I, Robot

Calvin recounts to the reporter some of the progress that Earth made using robots. When she was born, Earth had just gone through World War II, and then began grouping itself into regions instead of nations. The economy was stabilized—a change brought about by robots called the Machines. But before she explains more about the Machines, she says that she has to tell the story of Stephen Byerley and Francis Quinn.

In 2032, Quinn and Byerley are locked in a political race for mayor. During the campaign, Quinn approaches Lanning and Calvin. He explains that he has been investigating Mr. Byerley, and that the man has never been seen eating, drinking, or sleeping. Quinn suggests that he is a robot, and asks them to verify that this is the case. Lanning is hesitant, but Quinn reminds him that U.S. Robots would be held responsible if a positronic robot was discovered masquerading as a man, as they are the only manufacturer of positronic robots in the Solar System.

Lanning and Calvin go to visit Byerley, and Lanning asks him point blank if he is a robot. Byerley guesses that Quinn is the one who put Lanning up to this and is slightly irked, but he eats an apple in front of them to prove that he is not a robot. Calvin says, however, that this doesn’t prove that he is not a robot. He could be a very advanced robot, designed to do all of the things a human can do. Byerley says that Quinn simply wants to start a smear campaign against him, and Calvin and Lanning leave.

That night, when Byerley returns home, he greets a man named John in a wheelchair. Byerley carries John out into the garden for a walk and confesses that Quinn plans to accuse him of being a robot. Byerley then tells John that he has an idea to counteract Quinn’s claims.

The next day, Calvin, Lanning, and Quinn meet again, and they report to Quinn that they saw Byerley eat. Calvin admits, however, that this does not prove he is not a robot. The two methods they can use to prove he is a robot are physical and psychological. He will probably not let them dissect or X-ray him, and so it would have to be psychological. If he is a robot, he must conform to the Three Laws of Robotics. If he breaks any of them, he is not a robot.

Calvin continues, pointing out that there is no way to prove he is a robot based on the Three Laws, because “the three Rules of Robotics are the essential guiding principles of a good many of the world’s ethical systems.” If Byerley follows all of the laws, he may be a robot, or he “may simply be a very good man.”

Lanning tries to examine evidence they may already have, as Byerley is a district attorney. Quinn remarks that Byerley boasts about having never prosecuted an innocent man. Lanning points out that he may not harm a human being whether innocent or guilty. But Calvin responds that if a robot came upon a madman that was trying to set a house on fire with people in it, the robot would try to stop the madman, even if it meant harming a human. Additionally, Byerley has not killed a man himself, he has simply given facts to others about the danger a person might pose to society, still adhering to the First Law. Byerley even speaks out against capital punishment.

Quinn decides the next step is to try to find out what Byerley’s insides look like. A week before Byerley is to be nominated, Quinn leaks the news that he is a robot. There is no alternative candidate for Byerley’s party, and so he is still nominated, but there is “complete confusion” among the public. The Fundamentalists are in uproar, and U.S. Robots starts employing armed guards to protect itself. Stephen Byerley starts to surround himself with police.

One day, a man named Harroway appears at Byerley’s door and presents him with a court order that allows him to search the premises for the presence of mechanical men. Byerley allows the house to be searched, but when Harroway insists that they must also take an X-Ray of him, Byerley points out that the warrant doesn’t cover searching his body, and he refuses. He affirms that he has rights, and if they try to violate them, he will engage Harroway’s employer in a civil suit. Harroway leaves.

After Harroway gets in his car, he checks a tiny mechanism in his pocket—a small X-ray camera. But when he presents the image to Quinn, he discovers that Byerley must have been wearing something that shielded his body from radiation, and therefore the picture could not be taken.

Byerley and Quinn speak over visorphone, and  Quinn threatens to reveal that Byerley wears this shield to the public. Byerley retorts that he will reveal that Quinn’s men attempted an illegal invasion of his right to privacy. Quinn then points out that there was a person missing from his house when they searched it. Byerley says that this is an old teacher of his who lives with him, but who is taking a vacation in the country. Quinn accuses the teacher of being the “real” Stephen Byerley, who created a robot version of himself after being injured in an automobile accident.

Byerley denies Quinn’s claims, but thanks him for the  publicity. Quinn again affirms that Byerley is a robot and that the electorate knows it. Byerley responds that Quinn should relax if that’s the case, since it means that Quinn will win the election. Quinn hangs up. Later, John returns to the city a week before the election, but Byerley hides him in an obscure part of the city rather than in his home.

Later, just before the election, Byerley makes a final speech in front of a roaring crowd. During the speech, a man approaches Byerley, and the crowd grows quiet. The man goads Byerley to hit him. Byerley at first refuses, saying that he has no issue with the man. The man accuses him of being a “monster” until Byerley punches the man in the face in front of the crowd. The man is stunned. Byerley apologizes, but this is enough to convince everyone that he is human.

Dr. Calvin and Stephen Byerley meet once more, a week before he takes office. Calvin explains Quinn’s theory to him fully, but Byerley points out that his ability to hit the man surely proved Quinn wrong. She tells him that she wishes he were a robot—a robot would be a better civil executive than a human, in her opinion. Byerley points out that a robot might fail due to the “inherent inadequacies of his brain.” Calvin makes a final point to Byerley: there is one time when a robot may strike a human being without breaking the First Law. That is when the human who is being hit is actually another robot.

Back with the reporter, Calvin says that when Byerley died, he had his body atomized so that there was never any legal proof. She still thinks he was a robot. But it didn’t matter to her: he was a good mayor. Five years later he became Regional Coordinator, and in 2044, he became the first World Coordinator. By that point, however, the Machines were already running the world, Calvin says.