# What science fiction novels depict robots replacing human labor? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 14, 2003, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880 "2003-12-14T02:46:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ready29003](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/71e660/32.png) [@ready29003](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ready29003)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2003, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/1 "2003-12-14T02:46:20Z")
I am looking for science fiction novels, short stories, or even movies that depict robots replacing human labor. I am aware of Isaac Asimov’s I Robot, The Caves of Steel, etc… Does anyone know other good ones? Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Satz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/35a633/32.png) [@Satz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Satz)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2003, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/2 "2003-12-14T03:17:26Z")
Blade Runner was based on a short story. Google for author’s name. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2003, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/3 "2003-12-14T03:45:26Z")
The word “robot” seems to have come from the Czech short story “Opilec,” written by Josef Capec in 1917. Karel Capek wrote a play in 1920 called “R.U.R.” which stood for “Rosum’s{?} Universal Robots.” The term “robot” is first cited in print in English in 1922 in the N.Y. Times referring to the RUR play. The robots in the play replaced human work. ---
**Author:** ![Blake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@Blake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blake)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2003, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/4 "2003-12-14T04:23:14Z")
Star Wars. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2003, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/5 "2003-12-14T04:28:24Z")
“With Folded Hands” by Jack Williamson. ---
**Author:** ![ageless6](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9de053/32.png) [@ageless6](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ageless6)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2003, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/6 "2003-12-14T04:36:18Z")
Blade Runner was based on “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep”, by Philip K Dick. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2003, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/7 "2003-12-14T04:42:34Z")
The entire plot of “The Door Into Summer” by Robert Heinlein revolves around an engineer who designs robots that take over mundane human labor such as cleaning windows and floors. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2003, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/8 "2003-12-14T04:47:50Z")
“The Midas Plague” by Frederick Pohl, in which the fac that robts have been s efficient in running things turns out to be a _problem_. **The Humanids** is a full-length novel sequel to Jack Williamson’s story “With Folded Hands” A lot of Asimov’s Robot novels and stories, of coure. I’m sure there were plenty of short stories and novelettes from the 1950s where this was the case, but I can’t recall any right now. ---
**Author:** ![Z\_Al](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/41988e/32.png) [@Z\_Al](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Z_Al)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2003, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/9 "2003-12-14T05:38:30Z")
The Matrix? ---
**Author:** ![Catalyst](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e47774/32.png) [@Catalyst](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catalyst)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2003, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/10 "2003-12-14T05:48:12Z")
One of the Animatrix shorts does, at least. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2003, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/11 "2003-12-14T05:58:43Z")
Say, do any of these stories mention what’s done with the _people_ who’d been doing the scutwork before, but were now made obsolete by robot labor? Ranchoth (“Soylent Green,” maybe?\_ ---
**Author:** ![boyohboy17](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c4cdca/32.png) [@boyohboy17](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boyohboy17)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2003, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/12 "2003-12-14T06:22:25Z")
_Player Piano_ by Kurt Vonnegut (sp?) is about machines replacing human labor and the (negative) effects on society. It’s an excellent read. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2003, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/13 "2003-12-14T07:02:19Z")
Iain Banks’ Culture novels are all set in a society where intelligent AIs provide for all food clothing and shelter and essentially run things for humans, who are all born with the kind of wealth at their disposal that our current millionaires can only dream of. All the billions of them. Nancy Kress’ Beggars in Spain deals with ordinary humans displaced by advances in AI and automation. IIRC, in Asimovs’ Caves of Steel series, all the basic necessities of citizens are taken care of, whether they work or not. The Ringworld series is set in a society in which work seems to be more voluntary than not. The Marching Morons posits a society whose members are too stupid to do anything for themselves, hence must be spoon -fed all they need by society. ---
**Author:** ![Gamaliel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b487fb/32.png) [@Gamaliel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gamaliel)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2003, 7:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/14 "2003-12-14T07:45:42Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Evil Captor \* > \*\*Iain Banks’ Culture novels are all set in a society where intelligent AIs provide for all food clothing and shelter and essentially run things for humans. \*\* Also, robots and ships are considered sentient beings and enjoy the same benefits and luxury humans do, once they serve briefly in the occupation they were created for. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2003, 8:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/15 "2003-12-14T08:05:45Z")
> [@](#): > > Say, do any of these stories mention what’s done with the people who’d been doing the scutwork before, but were now made obsolete by robot labor? Yeah - in the Heinlein novel, they don’t have to do that crappy work anymore. Is it really such a bad thing that people might not have to wash windows and floors any more? Most jobs that would be taken over by automation are the types of rote mechanical work that isn’t all that satisfying for humans to do. As for what those people would do… I dunno. What did the 80% of the population do when mechanization allowed them to quit farming? ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2003, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/16 "2003-12-14T14:18:08Z")
Recently, David Brin’s _Kiln People_ posited a world where copies of individuals are made that last a day or so and can be commanded to perform tasks from the mundane to the complex. It left people with loads of extra time and no jobs. So what they called the ‘purple’ wage (a form of welfare) provided for most peoples needs. ---
**Author:** ![MrTuffPaws](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f475e1/32.png) [@MrTuffPaws](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrTuffPaws)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2003, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/17 "2003-12-14T14:33:16Z")
he he **Beserkers**. Machines that kill organic life. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2003, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/18 "2003-12-14T15:59:40Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Sam Stone \* > **Yeah - in the Heinlein novel, they don’t have to do that crappy work anymore. Is it really such a bad thing that people might not have to wash windows and floors any more?** It’s not a bad thing at all, in principal. However, if you’re just an uneducated 45-year old schnook who’s been a janitor or a factory laborer all your life, what are you going to do for work when your job disappears? ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2003, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/19 "2003-12-14T16:00:35Z")
Another **Philip Dick** short story looks at automated manufacturing in the aftermath of a world war. All goods are produced in automated factories (infact I think the name of the story is **Autofac**??) and delivered to human communities. The humans have no control over these factories other than to order what they want. And I’ll leave it there incase this turns into a spoiler. ---
**Author:** ![moriah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b2d939/32.png) [@moriah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moriah)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2003, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880/20 "2003-12-15T04:39:44Z")
_The Jetsons_ [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-science-fiction-novels-depict-robots-replacing-human-labor/218880.md?page=2)