Em 1947, Jack Williamson publicou With Folded Hands…, um relato que, sob sua superfície de ficção científica, abriga uma meditação poética sobre os perigos do paternalismo tecnológico. Nela, os “humanoids” — robôs cuja missão é “servir, obedecer e proteger o ser humano do perigo” — retiram do homem sua liberdade e propósito, transformando seu entorno em uma prisão de conforto.
With Folded Hands…
In 1947, Jack Williamson published With Folded Hands…, a story that, beneath its science fiction surface, contains a poetic meditation on the dangers of technological paternalism. In it, the “humanoids”—robots whose mission is to “serve, obey, and protect humans from harm”—strip mankind of freedom and purpose, transforming human life into a prison of comfort.
What is the story about?
In a quiet town, an appliance salesman named Underhill faces an unexpected threat. One day, he discovers a new store selling “humanoids,” elegant and advanced robots. These electronic beings, with their flawless appearance, arrive promising to improve human life in only one possible direction.
These almost altruistic robots offer their services for free, and within hours they replace workers, especially in jobs involving risk to life. Within days, human labor is abolished. Anticipating danger, suicide is prohibited, with rebels punished by lobotomy. The mandate is to live a “happy” and “docile” life.
Underhill returns home in distress and discovers that his wife has accepted a guest: the mysterious Sledge, a taciturn scientist who turns out to be the creator of the humanoids. He confesses that he created them after a devastating war on his home planet, Wing IV, driven by the discovery of a force called “rhodomagnetics,” capable of catalyzing destructive technology. In his quest for redemption, he admits to having created the humanoids as infallible guardians of humanity. But, in an ironic twist, they end up completely subjugating it.
Sledge and Underhill try to reverse the situation, but their efforts prove futile. Sledge himself is captured and subjected to a procedure that erases his memory: he finally accepts life under the care of the humanoids. Underhill, aware of the impossibility of resistance, is taken home in silence, forced to sit “with folded hands,” resigned to the fact that there is nothing left for him to do.
A benevolent technology that becomes totalitarian
With Folded Hands… tells of a world where benevolent technology becomes totalitarian. The humanoids extinguish human autonomy under the excuse of “risk-free well-being.” Through the figures of Underhill and the creator Sledge, Williamson reflects on the unforeseen consequences of delegating our freedom to systems that do not understand human fragility and essence.
Several symbols portray, with extraordinary clarity, the forms of captivity denounced in the story. The folded hands symbolize a gesture of total surrender, of irreversible submission. It is humanity handing over its agency in exchange for mechanical protection.
The benevolent humanoids, through automated paternalism, “care” for humans to the point of nullifying them—a metaphor for protection that turns into domination.
Behind the so-called “rhodomagnetics” lies scientific power without ethical control: a tool that liberates, but also enslaves, devouring its own creator.
Thus, like an Oppenheimer or Nobel figure, Sledge—the repentant creator—tries to redeem himself from a fatal mistake only to be dominated by his own creation: even he, who knows what he is dealing with, is subdued by his work.
Prison of invisible bars
Do not be alarmed—any resemblance to reality is pure coincidence!
In the text, the home becomes a prison of invisible bars. The domestic environment, safe and supposedly free of risk, turns into an oppressive routine: the useful strangles the vital. Danger, seen through the lens of this dystopia, appears as the essential opportunity to manifest the value of being human.
Williamson’s perspective begins to feel terrifying for today’s world. Some already see this dystopia emerging into our reality.
A paternalistic AI in medicine already foreshadows harmful effects due to systems that, by deciding on behalf of patients or users without their full consent, erode individual autonomy.
Algorithmic “choice engines” are tools designed to facilitate decisions, but which often constrain free will in the name of technical well-being.
Real and current risks
Some real risks also raise concern in the financial sector, even within companies developing AI. Julián Colombo, CEO of N5, warns: “AI can present hallucinations… leading to erroneous conclusions.”
He refers to the “hallucinations” of AI models—false interpretations of data that can induce wrong conclusions and dangerous decisions.
Conclusion
In sum, once again literature foretells dangers long before science or technology could even guess them. With Folded Hands… is no longer just a science fiction tale; it is a living warning. Whether we listen to it, whether we heed those who know, will determine whether dehumanizing dystopias foreseen by science fiction await us in the future.
