efficient laborers to serve man, Capek’s Robots are an android product—they remember everything but think of nothing new. But the Utopian life they provide ultimately lacks meaning, and the humans they serve stop reproducing. When the Robots revolt, killing all but one of their masters, they must strain to learn the secret of self-duplication. It is not until two Robots fall in love and are christened “Adam” and “Eve” by the last surviving human that Nature emerges triumphant.

Editorial Reviews

Review

(in full R.U.R.: Rossum's Universal Robots) Drama in three acts by Karel Capek, published in 1920 and performed in 1921. This cautionary play, for which Capek invented the word "robot" (derived from the Czech word for forced labor), involves a scientist named Rossum who discovers the secret of creating humanlike machines. He establishes a factory to produce and distribute these mechanisms worldwide. Another scientist decides to make the robots more human, which he does by gradually adding such traits as the capacity to feel pain. Years later, the robots, who were created to serve humans, have come to dominate them completely. -- The Merriam-Webster Encyclopedia of Literature

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: Czech

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Product Details

File Size: 218 KB
Print Length: 116 pages
Page Numbers Source ISBN: 0141182083
Publisher: Penguin Classic (March 30, 2004)
Sold by: Penguin Group (USA) LLC
Language: English
ASIN: B001M0BUOM
Text-to-Speech: Enabled

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Lending: Not Enabled
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #334,973 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

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22 of 24 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars I have thought some of Nature's journeymen had made men April 7, 2005

By Leonard Fleisig VINE VOICE

Format:Paperback

and not made them well, they imitated humanity so abominably. Hamlet, Act iii, scene 2.

The ultimate problem in Karel Capek's extraordinary play, R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots) is that the robots created by humanity's journeymen imitated humanity so abominably well.

Written in 1920 and first produced in 1921 RUR opened to critical worldwide acclaim. Although RUR is best remembered for introducing the word robot into the lexicon (the word was coined by Karel's brother and some time collaborator Josef Capek) it is more a somber reflection on humanity than on the emergence of robots.

The play opens on an unnamed island at some point in time after 1920 where lifelike robots are being produced by Rossum's Universal Robots. The officers of the corporation meet a young lady, Helena, who has come to the island on behalf of the League of Humanity, determined to help liberate these robots from the inhumane working conditions that confront them. The executives fill Helena in on the history of the company, particularly the father-son team of Rossums that developed the first robots. Capek makes it a point to describe the difference between the father and the son. The father was a "scientific materialist" whose desire to create an imitation of man grew out of his wish to prove that God was unnecessary. The son thought this was both silly and inefficient and sought nothing more than to produce robots capable of working non-stop.

Each of the following scenes takes place at some unspecified point in the future. The millions of robots produced take on all the industrial and agricultural work performed formerly by men and women. This leads to unintended consequences. First, the lack of necessity (the need to work) in everyday life leads to a few worker revolts. This causes various governments to arm the robots to quell the resulting riots. Further, these governments decide that all future wars will be fought by robots. As one might imagine, a well-trained robot-militia is not conducive to the future health and welfare of the human race. Second, the lack of work and the general lack of purposefulness of life render humans incapable of reproducing.

As the play nears its end, the robots have united and have set out to destroy the human race. Clearly, the robots have learned to think for themselves and as such they have taken on (or evolved into) something that more closely resembles the human race. The fact that the robots behave so abominably does not belie this similarity to their human creators. The problem the robots face is that they do not have the inherent capacity to reproduce (they have a shelf-life a bit shorter than is average for humans) and they have inadvertently destroyed those humans that know how to create more robots. They are faced with extinction just as surely as the humans they have destroyed.

As the play concludes the sole remaining human, Alquist, spots two robots whose clear affection for each other indicates that the robots are about find a means to reproduce without the assistance of the humans who gave them life. This pleases Alquist no end and as the play ends, he `anoints' the robots with his blessing. It is a poignant, jumbled mixture of the creation story (and on the sixth day) and the Song of Simeon (Let us now thy servant depart in peace for mine eyes have seen thy salvation.) The rich irony in this biblical blessing of the new, robotic Adam and Eve brings us to a place dramatically different from the elder Rossum's stated desire to create robots to disprove the existence of God. Alquist's benediction shows man at the height of his humanity and speaks directly to Alduous Huxley's dictum that "the humanity of men and women is inversely proportional to their numbers."

R.U.R. was written at a time when the world was still reeling from the horrors of the First World War, which horrors were magnified by technological advancements that made the killing industry far more efficient than it ever had been in the past. Capek's pessimism must be viewed through that prism. However, it must be noted that Èapek's pessimism was not directed at technology itself. I think his concern was with the unchanging human nature of those who think they control the technology and who direct, for good or ill, its use. In some respects this harkens to the political slogan that "guns don't kill people, people kills people". In this instance and in view of the horrors Capek witnessed first hand, it does not seem inappropriate.

It should be noted that R.U.R. was written 85 years ago and the words Capek wrote were meant to be heard by an audience and not read.. As such, some of the dialogue will sound a bit stilted or dated to the reader. However this bit of apparent aging should not diminish the enjoyment to be derived from reading R.U.R. R.U.R. and Capek' other great dystopian work, War With the Newts are a must read for those interested in some of the early 20th century's most compelling fictional looks into the heart of darkness that is mankind. The introduction by Ivan Klima, a biographer of Capek is noteworthy and adds a great deal of illumination for the reader. Read more ›

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13 of 16 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A classic play introducing robots. June 4, 1999

By R. D. Allison (dallison@biochem.med.ufl.edu)

Format:Paperback

This science fiction play by the Czechoslovakian writer Karel Capek (1890-1938) introduced the word "robot" (from the Czech word "robota" for work). Any serious student of science fiction should read this play. A factory on an island produces robots (actually, in today's terminology, the products being made by this factory are androids, not robots) to do man's labor and to grow his food. But, as the years go by, governments misuse the robots, having them replace soldiers. Robots begin to be used in wars everywhere. They rebel and man is exterminated. However, the robots don't know how to build new robots and discover that they are doomed to extinction as well. But, the sole two robots of a later model discover beauty, compassion, and love. They become a new Adam and Eve. Interestingly, one of the characters in the play builds robots so that man won't have to work. Yet, he doesn't build any to do his work since it is something he enjoys doing.

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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Prophetic and dated at the same time November 26, 1997

By LittleTom@AOL.com

Format:Paperback

I first read this play in the late 1940's when I was in High School. The author died in 1938 at about the time Turing was "inventing" the Turing Machine. Perhaps the author intended this work as a parable about Bolshevism, but the steady growth of the computer makes it read today like a straight-forward prophecy which will come true in about 50 more years. The technology projected is all wrong in the details, of course, but it is fun to read today and draw the parallels and differences.

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4.0 out of 5 stars Capek did it first. November 4, 2013

By Alceste

Format:Kindle Edition|Verified Purchase

This is a classic piece of playwriting, way ahead of its time. It is simplistic and it is just a tad melodramatic, but it's going to surprise anyone who thinks artificial intelligence and robotics is just oh, so modern . . . .Capek did it first and it's a really interesting read.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent historical perspective of literature May 19, 2013

By Mrb7

Format:Kindle Edition|Verified Purchase

There are two parts to this classic. There is the play itself. And there is the extensive introduction material with its background and explanatory text.

The play itself is both a very interesting perspective on early thinking about man's relationship with modern technology and a critical reflection on man and his humanity. (Although it isn't terribly deep in its reflection.)

The extensive introduction is a cornucopia of information about the author as well as many events in Europe between the two wars.

In its time this was a worldwide sensation. Obviously the fact that it caught the whole world's attention attests to its historical significance. Who hasn't heard of Robots?

Overall this should be required reading for anyone interested in either modern literature or science fiction or dystopian fiction.

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4 of 7 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars This play speaks to us today. September 6, 2005

By Joseph Johansen

Format:Paperback

This is a really good play but most reviewers miss the fact that in the play, the robots are not mechanical or androids but genetically engineered from a "protoplasm". I think this really addresses some of the issues today, especially stem cell research.

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2 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A excellent addition to anybody's library! December 7, 2005

By Kris W. Erickson

Format:Paperback

This is definitely a great read. It's got enough 'depth' despite it's small package to interest just about anybody. It surprised me how much Capek touched upon present day issues in a volume authored over 80 years ago.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting, different, but a little short.

A very interesting read. Very nice for those who already like science fiction.

The interesting and different thing about Čapek's 'R.U.R. Read more

Published 14 months ago by Tyson B

2.0 out of 5 stars RUR has not aged well

Steeped in early 20th century morality and Old Testament biblical references, I found this a hard play to like. Read more

Published on March 27, 2011 by geezergeek