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Utopia
Repealing Asimov's Laws of Robotics
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Utopia
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By Roger MacBride Allen
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Ace Books
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$6.50/$8.99 Canada
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Paperback, Nov. 1996
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ISBN 0-441-00471-7
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Review by Curt Wohleber
 he planet Inferno is dying, and the only way to save the world might also destroy it. That's a risk Inferno's robots, hardwired to protect human life, may not let their masters take.
Utopia, just reissued by Ace Books, is the third volume of Roger MacBride Allen 's Caliban Trilogy, which is set in the future history of Isaac Asimov's "Robot" novels. Like its predecessors, Utopia revolves around Asimov's famous Three Laws of Robotics, the first and most important of which states, "A robot may not injure a human being, or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm."
The laws have an appealing simplicity and internal logic, like a high-tech Socratic syllogism. Yet applying those laws--as Asimov explored in numerous stories--is anything but simple. Sometimes protecting a person from harm is itself a harmful act.
When a scientist proposes to stabilize the ecology of Inferno by landing comet fragments on the planet, the biggest obstacle is keeping the robots from freaking out.
Right in the path of the first comet fragment is the secret city of Valhalla, home to the controversial "New Law" robots, whose behavior is governed by a less restrictive set of laws, and also to Caliban, the only robot programmed with no laws at all. Their leader, Prospero, is an early model and could stand some more debugging. The New Laws forbid him from harming humans but do not require him to prevent harm. This narrow loophole gives Prospero just enough room to plot the perfect murder.
Comet debris, a hostage and the meaning of life
The first two books in the Caliban Trilogy were futuristic detective stories, like Asimov's original robot novels. Utopia, by contrast, is a fast-paced race against the clock, first to intercept the comet in time to divert it toward Inferno, then to rescue a kidnapped politician whose death would likely incite the slaughter of the New Law robots.
Allen manages a smooth balance of action and ideas, wielding a profusion of human and robotic characters, factions and agendas with almost cybernetic efficiency. He reveals human fallibility, however, with patches of sloppy writing. And the huge number of typos may set some sort of record in mass-market publishing.
Asimov himself was not renowned for striking characters, but two of his most memorable creations were the human-robot detective team from the original robot novels. Neither the human nor the robot characters of Utopia quite measure up to Asimov's crime-solving duo, though the three types of robot in the story function, intentionally or not, as an existential commentary on the human condition.
The original Laws of Robotics give rise to irrational and occasionally destructive behavior by otherwise logical mechanical beings. The New Law robots, no longer required to serve humans, are programmed to find their own reason for being, and they respond to this challenge with poignant efficiency. Finally, there's Caliban, the only robot to be programmed without any laws at all. Guided only by what he can derive from first principles, Caliban is possibly the loneliest being in the universe.
I hope Caliban will meet a kindred spirit, or at least make one out of spare
parts.
-- Curt
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Fantastic Tales
Early science fiction by one of the greats of 20th century literature
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Fantastic Tales
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Stories by Jack London
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Edited by Dale L. Walker
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Bison Books
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$11.00
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Trade Paperback, 1998
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ISBN 0-8032-7979-5
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Review by Clinton Lawrence
 antastic Tales is a reprint of a 1975 Jack London collection (originally titled Curious Fragments) that features 15 of the author's science fiction and fantasy stories. The book includes an introduction by editor Dale L. Walker as well as a foreword by Philip Jose Farmer. The stories are assembled in order of publication date, which gives a feel for the evolution of London's ideas and literary skills. Walker, in his introduction, notes London's literary reputation as a gritty realist, based on his famous stories of the Klondike and the South Seas. But Walker argues that even in his most realistic stories, London often incorporates elements of the fantastic. In Fantastic Tales, Walker attempts to assemble stories that illuminate London's ability to write compelling science fiction and fantasy, and to collect some stories not often reprinted.
The stories explore a wide range of ideas, techniques, and settings, from supernatural fantasies to tall tales to pure science fiction, and from the prehistoric past to the distant future. Several are political pieces, condemning capitalism and extolling the promise of socialism. And while most of the stories are written as conventional narratives, London approaches some as future historical articles. At least as represented here, London's earlier science fiction often features detailed explanations of technological advances, while his later work places more emphasis on political and sociological issues.
London's view of the role of science and technology in society is a mixed one. In "The Scarlet Plague," about a deadly epidemic that wipes out all but one in a million humans, he describes the heroism of the scientists working to isolate and prevent the plague. On the other hand, many other stories feature technology as a powerful weapon in the hands of those wishing to impose their will on the world, or seeking revenge.
SF that's fresh almost a century later
Fantastic Tales reveals London as a remarkable pioneer of science fiction, although he's rarely mentioned as a significant figure in the field's history. A surprising number of these stories are timeless enough that, with some minor revision, they could be published for the first time today and not seem out of place. "The Scarlet Plague," "The War" (a short, elegant piece also set in a technologically fallen world), and "The Red One" (set in the South Seas, in a native village near an extraterrestrial artifact) are the three best examples.
In the 83 years since London's death, socialism has failed to deliver on the promises that first attracted the writer to his material, although he proved himself to be a very articulate and effective advocate in "The Strength of the Strong," a parable of teamwork in prehistory, and in "A Curious Fragment," set in a far future in which most people are enslaved. He also remarkably anticipates the late-20th-century ascendancy of Asia, the displacement of conventional warfare by economics among the major powers, and biological warfare in "The Unparalleled Invasion," though the story is somewhat marred by his racial stereotyping.
Not all of London's science fiction and fantasy was political. Some of it was very personal, especially the early stories. Several explored dysfunctional relations, the most poignant being "A Thousand Deaths" (father-son) and "The Shadow and the Flash" (friends turned rivals). Other notable stories in the collection include "The Enemy of All the World," "Goliah," and "When the World Was Young."
Overall Fantastic Tales is an outstanding collection of stories. Even if this represented London's entire science fiction output (it doesn't), he would deserve recognition as one of the field's giants. Maybe someday he'll get it.
I grew up just a few miles from Jack London State Historical Park, which is in the hills overlooking the Sonoma Valley, about 50 miles north of San Francisco. It's not every day you get to review a book by someone whose home has been turned into a state park.
-- Clint
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