Some questions on "R.U.R" by Karel Čapek

1.      Why is the subtitle of the play “A Collective Drama in a Comic Prologue and Three Acts.”?

2.      In what sense are the robots “universal”?

3.      Why does Helena go to the island?

4.      What were the differences between the attitudes of the older and younger Rossum re: their invention?

5.      Why do the men of the R.U.R. production team all fall in love with Helena and seem to want to possess her by giving her gifts?

6.      Why does Helena stay on the island and marry Domin, although initially she said, “I don’t want any of you.” (382)

7.      Why does Helena have a Nana?

8.      Why does Nana say to Helena, “I know very well why [God] didn’t give you a child.”

9.      Why does Dr. Gall comply with Helena’s request to make the robots more like people?

10.   Why does the production of the robots lead to children no longer being born?

11.   Why does Helena believe that destroying Rossum’s formula will make it possible for people to have children again?

12.   Why do Primus and robot Helena become attracted to each other?

13.   Why at the end of the play does Alquist proclaim Primus and Helena a new Adam and Eve and that life will “begin anew with love”?

14.   Can humans create anything that can attain humanity?

Adapted from Great Conversations 6 (Great Books Foundation)

"R.U.R" by Karel Čapek

Karel Čapek (1890-1938)

Karel Čapek was a prolific 20th-century Czech writer who wrote 
journalistic pieces, short stories, and plays. The play "R.U.R." is his most famous work. "R.U.R.," which stands for "Rossum's Universal Robots," is a dystopian account of a robot factory established with the intent to alleviate human drudgery. (It was Čapek's brother Joseph who coined the term robot, from the Czech word for "slave".)  When the robots revolt, the only recourse their human masters have is to tweak the formula used to manufacture the robots.  "R.U.R." raises deeply philosophical questions about human nature and creativity.