As the title implies this book is about a man who buys a robot girlfriend. I downloaded it for free hoping that it would be a meditation on consciousness, humanity, and intelligence. At the very least, I was hoping for some commentary about how attached to our digital crutches. Sadly, it just a book about a lonely guy who buys a robot girlfriend and ends up marrying her.
The robot is smoking hot and exists solely to make the protagonist happy. There are a few glimmers of her having a personality when they visit a Star Trek exhibit the has "anti robot" sentiments. Sadly, it bothers her only because she fears it will make him uncomfortable.
While, the protagonist's life steadily improves over the course of the book, it made me sad. His life gets better partially because the robot girlfriend feeds him the right foods and forces him to exercise. Most of his improvement must be attributed to his escape from loneliness. His robot girlfriend provides him with companionship and sex and a reason to get up in the morning - things that he couldn't find another human being to provide for him.
Color me old fashioned, but I cannot fathom how a mash-up between an iPhone and a blow-up doll can replace human companionship. Relationships between humans can be messy and hard, but that is part of what makes them special. At the end of the day, I don't want my partner to have no desires or interests beyond making me happy. I'd shoot myself.
On a positive note, the book is short, free, and easy to read.
No comments:
Post a Comment