by Karel Čapek
Helena Nothing, a house and a garden. And two dogs. You should see they way they lick my hands, and their puppies too, oh Primus, I don’t think there’s anywhere nicer anywhere! You let them sit on your lap and you stroke them and soon you aren’t thinking about anything and you aren’t worrying about anything all the time until the Sun goes down. And then when you stand up it’s as if you’d been working and working. Except that I’m no good for doing any work; everyone says I’m no good for anything. I don’t really know what I am.
Primus You’re beautiful.
Helena Me? Don’t be silly, Primus, why are you saying that?
Primus Believe me, Helena, I’m stronger than all the other robots.
Helena (at mirror) Me, beautiful? But my hair is horrible, I wish I could do something about it! Out there in the garden I always put flowers in my hair, although there isn’t any mirror there or anyone to see them (leans down to look in mirror) You, beautiful? What’s beautiful about you? Is hair beautiful if all it does is weigh you down? Are eyes beautiful when you close them? Are lips beautiful if all you do is bite them and then it hurts? What is beautiful, what’s it for?.... (sees Primus in mirror) Is that you Primus? Come here, let me see you next to me. Look at you, your head’s quite different from mine, your shoulders are different, your mouth is different.. Oh Primus, why do you avoid me? Why do I have to spend all my time running after you? And still, you tell me I’m beautiful!
Primus You avoid me, Helena.
Helena Look at how you’ve combed your hair! Let me see (runs both hands through his hair) Oh Primus, there’s nothing that feels like you when I touch you! Let me make you beautiful! (takes comb from wash basin and combs Primus’s hair forward)
Primus Helena, do you ever find that your heart suddenly starts beating hard: Now, now, something’s got to happen now...
Helena (starts laughing) Look at yourself!
Alquist (standing) Wha.... what’s that?... People?.... Who’s comeback?
Helena (puts comb down) What’s ever likely to happen to us, Primus?
Alquist (turns to them) People? You... you... you are people?
(Helena screams and turns away)
Alquist You two are in love? People? Where have you come back from? (touches Primus) Who are you?
Primus Robot Primus.
Alquist What? You, girl, let me see you! Who are you?
Helena Robot Helena.
Alquist Robot? Turn round! What, are you embarrassed? (takes her by shoulder) Let me see you, Robot Helena.
Primus But sir, please leave her alone!
Alquist What’s this, you want to protect her?... Go outside girl.
(Helena runs out)
Primus We didn’t know you were asleep in here, sir.
Alquist When was she made?
Primus Two years ago.
Alquist By Doctor Gall?
Primus Yes, the same as me.
Alquist Well Primus, er, I’ve... er I’ve got some experiments to do on Gall’s robots. All future progress depends on it, do you see?
Primus Yes.
Alquist Good, so take that girl into the dissection room, I’m going to dissect her.
Primus Helena?
Alquist Well of course Helena, that’s what I just said. Now go and get everything ready.... Well go on then! Or should I call in somebody else to get things ready?
Primus (picks up large stick) If you move an inch I will smash your head in!
Alquist Alright then, smash my head in. And what will the robots do then?
Primus (throws himself down on knees) Please sir, take me in her place! I was made in just the same way as she was, from the same materials on the same day! Take my life, sir! (bares his chest) Cut here, here!
Alquist No, it’s Helena I want to dissect. Get on with it.
Primus Take me instead of her; cut into this chest of mine, I won’t even cry out, I wont’ even sigh! Take my life, a hundred times, take my...
Alquist Steady on there, lad. Don’t go on so much. How come you don’t want to live?
Primus Not without her, no. I don’t want to live without her, sir. You can’t kill Helena! What difference does it make to you to take my life instead?
Alquist (touches his head gently) Hm, I don’t know... listen, lad, you think about it. It’s hard to die. And, you know, it’s better to live.
Primus (standing) Don’t be afraid, sir, just cut. I’m stronger than she is.
Alquist (rings) Oh Primus, it’s so long since I was young! Don’t worry-nothing’s going to happen to Helena.
Primus (re-covers chest) I’m on my way, sir.
Alquist Wait.
(enter Helena)
Alquist Come here, girl, let me look at you. So you are Helena. (strokes her hair) Don’t be frightened, don’t run away. Do you remember Mrs. Domin? Oh Helena, she had very lovely hair! No, no, you don’t want to look at me. So, is the dissection room ready now?
Helena Yes sir.
Alquist Good, and you will be my assistant. I’ll be dissecting Primus.
Helena (screams) Primus?
Alquist Well yes, yes, it has to be him, you see. I did want.. really... yes it was you I was going to dissect, but Primus offered himself in your place.
Helena (covers her face) Primus?
Alquist Well yes, of course, what does it matter? So child, you’re capable of crying! Tell me, what’s so important about Primus?
Primus Don’t make her suffer, sir!
Alquist It’s alright Primus, it’s alright. No what are all these tears for, eh? It just means Primus won’t be here any more. You’ll have forgotten about him in a week’s time. Go on now, and be glad you’re still alive.
Helena (quietly) I will go.
Alquist Where will you go?
Helena You can dissect me.
Alquist You? You’re beautiful, Helena. That would be such a shame.
Helena I’m going in there. (Primus stands in her way) Let me go, Primus! Let me go in there.
Primus No you can’t go in there, Helena. Please get away from here, you shouldn’t be here at all!
Helena Primus, if you go in there I’ll jump out the window, I’ll jump out the window!
Primus (holding on to her) I won’t let go of you (to Alquist) You’re not going to kill anyone, old man!
Alquist Why not?
Primus Because.. because... we belong to each other.
Alquist You’re quite right (opens door, centre) It’s alright. Go, now.
Primus Go where?
Alquist (whisper) Wherever you like. Helena, take him away. (pushes her out) Go on your way, Adam. Go on your way, Eve. You will be his wife. You, Primus, will be her husband.
(closes door behind them)
Alquist (alone) Blessed day! (tiptoes across to bench and pours test-tubes out on floor) The blessed sixth day! (sits at desk, throws books on floor; then opens Bible and reads) “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. (stands) And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.” (goes to centre of room) The sixth day. The day of Grace. (falls to knees) Lord, now let test Thou Thy servant depart in peace... your most worthless servant, Alquist. Rossum, Fabry, Gall, great inventors, but what was the greatness of your inventions compared to that girl, that boy, compared to that first couple that invented love, tears, a lover’s smile, the love between man and woman? Nature, life will not disappear from you! My friends, Helena, life will not perish! Life begins anew, it begins naked and small and comes from love; it takes root in the desert and all that we have done and built, all our cities and factories, all our great art, all our thoughts and all our philosophies, all this will not pass away. It’
s only we that have passed away. Our buildings and machines will fall to ruin, the systems and the names of the great will fall like leaves, but you, love, you flourish in the ruins sow the seeds of life in the wind. Lord, now let test Thou Thy servant depart in peace, for mine eyes... for mine eyes have seen Thy salvation... seen salvation through love-and life will not perish! (standing) Will not perish! (stretches out hands) Will not perish!
About the Author
Karel Čapek
January 9, 1890-December 25, 1938
The word robot comes from the word robota meaning literally serf labor, and, figuratively, “drudgery” or “hard work” in Czech, Slovak and Polish. The origin of the word is the Old Church Slavonic rabota “servitude” (“work” in contemporary Russian), which in turn comes from the Indo-European root *orbh-. Robot is cognate with the German word Arbeiter (worker).
Karel Čapek introduced and made popular the frequently used international word robot, which first appeared in his play R. U. R. (Rossum’s Universal Robots) in 1921. While it is frequently thought that he was the originator of the word, he wrote a short letter in reference to an article in the Oxford English Dictionary etymology in which he named his brother, painter and writer Josef Čapek, as its actual inventor. In an article in the Czech journal Lidové noviny in 1933, he also explained that he had originally wanted to call the creatures laboři (from Latin labor, work). However, he did not like the word, seeing it as too artificial, and sought advice from his brother Josef, who suggested “roboti” (robots in English).
