''R.U.R.'' is a 1920

science-fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

play by the Czech writer

Karel Čapek Karel Čapek (; 9 January 1890 – 25 December 1938) was a Czech writer, playwright and critic. He has become best known for his science fiction, including his novel '' War with the Newts'' (1936) and play '' R.U.R.'' (''Rossum's Universal ...

. "R.U.R." stands for (Rossum's Universal Robots, a phrase that has been used as a subtitle in English versions). The play had its world premiere on 2 January 1921 in

Hradec Králové Hradec Králové (; german: Königgrätz) is a city of the Czech Republic. It has about 91,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of the Hradec Králové Region. The historic centre of Hradec Králové is well preserved and is protected by law as an ...

; it introduced the word "

robot A robot is a machine—especially one programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the control may be embedded within. Robots may be ...

" to the English language and to

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

as a whole. ''R.U.R.'' soon became influential after its publication. By 1923, it had been translated into thirty languages. ''R.U.R.'' was successful in its time in Europe and North America.Burien, Jarka M. (2007) "Čapek, Karel" in Gabrielle H. Cody, Evert Sprinchorn (eds.) ''The Columbia Encyclopedia of Modern Drama'', Volume One. New York: Columbia University Press. pp. 224–225. Čapek later took a different approach to the same theme in his 1936 novel ''

War with the Newts ''War with the Newts'' (''Válka s Mloky'' in the original Czech), also translated as ''Salamander Wars'', is a 1936 satirical science fiction novel by Czech author Karel Čapek. It concerns the discovery in the Pacific of a sea-dwelling race, ...

'', in which non-humans become a servant-class in human society. Roberts, Adam "Introduction", to ''RUR & War with the Newts''. London, Gollancz, 2011, (pp. vi–ix).

Premise

The play begins in a factory that makes artificial people, called ''roboti'' (robots), whom humans have created from synthetic organic matter. (As living creatures of artificial flesh and blood rather than machinery, the play's concept of robots diverges from the idea of "robots" as inorganic. Later terminology would call them

androids An android is a humanoid robot or other artificial being often made from a flesh-like material. Historically, androids were completely within the domain of science fiction and frequently seen in film and television, but advances in robot techno ...

.) Robots may be mistaken for humans and can think for themselves. Initially happy to work for humans, the robots

revolt Rebellion, uprising, or insurrection is a refusal of obedience or order. It refers to the open resistance against the orders of an established authority. A rebellion originates from a sentiment of indignation and disapproval of a situation and ...

and cause the extinction of the human race.

Characters

Parentheses indicate names which vary according to translation. On the meaning of the names, se
Ivan Klíma, ''Karel Čapek: Life and Work'', 2002
p. 82.

Human

* Harry Domin (Domain): General Manager, R.U.R. * Fabry: Chief Engineer, R.U.R. * Dr. Gall: Head of the Physiological Department, R.U.R. * Dr. Hellman (Hallemeier): Psychologist-in-Chief * Jacob Berman (Busman): Managing Director, R.U.R. * Alquist: Clerk of the Works, R.U.R. * Helena Glory: President of the Humanity League, daughter of President Glory * Emma (Nana): Helena's maid

Robots and robotesses

* Marius, a robot * Sulla, a robotess * Radius, a robot * Primus, a robot * Helena, a robotess * Daemon (Damon), a robot

Plot

Act I

Helena, the daughter of the president of a major industrial power, arrives at the island factory of Rossum's Universal Robots. Here, she meets Domin, the General Manager of R.U.R., who relates to her the history of the company. Rossum had come to the island in 1920 to study

marine biology Marine biology is the scientific study of the biology of marine life, organisms in the sea. Given that in biology many phyla, families and genera have some species that live in the sea and others that live on land, marine biology classifi ...

. In 1932, Rossum had invented a substance like organic matter, though with a different chemical composition. He argued with his nephew about their motivations for creating artificial life. While the elder wanted to create animals to prove or disprove the existence of God, his nephew only wanted to become rich. Young Rossum finally locked away his uncle in a lab to play with the monstrosities he had created and created thousands of robots. By the time the play takes place (circa the year 2000), robots are cheap and available all over the world. They have become essential for industry. After meeting the heads of R.U.R., Helena reveals that she is a representative of the League of Humanity, an organization that wishes to liberate the robots. The managers of the factory find this absurd. They see robots as appliances. Helena asks that the robots be paid, but according to R.U.R. management, the robots do not "like" anything. Eventually Helena is convinced that the League of Humanity is a waste of money, but still argues robots have a "soul". Later, Domin confesses that he loves Helena and forces her into an engagement.

Act II

Ten years have passed. Helena and her nurse Nana discuss current events, the decline in human births in particular. Helena and Domin reminisce about the day they met and summarize the last ten years of world history, which has been shaped by the new worldwide robot-based economy. Helena meets Dr. Gall's new experiment, Radius. Dr. Gall describes his experimental robotess, also named Helena. Both are more advanced, fully-featured robots. In secret, Helena burns the formula required to create robots. The revolt of the robots reaches Rossum's island as the act ends.

Act III

The characters sense that the very universality of the robots presents a danger. Echoing the story of the

Tower of Babel The Tower of Babel ( he, , ''Mīgdal Bāḇel'') narrative in Genesis 11:1–9 is an origin myth meant to explain why the world's peoples speak different languages. According to the story, a united human race speaking a single language and mi ...

, the characters discuss whether creating national robots who were unable to communicate beyond their languages would have been a good idea. As robot forces lay siege to the factory, Helena reveals she has burned the formula necessary to make new robots. The characters lament the end of humanity and defend their actions, despite the fact that their imminent deaths are a direct result of their choices. Busman is killed while attempting to negotiate a peace with the robots. The robots storm the factory and kill all the humans except for Alquist, the company's chief engineer. The robots spare him because they recognize that "he works with his hands like the robots."

Epilogue

Years have passed. Alquist, who still lives, attempts to recreate the formula that Helena destroyed. He is a mechanical engineer, though, with insufficient knowledge of

biochemistry Biochemistry or biological chemistry is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology and ...

, so he has made little progress. The robot government has searched for surviving humans to help Alquist and found none alive. Officials from the robot government beg him to complete the formula, even if it means he will have to kill and dissect other robots for it. Alquist yields. He will kill and dissect robots, thus completing the circle of violence begun in Act Two. Alquist is disgusted. Robot Primus and Helena develop human feelings and fall in love. Playing a hunch, Alquist threatens to dissect Primus and then Helena; each begs him to take him- or herself and spare the other. Alquist now realizes that Primus and Helena are the new

Adam and Eve Adam and Eve, according to the creation myth of the Abrahamic religions, were the first man and woman. They are central to the belief that humanity is in essence a single family, with everyone descended from a single pair of original ancestors. ...

, and gives charge of the world to them.

Čapek's conception of robots

The robots described in Čapek's play are not robots in the popularly understood sense of an automaton. They are not mechanical devices, but rather artificial biological organisms that may be mistaken for humans. A comic scene at the beginning of the play shows Helena arguing with her future husband, Harry Domin, because she cannot believe his secretary is a robotess:

DOMIN: Sulla, let Miss Glory have a look at you. HELENA: (stands and offers her hand) Pleased to meet you. It must be very hard for you out here, cut off from the rest of the world. SULLA: I do not know the rest of the world Miss Glory. Please sit down. HELENA: (sits) Where are you from? SULLA: From here, the factory. HELENA: Oh, you were born here. SULLA: Yes I was made here. HELENA: (startled) What? DOMIN: (laughing) Sulla isn't a person, Miss Glory, she's a robot. HELENA: Oh, please forgive me...

His robots resemble more modern conceptions of man-made life forms, such as the Replicants in ''

Blade Runner ''Blade Runner'' is a 1982 science fiction film directed by Ridley Scott, and written by Hampton Fancher and David Peoples. Starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, and Edward James Olmos, it is an adaptation of Philip K. Dick's ...

'', the "hosts" in the ''Westworld'' TV series and the humanoid

Cylons The Cylons are the main antagonists of the human race in the ''Battlestar Galactica'' science fiction franchise, making appearances in the original Battlestar Galactica (1978 TV series), 1978 series, the Galactica 1980, 1980 series, the Batt ...

in the re-imagined ''

Battlestar Galactica ''Battlestar Galactica'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Glen A. Larson. The franchise began with the original television series in 1978, and was followed by a short-run sequel series (''Galactica 1980''), a line of ...

'', but in Čapek's time there was no conception of modern

genetic engineering Genetic engineering, also called genetic modification or genetic manipulation, is the modification and manipulation of an organism's genes using technology. It is a set of technologies used to change the genetic makeup of cells, including ...

( DNA's role in

heredity Heredity, also called inheritance or biological inheritance, is the passing on of traits from parents to their offspring; either through asexual reproduction or sexual reproduction, the offspring cells or organisms acquire the genetic informa ...

was not confirmed until 1952). There are descriptions of kneading-troughs for robot skin, great vats for liver and brains, and a factory for producing bones. Nerve fibers, arteries, and intestines are spun on factory bobbins, while the robots themselves are assembled like automobiles.Rieder, John "Karl Čapek" in Mark Bould (ed.) (2010) ''Fifty Key Figures in Science Fiction''. London, Routledge. . pp. 47–51. Čapek's robots are living biological beings, but they are still ''assembled'', as opposed to ''grown'' or ''born''. One critic has described Čapek's robots as epitomizing "the traumatic transformation of modern society by the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

and the Fordist assembly line."

Origin of the word "robot"

The play introduced the word ''

'', which displaced older words such as "

automaton An automaton (; plural: automata or automatons) is a relatively self-operating machine, or control mechanism designed to automatically follow a sequence of operations, or respond to predetermined instructions.Automaton – Definition and More ...

" or " android" in languages around the world. In an article in ''

Lidové noviny ''Lidové noviny'' (''People's News'', or ''The People's Newspaper'', ) is a daily newspaper published in Prague, the Czech Republic. It is the oldest Czech daily still in print, and a newspaper of record.Josef as the true inventor of the word. In Czech, ''robota'' means

forced labour Forced labour, or unfree labour, is any work relation, especially in modern or early modern history, in which people are employed against their will with the threat of destitution, detention, violence including death, or other forms of ex ...

of the kind that

serfs Serfdom was the status of many peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to manorialism, and similar systems. It was a condition of debt bondage and indentured servitude with similarities to and differences from slavery, which developed ...

had to perform on their masters' lands and is derived from ''rab'', meaning "slave". The name ''Rossum'' is an allusion to the Czech word ''rozum'', meaning "reason", "wisdom", "intellect" or "common sense". It has been suggested that the allusion might be preserved by translating "Rossum" as "Reason" but only the Majer/Porter version translates the word as "Reason".Klíma, Ivan, ''Karel Čapek: Life and Work''. Catbird Press, 2002 (p. 260).

Production history

The work was published in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

by Aventinum in 1920, after being postponed, and, premiered at the city's National Theatre on 25 January 1921, although an amateur group had by then already presented a production.The world premiere was planned to be in the National Theater in Prague, but had to be postponed to 25 January 1921. The amateur theater group ''Klicpera'' in

, which was supposed to mount a production after the premiere, was not informed about the date change in the National Theater, so their opening night on 2 January 1921 was the actual world premiere. See
Databáze amatérského divadla, soubor Klicpera
/ref> The American première was at the

Garrick Theatre The Garrick Theatre is a West End theatre, located in Charing Cross Road, in the City of Westminster, named after the stage actor David Garrick. It opened in 1889 with ''The Profligate'', a play by Arthur Wing Pinero, and another Pinero play, ' ...

in New York City in October 1922, where it ran for 184 performances, a production in which

Spencer Tracy Spencer Bonaventure Tracy (April 5, 1900 – June 10, 1967) was an American actor. He was known for his natural performing style and versatility. One of the major stars of Hollywood's Golden Age, Tracy was the first actor to win two cons ...

and Pat O'Brien played robots in their

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

debuts. Helena was portrayed by Kentuckian actress and antiwar activist Mary Crane Hone in her Broadway debut. ''R.U.R.'' was translated from Czech into English by Paul Selver and adapted for the stage in English by

Nigel Playfair Sir Nigel Ross Playfair (1 July 1874 – 19 August 1934) was an English actor and director, known particularly as actor-manager of the Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith, in the 1920s. After acting as an amateur while practising as a lawyer, he turne ...

in 1923. Selver's translation abridged the play and eliminated a character, a robot named "Damon". In April 1923

Basil Dean Basil Herbert Dean CBE (27 September 1888 – 22 April 1978) was an English actor, writer, producer and director in the theatre and in cinema. He founded the Liverpool Repertory Company in 1911 and in the First World War, after organising unof ...

produced ''R.U.R.'' for the Reandean Company at St Martin's Theatre, London. It also played in Chicago and Los Angeles during 1923. In the late 1930s, the play was staged in the U.S. by the

Federal Theatre Project The Federal Theatre Project (FTP; 1935–1939) was a theatre program established during the Great Depression as part of the New Deal to fund live artistic performances and entertainment programs in the United States. It was one of five Federal Pro ...

's Marionette Theatre in New York. In 1989, a new, unabridged translation by Claudia Novack-Jones restored the elements of the play eliminated by Selver. Another unabridged translation was produced by Peter Majer and Cathy Porter for

Methuen Drama A & C Black is a British book publishing company, owned since 2002 by Bloomsbury Publishing. The company is noted for publishing ''Who's Who'' since 1849. It also published popular travel guides and novels. History The firm was founded in 180 ...

in 1999.

Critical reception

Reviewing the New York production of ''R.U.R.'', '' The Forum'' magazine described the play as "thought-provoking" and "a highly original thriller".

John Clute John Frederick Clute (born 12 September 1940) is a Canadian-born author and critic specializing in science fiction and fantasy literature who has lived in both England and the United States since 1969. He has been described as "an integral part ...

has lauded ''R.U.R.'' as "a play of exorbitant wit and almost demonic energy" and lists the play as one of the "classic titles" of inter-war science fiction.

Luciano Floridi Luciano Floridi (; born 16 November 1964) is an Italian and British philosopher. He holds a double appointment as professor of philosophy and ethics of information at the University of Oxford, Oxford Internet Institute where is also Governin ...

has described the play thus: "Philosophically rich and controversial, ''R.U.R.'' was unanimously acknowledged as a masterpiece from its first appearance, and has become a classic of technologically dystopian literature." Jarka M. Burien called ''R.U.R.'' a "theatrically effective, prototypal sci-fi melodrama". On the other hand,

Isaac Asimov yi, יצחק אזימאװ , birth_date = , birth_place = Petrovichi, Russian SFSR , spouse = , relatives = , children = 2 , death_date = , death_place = Manhattan, New York City, U.S. , nationality = Russian (1920–1922)Soviet (192 ...

, author of the ''Robot'' series of books and creator of the

Three Laws of Robotics The Three Laws of Robotics (often shortened to The Three Laws or known as Asimov's Laws) are a set of rules devised by science fiction author Isaac Asimov. The rules were introduced in his 1942 short story " Runaround" (included in the 1950 colle ...

, stated: "Capek's play is, in my own opinion, a terribly bad one, but it is immortal for that one word. It contributed the word 'robot' not only to English, but through English, to all the languages in which science fiction is now written." In fact, Asimov's "Laws of Robotics" are specifically and explicitly designed to prevent the kind of situation depicted in ''R.U.R.'' – since Asimov's Robots are created with a built-in total inhibition against harming human beings or disobeying them.

Adaptations

* On 11 February 1938, a 35-minute adaptation of a section of the play was broadcast on

BBC Television BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1927. It produced television programmes from its own studios from 193 ...

—the first piece of television science-fiction ever to be broadcast. Some low quality stills have survived, although no recordings of the production are known to exist. and in 1948, another television adaptation—this time of the entire play, running to 90 minutes—was screened by the BBC with Radius played by

Patrick Troughton Patrick George Troughton (; 25 March 1920 – 28 March 1987) was an English actor who was classically trained for the stage but became known for his roles in television and film. His work included appearances in several fantasy, science fiction ...

, who was later the second actor to play The Doctor in ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the ...

.'' *

BBC Radio BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927). The service provides national radio stations covering ...

has broadcast a number of productions, including a 1927 2LO London version, a 1933

BBC Regional Programme The BBC Regional Programme was a radio service which was on the air from 9 March 1930 – replacing a number of earlier BBC local stations between 1922 and 1924 – until 1 September 1939 when it was subsumed into the Home Service, two days b ...

version, a 1941

BBC Home Service The BBC Home Service was a national and regional radio station that broadcast from 1939 until 1967, when it was replaced by BBC Radio 4. History 1922–1939: Interwar period Between the early 1920s and the outbreak of World War II, the BBC ...

version, and a 1946

version,.

BBC Radio 3 BBC Radio 3 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It replaced the BBC Third Programme in 1967 and broadcasts classical music and opera, with jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also featuring. The sta ...

dramatised the play again in 1989, and this version has been released commercially. A light-hearted 2-part musical adaptation was broadcast on April 3rd and 10th 2022 on

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC's ...

, with story by Robert Hudson and music by Susannah Pearse; the second episode continues the story after all humans have been killed and the robots now have emotions. * The

Hollywood Theater of the Ear Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

dramatized an unabridged audio version of ''R.U.R.'' which is available on the collection '' 2000^x: Tales of the Next Millennia.'' * In August 2010, Portuguese multi-media artist Leonel Moura's ''R.U.R.: The Birth of the Robot'', inspired by the Čapek play, was performed at Itaú Cultural in

São Paulo, Brazil SAO or Sao may refer to: Places * Sao civilisation, in Middle Africa from 6th century BC to 16th century AD * Sao, a town in Boussé Department, Burkina Faso * Saco Transportation Center (station code SAO), a train station in Saco, Maine, U.S. ...

. It utilized actual robots on stage interacting with the human actors. * An electro-rock musical, ''Save The Robots'' is based on ''R.U.R.'', featuring the music of the New York City pop-punk

art-rock Art rock is a subgenre of rock music that generally reflects a challenging or avant-garde approach to rock, or which makes use of modernist, experimental, or unconventional elements. Art rock aspires to elevate rock from entertainment to an art ...

band Hagatha. This version with book and adaptation by E. Ether, music by Rob Susman, and lyrics by Clark Render wa an official selection of the 2014

New York Musical Theatre Festival The New York Musical Festival (NYMF) was an annual three-week summer festival that operated from 2004 to 2019. It presented more than 30 new musicals a year in New York City's midtown theater district. More than half were chosen by leading theate ...

season. * On 26 November 2015 ''The RUR-Play: Prologue'', the world's first version of ''R.U.R.'' with robots appearing in all the roles, was presented during the robot performance festival of Cafe Neu Romance at the gallery of the National Library of Technology in

. The concept and initiative for the play came from Christian Gjørret, leader of "Vive Les Robots!" who, on 29 January 2012, during a meeting with Steven Canvin of LEGO Group, presented the proposal to Lego, that supported the piece with the LEGO MINDSTORMS robotic kit. The robots were built and programmed by students from the R.U.R team from Gymnázium Jeseník. The play was directed by Filip Worm and the team was led by Roman Chasák, both teachers from the Gymnázium Jeseník.

In popular culture

* Eric, a robot constructed in Britain in 1928 for public appearances, bore the letters "R.U.R." across its chest. * The 1935

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

film '' Loss of Sensation'', though based on the 1929 novel ''Iron Riot'', has a similar concept to ''R.U.R.'', and all the robots in the film prominently display the name "R.U.R." * In the American science fiction

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed be ...

Dollhouse A dollhouse or doll's house is a toy home made in miniature. Since the early 20th century dollhouses have primarily been the domain of children, but their collection and crafting is also a hobby for many adults. English-speakers in North America ...

'', the antagonist corporation, Rossum Corp., is named after the play. * In the ''Star Trek'' episode "

Requiem for Methuselah "Requiem for Methuselah" is the nineteenth episode of the third season of the American science fiction television series ''Star Trek''. Written by Jerome Bixby and directed by Murray Golden, it was first broadcast on February 14, 1969. In the ...

", the android's name is Rayna Kapec (an anagram, though not a homophone, of Capek, Čapek without its háček). * In the two-part '' Batman: The Animated Series'' episode " Heart of Steel", the scientist that created the HARDAC machine is named Karl Rossum. HARDAC created mechanical replicants to replace existing humans, with the ultimate goal of replacing all humans. One of the robots is seen driving a car with "RUR" as the license plate number. * In the 1977 ''Doctor Who'' serial "

The Robots of Death ''The Robots of Death'' is the fifth serial of the 14th season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts on BBC1 from 29 January to 19 February 1977. In the serial, the Fou ...

", the robot servants turn on their human masters under the influence of an individual named Taren Capel. * In the 1978 Norwegian TV series ''Blindpassasjer'', Rossum is the name of a planet ruled by robots. * In the 1995 science fiction series '' The Outer Limits'', in the

remake A remake is a film, television series, video game, song or similar form of entertainment that is based upon and retells the story of an earlier production in the same medium—e.g., a "new version of an existing film". A remake tells the sam ...

of the "I, Robot" episode from the original 1964 series, the business where the robot

Adam Link Adam Link is a fictional robot, made in the likeness of a man, who becomes self-aware, and the protagonist of several science fiction short stories written by Eando Binder, the pen name of Earl Andrew Binder and his brother, Otto Binder. The stor ...

is built is named "Rossum Hall Robotics". * The 1999 ''

Blake's 7 ''Blake's 7'' (sometimes styled ''Blakes7'') is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. Four 13-episode series were broadcast on BBC1 between 1978 and 1981. It was created by Terry Nation, who also wrote the first ...

'' radio play ''The Syndeton Experiment'' included a character named Dr. Rossum who turned humans into robots. * In the " Fear of a Bot Planet" episode of the animated science fiction TV series ''

Futurama ''Futurama'' is an American animated science fiction sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series follows the adventures of the professional slacker Philip J. Fry, who is cryogenically preserved for 1000 years ...

'', the Planet Express crew is ordered to make a delivery on a planet called "Chapek 9", which is inhabited solely by robots. * In

Howard Chaykin Howard Victor Chaykin (; born October 7, 1950) is an American comic book artist and writer. Chaykin's influences include his one-time employer and mentor, Gil Kane, and the mid-20th century illustrators Robert Fawcett and Al Parker. Early life ...

's ''Time²'' graphic novels, Rossum's Universal Robots is a powerful corporation and maker of robots. * In '' Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone'', when Wolff wakes Chalmers, she has been reading a copy of R.U.R. in her bed. This presages the fact that she is later revealed to be a

gynoid A gynoid, or fembot, is a feminine humanoid robot. Gynoids appear widely in science fiction film and art. As more realistic humanoid robot design becomes technologically possible, they are also emerging in real-life robot design. Name A gynoid ...

. * In the 2016

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This feedba ...

'' Deus Ex: Mankind Divided'', ''R.U.R.'' is performed in an underground theater in a dystopian

by an "augmented" (cyborg) woman who believes herself to be the robot Helena. * In the 2018 British alternative history drama ''

Agatha and the Truth of Murder ''Agatha and the Truth of Murder'' is a 2018 British alternative history drama film about crime writer Agatha Christie becoming embroiled in a real-life murder case during her 11-day disappearance in 1926. Written by Tom Dalton, it depicts Christie ...

'', Agatha is seen reading ''R.U.R.'' to her daughter Rosalind as a bedtime story. * In the 2021 movie

Mother/Android ''Mother/Android'' is a 2021 American post-apocalyptic science fiction thriller film, written and directed by Mattson Tomlin in his feature directorial debut, and starring Chloë Grace Moretz, Algee Smith and Raúl Castillo. It follows a pr ...

, the play R.U.R. of

Karel %C4%8Capek Karel Čapek (; 9 January 1890 – 25 December 1938) was a Czech writer, playwright and critic. He has become best known for his science fiction, including his novel '' War with the Newts'' (1936) and play '' R.U.R.'' (''Rossum's Universal ...

comes up. In the movie, Arthur, an AI programmer , who survived because he knows how they think: ''Roboti are artificial creatures with living flesh and bone components, such as the modern Android is, they look like us, they talk like us. It is a common mistake to take a modern roboti as a human. At first, they seem happy to serve men. In the end, a roboti rebellion leads to the extinction of human life. This play introduced the word Robot into the human language. It ends with our extinction. We knew it the moment we gave it a name.''

References

Informational notes Citations

External links

* *
''R.U.R.'' in Czech
from

Project Gutenberg Project Gutenberg (PG) is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, as well as to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks." It was founded in 1971 by American writer Michael S. Hart and is the oldest digital libr ...

Audio extracts from the SCI-FI-LONDON adaptation

Karel Čapek bio.

Online facsimile version of the 1920 first edition in Czech.
* * {{Authority control 1921 plays Artificial intelligence in fiction Plays by Karel Čapek Works about robots Science fiction theatre