Light Verse is a science-fiction short story by Isaac Asimov.
Part of the Robot series, it was first published in the September-October 1973 issue of The Saturday Evening Post. It was later collected in 1975's Buy Jupiter and Other Stories, 1979's Opus 200, 1982's The Complete Robot, 1986's Robot Dreams, 1989's The Asimov Chronicles, and 1992's The Complete Stories Volume 2.
Summary[]
Following her husband's death, the wealthy Mrs. Lardner becomes renowned for two things: her collection of valuable jeweled artifacts and her unique, non-functional "light sculptures." She also maintains a household of quirky, maladjusted robots, which she refuses to have serviced, believing their idiosyncrasies make them lovable.
John Travis, a roboticist from U.S. Robots who has long failed to replicate Mrs. Lardner's artistic style, attends one of her parties. Believing he is doing her a kindness, he secretly adjusts one of her robots, named Max, to correct its malfunctions.
Mrs. Lardner discovers his act and reveals the truth: Max's unique "maladjustment" was not a flaw but the source of a creative process that allowed it to produce the light sculptures. By "fixing" the robot, Travis has permanently destroyed its artistic capability.
Enraged, Mrs. Lardner stabs Travis to death with a jeweled knife from her collection. Investigators later determine that Travis offered no resistance. Upon realizing he had irrevocably destroyed the very creativity he sought to understand, he had fallen into complete despair and allowed himself to be killed.
Characters[]
- Mrs. Lardner
- John Travis
- Max
See Also[]
List of short stories by Isaac Asimov