I, Robot: Liar! Summary & Analysis

Susan Calvin, Alfred Lanning, Peter Bogert, and Milton Ashe—all four of whom are officers for U.S. Robot and Mechanical Men—are discussing Herbie, the robot that can read minds. They’re not sure what might have led to the robot acquiring this ability, and due to that fact, Bogert suggests that they keep Herbie a secret from the rest of the staff. If word got out that a mind-reading robot existed, the “antirobot propaganda” would surely increase. They all agree.

Ashe describes when he discovered Herbie’s abilities: he spoke to Ashe in his mind, and Ashe thought he was having a simple conversation until he realized that he hadn’t actually said anything. Lanning breaks into his story, saying that the most important thing is to figure out where the error happened in the assembly line. Ashe agrees to try.

Lanning then tells Calvin to try to study Herbie and figure out how he might have gained telepathic powers and how far they extend. Calvin goes to see Herbie, bringing him texts on hyperatomic motors to see if he can figure out what went wrong in his manufacturing process. After looking them over, Herbie confesses he prefers fiction, because it helps them understand people’s minds, which he tells her are very complicated.

Dr. Calvin starts to blush when she realizes that Herbie must know about a love that she harbors for Milton Ashe, which Herbie assures her that he has not revealed. She mopes, telling him that she is neither what you would call attractive or young, as she is 38—Ashe, on the other hand, is 35 and looks younger. She grows upset as she talks, nearly to the point of tears. Herbie tells her that he can help, that he can tell her things she would want to know about what Milton Ashe thinks of her. Herbie then tells her that Ashe loves her. Calvin is shocked.

Dr. Calvin starts to argue that Herbie must be mistaken—there was a slim, blond girl who visited Ashe at the plant six months earlier in whom he was surely interested. Herbie tells Calvin that that girl was his first cousin. Calvin remarks at how strange that is, as that is what she used to pretend sometimes. She thanks Herbie, elated, and tells him not to tell anyone about what he’s said.

Meanwhile, Ashe and Bogert are talking about Herbie’s assembly process. Bogert admits that he thinks Lanning is “a bit behind the times,” and that his mathematical strategies are too simple to find the proper solution regarding Herbie’s circuits. Ashe suggests that he give the calculations to Herbie, as Dr. Calvin has discovered that the robot can solve any mathematical problem. Ashe then asks Bogert if he’s noticed anything strange about Calvin lately. Bogert admits he sees that she’s been wearing makeup and seems happy, before suggesting she might be in love. Ashe says that Bogert is “nuts.”

Bogert visits Herbie, who checks his mathematical calculations and finds no errors, but tells Bogert that he can’t solve the problem because he knows very little about mathematics. Bogert then starts to ask Herbie about Lanning, and how long he might plan to remain at his post. Herbie confesses to Bogert that Lanning has already resigned and plans to pass on the office of director to his successor after they resolve the issue with Herbie. Bogert is shocked, and immediately asks who the successor is. Herbie says that Bogert is the next director. Bogert is relieved.

The next morning, Bogert and Lanning get into an argument over which mathematical formulas to use in trying to figure out what enabled Herbie’s telepathy. Lanning says that he’s going to submit to the National Board to try and figure out what went wrong, because he doesn’t trust Bogert’s calculations. Bogert furiously insists that Lanning can’t do that, as he’s already figured out the solution and wants the credit for doing so. Lanning says he will suspend Bogert for insubordination, and Bogert reveals to Lanning that Herbie told him he’s resigning and that he is succeeding Lanning. Lanning is shocked to hear this, and insists they speak to Herbie together.

Meanwhile, Ashe and Calvin are chatting together. Ashe draws a house that he’s thinking of buying, which he confesses is not only for himself. He tells Calvin that he’s getting married to the blond girl who visited the previous year. Calvin is shocked and heartbroken, but tries to hide her feelings from him. She congratulates him on his engagement and stumbles out of the room.

Calvin immediately goes to find Herbie, confused why he had said that Ashe loved her. Herbie assures her, in a frightened and pleading voice, that this is just a dream, that she will soon wake up, and that he is sure Ashe loves her. Calvin at first wants to believe this, but then she wakes herself from this appealing illusion. Then she realizes what caused Herbie to do this.

At that moment, Bogert and Lanning burst into the room to confront Herbie as well. Bogert tells Herbie to repeat what he had said the previous day about Lanning resigning. Lanning roars at the robot, asking him to tell the truth about whether he is resigning. The robot remains mute, unable to answer the question. Calvin starts to laugh, realizing that she, Bogert, and Lanning have all fallen into the same trap.

Calvin explains that because of the First Law of Robotics, Herbie did not want to cause any of them “mental injury,” and so he lied. He lied to Bogert that Lanning was retiring and that he could not identify the error in his manufacturing process. Calvin asks Herbie to reveal it, but Herbie is worried that Bogert and Lanning don’t want the answer. Bogert and Lanning assure him that they do.

Calvin points out to Herbie that he doesn’t want to tell Bogert and Lanning the answer because he is afraid that it will hurt their feelings and their egos, but that not telling them will also harm them because they want the answer and are upset with him. Herbie is caught in this paradox, screaming and collapsing to the ground before growing silent. Calvin assures them he will never speak again and that he should be scrapped—a fate, she says, that he deserved. After the men leave the room, she looks at Herbie for a long time before saying a final word, “Liar!” In the present, the reporter thanks Calvin, who is very cold and pale, for the story, and leaves the old woman.