Teddy Wecker
February 28, 2020
A Flawed Ideal
An axiom is defined in mathematics as “a proposition that is assumed without proof for the sake of studying the consequences that follow” (Dictionary.com, “Axiom”). All mathematical proofs, ranging from the quadratic formula to special relativity, are defined by logical progression stemming from a certain few axioms. Isaac Asimov’s short story, “Reason,” explores this method of logic to its extreme conclusion by using the robot QT-1, “Cutie,” to represent the human intellectual ideal, a mind of perfect reason. He illustrates the shortcomings of the ultimate mind through topics of consciousness, intelligence, faith, and logic, and demonstrates how a seemingly infallible method can fall to pieces when just a few axioms are out of place.
The first few paragraphs of “Reason” work in tandem to outline how the rest of the story is set to play out. Powell’s frustration, the foreshadowing hum of the “mighty beam director” (Asimov 161), and Cutie’s immovable posture, to name a few details, establish key presences that persist throughout the rest of the story. Most interesting to me is the early description of Cutie’s consciousness. Powell’s thoughts are presented, reading:
“These robots possessed peculiar brains. The positronic paths impressed upon them were calculated in advance, and all possible permutations that might lead to anger or hate were Ridgely excluded. And yet – the QT models were the first of their kind, and this was the first of the QT’s” (Asimov 161).
This exposition tells us that Cutie does not have a motherboard, central processor, or any other modern computer part controlling its thoughts. Cutie has something far more sophisticated: a brain. This sets the stage for his sentience, but Asimov makes clear Cutie’s consciousness is not like that of a human. He is uniquely other, unable to feel anger or hate and only trusting the paths of reason down which he himself can proceed. From the beginning, then, Cutie is said to embody the human intellectual ideal. The typical human is irrational and passionate, with human brains constantly taking us down paths where emotion clouds already flawed logical progression. Asimov demonstrates this with the two humans on board the station, juxtaposing their frustration with Cutie with the robots impassive calm (Asimov 186). It is telling that, in the world of “Reason,” when humans were building an intellectual robot they chose to build one not with a knowledge of everything human but with an ability to execute perfect logic -the foundation for a seemingly utopian intellect.
The point Asimov is trying to make with this story is the flaw with perfect logic. Early on, Powell attempts to explain to Cutie about space, earth, and the purpose of the station. Cutie, though, has a mind built around reason and replies “Do you expect me… to believe any such complicated, implausible hypothesis?” (Asimov 163) Cutie refuses to accept truths of the universe he cannot himself back by tangible evidence. “I accept nothing on authority,” says the robot, “A hypothesis must be backed by reason, or else it is worthless” (Asimov 165). With this quote, Cutie exposes the true flaw with his method, which circles back to axioms. Some of the early axioms Cutie follows are that he exists, he is sophisticated, and that only reason is the path to truth. These axioms take him away from what the humans know to be true, and towards the conclusion that he was built by the master.
This is Asimov’s first critique of purely logical thinking. When a person, or a robot, takes nothing other than what they can directly prove through observation to be true, the foundation upon which their seemingly infallible logic is built is prone to cave in. A compounding problem being that, with axioms constructed from a limited perspective, there may be no real indication that the method of logic is wrong. Such is the case with Cutie where, as seen in his dismissal of the explanation Powell provides about space, the only thing more stubborn than his logic is his unwillingness to accept that he may be incorrect. Though this is an underlying theme throughout the story Asimov goes so far as to communicate this bluntly through dialogue. Powell says, in response to his comrade beginning to question whether or not Cutie may actually be the one who’s right, “you can prove anything you want by coldly logical reason- if you pick the proper postulates … postulates are based on assumption and adhered to by faith” (Asimov 173). This is the core of Asimov’s argument in “Reason”: that no matter what conclusion logic may take you to, it is worthless without axioms that are based in fundamental fact, but often retrieved by assumption. It would be impossible to prove anything without first beginning with some axioms, yet these axioms are often assumed for the convivence of proof. Asimov questions whether it is fair to assume things about nature in the way we do, and demonstrates how cold logic can make a proverbial mountain out of the molehill of a single, questionable axiom.
Powell reflects on more than the power of assumption alone, however. He also mentions the power of faith, a power used by both Cutie in the story as well as humans for the past thousands of years to explain the unexplainable. Asimov’s critique of faith as an escape hatch of sorts from the shortcomings of logic is brought to light several times, but perhaps most clearly when Cutie is explaining phenomena he cannot himself understand. Anything that evades the other conclusions reached by his reason is dismissed. When asked about the purpose of the beams, for example, Cutie claims they are done “by the Master for his own purposes. There are some things… not meant to be prodded into by us” (Asimov 170). This claim is particularly captivating as, other than through other conclusions Cutie has reached through his reason, there is no logic backing this solution, demonstrating the robot’s faith both in the master and in itself. Through Cutie’s explanation, some things which were obvious to the humans were unobtainable knowledge. Faith both binds Cutie to his logic and blinds him from its faults, and in this way Asimov demonstrates the flaw with the ideal human mind. There is no way someone can know everything, but Asimov makes the case that determining what is unknowable is more complicated than it seems.
Throughout Asimov’s story he dissects the notion that purely logical thinking is the path to ultimate intelligence. He makes the point that despite a seemingly flawless method, logic will only ever be as good as the axioms upon which it is based. The human experience is an incredibly subjective and limited reference frame. There are some things humanity may never understand, limited by our faith, our methods, and our faith in our methods.
Bibliography:
Asimov, Isaac. “Reason.” The Wesleyan Anthology of Science Fiction, edited by Arthur B. Evans, Istvan Csicsery-Ronay Jr, Joan Gordon, Veronica Hollinger, Rob Latham, Carol McGuirk, Wesleyan University Press, 2010, p.160-176
“Axiom.” Dictionary.com, Dictionary.com, www.dictionary.com/browse/axiom?s=t.