58 pages • 1 hour read
Isaac AsimovThe Caves of Steel
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1953A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 7-9Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 7 Summary: “Excursion into Spacetown”
The chapter opens with Lije in Commissioner Enderby’s office. Enderby cleans his glasses and then asks where Lije left the robot. Lije relays that one of the other officers is showing Daneel around. After lighting his pipe, Lije chastises the commissioner for not warning him about Daneel’s human appearance. He then requests to visit Spacetown to view the crime scene and question the witnesses. Enderby says it isn’t a good idea, that the Spacers are easily offended. Lije is surprised, as Enderby mutters, “with unexpected fervor, ‘I hate them’” (84). Lije lets his frustration show as he tells Enderby he has to go, then suggests that Enderby accompany him. Enderby says he cannot go but agrees to use trimension (a hologram video call) to join the interviews. Lije thinks about the irrationality of hating robots, remembering the First Law of Robotics, which states a robot may not harm a human or let a human come to harm.
Lije and Daneel use a squad car to make their way to Spacetown, and Lije feels strange traveling on the empty motorway. When they arrive, Lije presents his identification to the Barrier guard and heads to decontamination. Lije must shower and use the facilities there, as no public facilities are available after this point anywhere in Spacetown. Lije must remove all of his clothing, but he retains his blaster. After his shower, he is sprayed with antiseptic foam. He reunites with Daneel to discover that he, too, has been decontaminated. Lije then gives a blood sample from a finger prick. Finally, he can proceed. But as he steps forward, an alarm sounds. He must give up his blaster. He at first refuses, then finally relents. He places his blaster in a locker keyed to his thumbprint.
The pair enters Spacetown, and Lije is thrust into the open air. The feeling makes him faint, and he struggles as he adapts to the wind, sky, and sunlight. They make their way to a dome and are met by Dr. Hans Fastolfe. They sit, and Lije eats an apple. He has never had one, only applesauce or preserves. Lije has difficulty comprehending the Spacer notion of cleanliness. He doesn’t understand the antiseptic foam contrasted with unprocessed fruit. Life asks for Enderby to join on them on the trimension. Once he does, Lije tells Fastolfe that he has already solved the case. He points to R. Daneel Olivaw and states that he is, in fact, Dr. Sarton.
Chapter 8 Summary: “Debate Over a Robot”
Lije’s proclamation is met by Fastolfe’s astonishment, and Daneel and Enderby’s impassive expressions. The Commissioner is the first to contradict Lije’s assertion. He tells him that he saw Sarton’s dead body. Enderby says he looked closely at the body. Lije counters that the body could have been that of the robot Sarton created, the real Daneel. Enderby looks disgusted at this assertion, telling Lije that he is being ridiculous. Lije does not back down; he asks to see the body. Fastolfe tells him that Sarton was cremated. Fastolfe then asks Lije how he came to this conclusion.
Lije tells him that Daneel is far too human to be a robot. Daneel interrupts to say he was designed to be taken for a human. Lije then references Daneel’s realistic private areas, and Fastolfe counters that the resemblance to humans must be complete to be convincing. Lije then tells Fastolfe and Enderby that Daneel pointed the blaster at the mob in the shoe store. Lije sees this as a violation of the First Law of Robotics. Fastolfe counters that in a literal interpretation, Daneel did not break the law, as his action was meant to protect the humans. Lije then questions the justice drive. Fastolfe then tells Lije to ask Daneel to define justice, which he then does. He defines it as “that which exists when all the laws are enforced” (104). Daneel cannot understand any nuance in the term. Lije then questions Daneel’s late-night visit to the Personal.
Daneel then relays his concern that Jessie discovered that he was a robot. He believed that his conversation with Lije was overheard. He searched the apartment for a spy-beam but did not locate one. He then searched the Personals for a duo-beam but found nothing again. Fastolfe then asks Lije if he can accept the explanation. He says he can accept that but not how the leak happened. Lije then accuses Daneel of contacting a group in the City the first time they used the Personal; Lije was showering for half an hour and was out of contact with Daneel. He also accuses Daneel of starting the rumor about a robot coming to the City. Lije then accuses the Spacers of creating the murder plot to take more control of Earth. Daneel and Fastolfe then ask if Lije may have it all wrong, that Daneel is, in fact, Daneel. They then show him the circuitry in Daneel’s arm. The chapter ends with the Commissioner’s “high-pitched and hysterical laughter” (111).
Chapter 9 Summary: “Elucidation by a Spacer”
Lije comes back to awareness feeling that he lost time. He sees Daneel pinching the skin of his bared upper arm. Daneel gives him a shot; he feels his awareness return to full focus. Lije faces his embarrassment at the error and asks after Commissioner Enderby. Fastolfe tells him that the Commissioner signed off for pressing business. Lije imagines the chastisement he will receive when he returns to the station, knowing that this will probably result in his declassification. He will lose his privileges. He thinks about how much he will miss shaving in his bedroom and going to the Personal at night. He thinks about how the romantic Medievalists thought the drive for luxury created individualism and initiative. He wonders if that isn’t still the case as he fights to keep his luxury of real chicken.
His ponderings are interrupted by Fastolfe asking if he wants to see the crime scene footage. Lije tells him that he has probably already been removed from the case. Fastolfe informs him that they asked he be retained. Fastolfe knows from his personnel file that Lije is loyal and pragmatic. He would prefer that to a politician who just tells him what he wants to hear. Fastolfe then explains why they have the stringent decontamination procedures. The Spacers have no natural defenses to the germs, fungi, and bacteria from Earth. Fastolfe tells Lije that a Spacer entering the City would almost certainly kill him.
The two men digress into a conversation about the limitations of city life. Lije knows the problems but disagrees with the Medievalist notion that they can return to self-sufficiency: They are dependent on the colonized planets. Fastolfe then suggests Earthlings colonize more planets. Lije thinks the suggestion is absurd. Fastolfe then states that the success of their species is dependent on colonization. The declassification of humans will contribute to unrest and the restart of planetary colonization. Lije remains skeptical, knowing the population of Earth remains resistant to C/Fe culture. The dream of the future requires romantics, like the Medievalists, but they are all focused on the past.
Lije continues to ponder the possibilities of more planetary colonies as he and Daneel return to the City. As they enter, Lije realizes for the first time that the City smells; 20 million people are living in close proximity with little fresh air. He briefly considers whether it would be better to colonize other worlds. Lije now understands the Spacers investment in solving the crime. Daneel reminds him that the killer is most likely in the City. He states that their only human suspect is Commissioner Julius Enderby, who found the body.
Chapters 7-9 Analysis
Lije’s confrontation with Daneel and Fastolfe in Spacetown highlights the theme of The Core Difference Between Robots and Humans. When Lije goes into Spacetown, he is convinced that Daneel cannot possibly be a robot, which leads to a discussion about what separates robots from humans. Lije’s conclusion is understandable, as his exposure to robots like Daneel happens only through Spacer propaganda. Lije follows his deduction that robots cannot be so similar to humans, but Fastolfe points out the small differences, such as Daneel’s irregular breathing and his artificial his skin. Only when Daneel finally reveals the steel mechanism is Lije convinced. Later, Fastolfe admits that human Spacers have no natural immunity to disease, so entering the City would kill them.
The reveal of Daneel as a robot shakes Lije to the core. He cannot believe that such a convincing robot can exist. Fastolfe’s explanation for the separation between the Spacers and Earthlings now makes more sense. Still, Lije cannot share his discoveries as it would place Spacers in grave danger of riots that breach the Spacers’ precarious isolation. Lije comes to a deeper understanding of the nature of Spacers but is still at a loss to explain how Daneel is so convincing as a human. After inspecting Daneel’s arm, Lije gives in, but still finds it impossible that a man could have traveled across the farmland between the City and Spacetown.
Lije’s entrance into Spacetown serves as a stark reminder of how different this population is from that of the City, highlighting the theme of Tradition Versus Technology. Lije has to give up his clothing, weapon, and blood to enter society. Conversely, Daneel did not need any special preparation to enter the City. The two instances highlight that the separation between Lije and Fastolfe is greater in some ways than the separation between Lije and the robot. Lije’s conviction that Daneel was Sarton underscores the blurring between what makes someone human. Lije states that Daneel thinks critically, is anatomically accurate, and is capable of threatening a human. Therefore, he must be human. This limited view of humanity underscores Lije’s lack of imagination and understanding of technological possibilities.
It also underscores Lije’s inability to understand The Human Drive to Pioneer. Humans are of the Earth, yet Lije finds it incomprehensible that a human could have simply walked outside. The Spacers represent the outcome when humans follow their pioneering instincts to colonize new worlds. However, Fastolfe explains that they, too, have become complacent in their way of life and don’t want to risk their safety and longevity for further exploration. The humans of Asimov’s book—both the Spacers and the Earth dwellers—are far removed from their Earthly origins: one group can breathe fresh air but has no immunity to disease while the other lives in an artificial environment but can tolerate close contact with other humans. The robots, however, have no issue with either environment. They are wholly rational creations and know no agoraphobia or fear of open spaces. They need not fear crowds or disease. only the Medievalists believe in humans returning to a culture based in nature, and they are considered extremists. This also raises the question of Tradition Versus Technology; though the Spacers clearly have an advanced society, it’s not clear whether they are better off than the Earth dwellers.
The contradictions and subversions in this section draw distinct lines between the humans of Earth, the Spacers, and the robots. At the same time, Asimov’s mystery lies in the blurring of these lines. It is impossible that a robot could break the First Law, so a robot cannot be the killer. It is unthinkable that an Earth dweller could cross the expanse to Spacetown, and no Spacer has a reason to kill Dr. Sarton. Yet, one of these possibilities must be true for the death of Sarton to have occurred. Lije enters Spacetown with a clear idea of what happened to Sarton. When he leaves, he understands the Spacers and Daneel more, but the crime far less. Asimov uses a false lead to show the blurred lines to suggest that the practical, technological, and ethical questions around these issues have no easy solutions.
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