IntroductionIn his fantastic work, The Bicentennial Man, Isaac Asimov invites the reader to consider the philosophical ideal of what it means to be a human being. Asimov combines the impartiality of science and the irrationality of emotion by creating a "living" android character set in a "normal" family situation in the future, when robots can be purchased as Christmas gifts. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original EssayA question is asked to make us think, but we think we have the simplest answer to: “What makes us human?” ". Actually, this is not the case proven in the book Bicentennial man written by Isaac Asimov. Most would answer that what makes us human is our emotions, our thought process, and our appearance. According to Psychology Today, “one of the key characteristics that makes us human seems to be our ability to think about alternative futures and make deliberate choices accordingly.” Bicentennial Man proves all of this wrong. Andrew, the Bicentennial Man, shows emotion, looks like a human with human features, and has his own thought process. How is it different from a human? Bicentennial Man is a robot in a book written by Isaac Asimov. In Bicentennial Man, the setting is San Francisco between the mid-twenty-first century and the mid-twenty-third century. The structure of the book is a flashback; however, the book is set in the future. Asimov tries to predict what might happen in the future with robots and their desire to become equal. The author also tries to show how excluded one feels and when you do everything you can to be a part of it and still aren't accepted, it's an overwhelming feeling inside. The theme that is presented throughout the book is to challenge the reader to know where the line of inequality lies and to know what they believe in Andrew. This is manifested when Andrew wants to be categorized as a human because he is capable of doing everything a human can do, but this is denied to him. Other themes presented are the separation of mind and body, which is quite human to Andrew and morality (Sakina). This creates ideas for the reader and allows them to think about why and whether Andrew should be considered human or not. The meaning of the title is also closely related to these themes. The meaning of the book's title is that the android, Andrew, manages to become as close to a human as possible on the occasion of the bicentennial of his construction, where the World Congress declares him a bicentennial man. However, the fact that he is declared a bicentennial man does not convey a positive message. The message given to the reader is self-loathing and how Andrew doesn't feel worthy of love, even after everything he does to try to declare himself human, his wish still isn't granted. Even though this is the message conveyed, the mood of the book is optimistic because Andrew has hope until the very end of his attempt to become a human and this is seen in everything he does until that he decides it's time for him to go and get started. stopping slowly. Characters who play a positive role in the book are Martin's youngest daughter, Andrew Martin, Richard Martin, and Portia Charney. The characters who play a negative role are Mechanical Man and Dennis Mansky, head of NorthAm Robotics. Sir, plays a huge role in the book when it comes to Andrew's humanity. He was the one who first guided Andrew on the path to becoming more than just a robot, because Andrew had so much more to him than that.Little Miss also plays a unique role in the novel as she is the one who gives Andrew his name, which adds a humanizing effect. Some literary devices used by Asimov in the book are euphemisms and point of view. The point of view of the entire book does not change, it is seen through the eyes of Andre the Android. It is about creating, for the reader, an emotional attachment to Andrew. This emotional attachment is created in order to allow the reader to see Andrew's entire life and how he has everything he needs to become a human, but the world continues to deny him his purpose. The entire book is written with euphemisms. Asimov downplayed the harsh information given to Andrew and showed some people that it didn't matter to them that Andrew couldn't be declared human because they thought he shouldn't be. To help understand the book a little more also when reading it you need to know Isaac's three laws of robotics. “1st law: A robot cannot injure a human being nor, through inaction, allow a human being to be harmed. 2nd Law: A robot must obey orders given to it by human beings, except when those orders would conflict with the First Law. 3rd law: A robot must protect its existence as long as this protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law” (Sakina). The Robot's name is Andrew and he lives with the Martin family. Andrew was constructed and given certain parts in which he would act. However, there was an accidental mishap in Andrew's positronic brain pathways such that he became very artistic and can learn on his own, which is very rare and has never happened before with robots. When doctors became aware of Andrew's defect, they informed the Martin family that they could get rid of Andrew and get a new robot. However, Andrew was so close to his youngest daughter, Little Miss, that the Martin family chose to keep Andrew. Andrew also began creating beautiful works of art that would be worth a lot of money. The Martins began selling Andrews' artwork and gave him half of the money they would make from that artwork. Andrew began saving his money until he could finally upskill himself. He then buys his freedom, buys organic parts to replace the old parts, writes about the history of robots, tries to obtain legal rights for robots, becomes a robobiologist and even begins to wear clothes. After completing all these tasks, Andrew feels that he has the right to be declared a man rather than a robot, because he acts more like a man. Unfortunately, it was refused. After being denied such a request, he requests that his immortal body begin to slowly drain. Andrew had gone through so many obstacles to try to be known as a "man", but humans felt he didn't have that right. Humans then became another obstacle for Andrew. The Martin children did not treat Andrew the way he should have been treated. One example is when they threw him out of their upstairs window for a laugh. This fall damaged Andrew a lot and he could do nothing about all this torture except accept it. Since he acted like a human, he understood everything that was happening to him due to his advanced human development, but he couldn't do anything to stop it because in their eyes, he was just a robot. However, a shocking turn of events occurs: on the 200th anniversary of Andrews' construction, the president of the world declares Andrew the Bicentennial Man and approves it. This had surprised the dying Andrew (Asimov). Andrew started out as a robot, having robot characteristics, following what his coding and hisparts told him to do until an unexpected turn of events occurred. Somehow there was an error in his coding in which he started having human characteristics and he started acting like a human. He showed emotion, was independent and had a stable and functional job. How was he different from a human? The story is told from the point of view of the android robot Andrew. This causes the reader, from the beginning, to side with Andrew in his entire quest to find humanity (Schutte). This seems strange because most people would not side with a robot and their point of view, but from the beginning of the story the reader is taken on a long journey of Andrew's life and his desires to make oneself known as a human. Since the reader sees everything from Andrew's point of view, they can also see his soul. It is not possible to deny something with equal rights to the soul, but throughout the novel society continually does so. Since Andrew was given a soul, readers feel like they can empathize with him. Additionally, at the end of the book, Andrew dies a "natural" death even though he is not considered human. How could a robot die naturally and not be considered a human? Robots don't die a natural death, they either get shut down or break down. Yet after all this, Andrew is still only considered a Bicentennial Man. Asimov shares his own insecurities in this novel when he wrote an unintentional insult about Andrew while waiting to find out whether he would become human or not. Did Asimov write this novel and become the main character known as Andrew because that's where he hides all his own insecurities? He disguised his emotions as a future robot. Perhaps Asimov wrote this novel because he feels unwanted and he shows this through Andrew and the actions of his writing. The text of the novel is also a philosophical text. A philosophical text is one in which the main character has faced many setbacks throughout the novel. Andrew faced many setbacks throughout this novel with one thing on his mind: being declared human. He feels that he should have the same opportunities as humans because he can do anything they can, which has been shown throughout the novel. This may again relate to Asimov, as Asimov could have been at a point in his life where he was facing many setbacks and needed to keep moving forward. I believe Asimov wrote all of this based on himself and what he felt at that time in his life. I believe the time Andrew became known as the Bicentennial Man was the time Asimov wrote and completed the book Bicentennial Man. The main feeling Asimov felt that led him to write this book was that he did not feel human. Everything in his life had added up to ask: what really makes one considered human? All of this is shown through the android Andrew as he searches for what could cause him to be declared human and throughout the novel he does so, facing many setbacks each time. Perhaps Asimov also doesn't feel human but doesn't know how to express it or show what makes one considered or declared human. Even if Andrew qualifies to declare a human, he is still an alien. He is a stranger in his own community and will not be allowed to enter a community that suits him best. This is another example of how Asimov might relate this to himself, feeling left out, just like a stranger who has nowhere to go. The destination he wants to go to will not accept him and hefeels lost, not knowing where to go or what to do. I believe this is what Asimov felt and that is why he is writing this book to help him in his stuck period of not feeling human and experiencing it through Andrew. Asimov also tries to highlight people's fears by not allowing Andrew to come forward. a human. Many people fear that robots will take over the Earth and human life. Many films, shows and songs have been written on this subject. Humans want to be known as superior and the best; Once something tries to oppose them, they will do everything in their power to try to fight it. This leads back to Andrew wanting to become human. Andrew's intentions to become human are not meant to be negative. He wants to be declared human because he has worked hard for everything he has achieved and he has all the same characteristics as the humans in the book, the only difference is that he was built in a factory. Asimov shows that people fear that if Andrew was declared human, other robots that might contain a flaw in the future might want the same thing. If all robots came to want to be declared human, they contain more advanced capabilities and technology than humans. They will then become superior to humans and humans do not want to lose control of everything; they will have to become slaves to the robots. Asimov showed at the beginning of the book how humans make robots entertain and take care of their children, do household chores for them and in Andrew's case, they sold the artwork he had painted and kept the majority of the money for themselves. Asimov tries to exploit people's fears but doesn't say it directly in the book. By exploiting people's fears, he would get an emotional response from the reader, which would cause them to read his book with more emotions. From the beginning of the book, Asimov tries to emotionally attach readers to Andrew. This is why Asimov writes the book from Andrew's point of view, to create an emotional connection with Andrew. Asimov does this to show Andrew's soul. A soul can show who someone or something really is. A soul provides insight into that person or robot. Once we know a person's soul, we determine whether it contains good or bad intentions. From the beginning of the book, Asimov shows Andrew good intentions. He does everything asked of him and even gets mistreated by the children of the Martin family but continues to have good intentions throughout the book, no matter what happens to him. Asimov also wrote this book around Christmas time; Andrew was a Christmas present to the Martin children. Christmas is known for the birth of Jesus Christ. Asimov wrote this book around Christmas as it is billed as Andrew's birth. Andrew's birth is significant because it shows how he helped many people in his life and how he grew significantly. What many might say about Andrew is that he was built in a lab and somehow there was a mistake that got him started. acting more like a human. But humans are also “built” in a certain way, just not in a laboratory. Humans grow in the womb and are “built” by deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) from each of their parents. Andrew also showed emotions like those of humans and "grew up" to be very independent, just like children do when they become adults. He got a job and became very successful, just like humans. This further calls into question what truly makes us human. Andrew had.