11
I was reading about the history of the word 'robot' and it came from a play in 1920
I was looking up ideas for a sci-fi prompt and fell down a rabbit hole. Found out the word 'robot' was first used in a play called 'R.U.R.' by this Czech writer, Karel Čapek. It comes from a Czech word for forced labor. Kind of wild that a term we use all the time for machines has its roots in a stage play about artificial people. Makes you think about how many other common ideas started in fiction. Anyone have a favorite word or concept with a surprising origin story from a book or play?
3 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In3 Comments
clark.alex1d ago
Seriously, that robot origin is a perfect example! It makes you wonder how many tech words we use daily were just made up by authors. Like @annaw73's quarantine fact, the real world borrows from stories all the time. My favorite is "cyberspace." William Gibson just invented it for his book Neuromancer, and now it's the normal word for the whole internet. Fiction doesn't just predict the future, it literally gives us the language to talk about it.
7
gavinb971d ago
Gibson's cyberspace is a great pick. The word "robot" came from a 1920s play, which feels wild now. You start noticing this everywhere once you look for it. "Big Brother" from 1984 is basically shorthand for surveillance now. It's proof that good stories don't just describe the world, they help build the next one.
-1