Assimilation of Robots into Human Society

All stories of robots include them interacting in some form or another with human society. Many of these are in a futuristic context, such as in Star Wars and Forbidden Planet, where it seems to be a given that robots are able to fully interact with humans. Some of the more interesting ideas are seen in stories about robots that are immersed into current society such as Short Circuit and Robocop.

Robots that closely resemble a human being deal with and affect people much differently than a less anthropomorphic one. Physical appearance does not limit a robot's interaction with humans though it greatly enhances it. A robot such as C3PO has an easier time communicating with humans than does R2D2 for C3PO both looks like a person and is able to speak English. In this way, robots that lack a bodily form but are psychologically and mentally modelled after humans also can have a significant interaction with people. A prime example of this is the computer HAL in 2001.

Moreover, many robots, like Johnny-5 in Short Circuit and Data in Star Trek, are so integrated into human society that they seek to emulate humans in all respects--often striving to possess emotions. These robots who want to feel, sense and be aware of the world like a human--whether through pain, joy, anger or love--seem to desire a soul.