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A review by tascaraudo
The Complete Robot by Isaac Asimov
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Alright, so I respect this as an important work in the field of science fiction and robots in literature. However, for a book comprised of so many short stories with different characters, there is an incredibly noticeable lack of women. Many stories do not have women present at all.
The various iterations of Robot Problems are interesting. Worth a read, but annoyingly chauvinistic.
Women aren't fridged or murdered, but, when mentioned, are decorative, unnamed, nagging wives whose husbands don't seem to like them, "bitchy", or making a robot call them "Mommie". Only three characters seem to simply be women as characters. (As compared to, as expected, countless male characters who are allowed to Be).
In all the creativity of robot progress and its tricky interplay with Human Nature it's disappointing to know that women existing within that space was essentially inconceivable for Asimov.
The various iterations of Robot Problems are interesting. Worth a read, but annoyingly chauvinistic.
Women aren't fridged or murdered, but, when mentioned, are decorative, unnamed, nagging wives whose husbands don't seem to like them, "bitchy", or making a robot call them "Mommie". Only three characters seem to simply be women as characters. (As compared to, as expected, countless male characters who are allowed to Be).
In all the creativity of robot progress and its tricky interplay with Human Nature it's disappointing to know that women existing within that space was essentially inconceivable for Asimov.
Content Warnings
There is a story that addresses autism in a way I did not entirely understand. I can't really say if it was ableist or not because I literally didn't understand the ending of the story. But watch out for that I guess.