Dors Venabili
Encyclopedia
In Isaac Asimov
's Foundation Series
, Dors Venabili is a good friend, protector and later wife of Hari Seldon
, the primary character of Prelude to Foundation
and Forward the Foundation
. At face value, Dors is an attractive woman, two years younger than Seldon. She tells Seldon that she is a historian from Cinna, and, before her involvement in The Flight
, Dors taught history classes at Streeling University on Trantor
.
Dors is probably one of the strongest and most developed female characters of the Foundation Series.
She has been assigned the task of protecting Hari Seldon by Chetter Hummin
(one of several aliases used by R. Daneel Olivaw) who takes an initial interest in Hari Seldon's psychohistory
research. Over the course of Prelude to Foundation
and Forward the Foundation
she shows an obsessive concern for his safety and earns the nickname "The Tiger Woman" for the ferocity with which she is willing to defend him, and her accuracy, reflexes, and skill (all thought to be superhuman to the point of feline). Despite that, throughout her lifetime protecting Seldon, she was always reluctant to harm opponents in the course of protecting her husband. This is a result of her being bound by the Laws of Robotics
.
Toward the end of Prelude to Foundation
, Hari reveals his suspicion that Dors is a gynoid
working with R. Daneel Olivaw
on his mission to protect mankind. (Clues that reveal Dors' true nature include her learning to master a weapon skillfully and immediately after watching a gangster use it just once.) This suspicion has no apparent effect on Hari's love for Dors. In fact, Seldon only finally admits to himself that his wife is a robot at the time of her death, and even then is unperturbed by that fact. Dors dies in Seldon's arms after being his spouse for 28 years, apparently as a result of both the EM
damage inflicted during the attempt on her life by a traitor in Seldon's ranks, Tamwile Elar, and a violation of the First Law of Robotics
as Dors kills Elar in defense of the Psychohistorical Project, thus essentially choosing to follow the Zeroth Law and suffering a fate similar to that of R. Giskard Reventlov. At the point of Seldon's death, he thinks of his protectress and wife in love, not in anger over her deception.
Together they raise Raych
, whom they encounter as a 12 year old boy while in the Dahl sector of Trantor.
Dors reappears in The Second Foundation Trilogy after her apparent death, having been repaired by Daneel. She is originally assigned new duties, but has difficulty adapting to them. Having been built for the specific purpose of caring for Hari Seldon, her absence from his life and her knowledge of his impending death give her new perspective on Daneel's orders. Eventually, she leaves his service entirely, and it is implied that she takes up with the robot Lodovik Trema, but only after one final visit to her husband, whose last recorded word was her name.
Isaac Asimov
Isaac Asimov was an American author and professor of biochemistry at Boston University, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books. Asimov was one of the most prolific writers of all time, having written or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 90,000...
's Foundation Series
The Foundation Series
The Foundation Series is a science fiction series by Isaac Asimov. There are seven volumes in the Foundation Series proper, which in its in-universe chronological order are: Prelude to Foundation, Forward the Foundation, Foundation, Foundation and Empire, Second Foundation, Foundation's Edge, and...
, Dors Venabili is a good friend, protector and later wife of Hari Seldon
Hari Seldon
Hari Seldon, a fictional character, is the intellectual hero of Isaac Asimov's Foundation Series. In his capacity as mathematics professor at Streeling University on Trantor, he developed psychohistory, allowing him to predict the future in probabilistic terms...
, the primary character of Prelude to Foundation
Prelude to Foundation
Prelude to Foundation is a Locus Award nominated 1988 novel written by Isaac Asimov. It is one of two prequels to the Foundation Series. For the first time, Asimov chronicles the fictional life of Hari Seldon, the man who invented psychohistory and the intellectual hero of the series.-Plot...
and Forward the Foundation
Forward the Foundation
Forward the Foundation is a novel written by Isaac Asimov. It is the second of two prequels to the Foundation Series. It is written in much the same style as the original novel Foundation, a novel composed of chapters with long intervals in between...
. At face value, Dors is an attractive woman, two years younger than Seldon. She tells Seldon that she is a historian from Cinna, and, before her involvement in The Flight
Prelude to Foundation
Prelude to Foundation is a Locus Award nominated 1988 novel written by Isaac Asimov. It is one of two prequels to the Foundation Series. For the first time, Asimov chronicles the fictional life of Hari Seldon, the man who invented psychohistory and the intellectual hero of the series.-Plot...
, Dors taught history classes at Streeling University on Trantor
Trantor
Trantor is a fictional planet in Isaac Asimov's Foundation Series and Empire Series of science fiction novels.Trantor was first described in a short story by Asimov appearing in Early Asimov Volume 1. Later Trantor gained prominence when the 1940s Foundation Series first appeared in print . Asimov...
.
Dors is probably one of the strongest and most developed female characters of the Foundation Series.
She has been assigned the task of protecting Hari Seldon by Chetter Hummin
R. Daneel Olivaw
R. Daneel Olivaw is a fictional robot created by Isaac Asimov. The "R" initial in his name stands for "robot," a naming convention in Asimov's future society...
(one of several aliases used by R. Daneel Olivaw) who takes an initial interest in Hari Seldon's psychohistory
Psychohistory (fictional)
Psychohistory is a fictional science in Isaac Asimov's Foundation universe which combines history, sociology, and mathematical statistics to make general predictions about the future behavior of very large groups of people, such as the Galactic Empire...
research. Over the course of Prelude to Foundation
Prelude to Foundation
Prelude to Foundation is a Locus Award nominated 1988 novel written by Isaac Asimov. It is one of two prequels to the Foundation Series. For the first time, Asimov chronicles the fictional life of Hari Seldon, the man who invented psychohistory and the intellectual hero of the series.-Plot...
and Forward the Foundation
Forward the Foundation
Forward the Foundation is a novel written by Isaac Asimov. It is the second of two prequels to the Foundation Series. It is written in much the same style as the original novel Foundation, a novel composed of chapters with long intervals in between...
she shows an obsessive concern for his safety and earns the nickname "The Tiger Woman" for the ferocity with which she is willing to defend him, and her accuracy, reflexes, and skill (all thought to be superhuman to the point of feline). Despite that, throughout her lifetime protecting Seldon, she was always reluctant to harm opponents in the course of protecting her husband. This is a result of her being bound by the Laws of Robotics
Three Laws of Robotics
The Three Laws of Robotics are a set of rules devised by the science fiction author Isaac Asimov and later added to. The rules are introduced in his 1942 short story "Runaround", although they were foreshadowed in a few earlier stories...
.
Toward the end of Prelude to Foundation
Prelude to Foundation
Prelude to Foundation is a Locus Award nominated 1988 novel written by Isaac Asimov. It is one of two prequels to the Foundation Series. For the first time, Asimov chronicles the fictional life of Hari Seldon, the man who invented psychohistory and the intellectual hero of the series.-Plot...
, Hari reveals his suspicion that Dors is a gynoid
Gynoid
A gynoid is anything which resembles or pertains to the female human form. It is also used in American English medical terminology as a shortening of the term Gynecoid ....
working with R. Daneel Olivaw
R. Daneel Olivaw
R. Daneel Olivaw is a fictional robot created by Isaac Asimov. The "R" initial in his name stands for "robot," a naming convention in Asimov's future society...
on his mission to protect mankind. (Clues that reveal Dors' true nature include her learning to master a weapon skillfully and immediately after watching a gangster use it just once.) This suspicion has no apparent effect on Hari's love for Dors. In fact, Seldon only finally admits to himself that his wife is a robot at the time of her death, and even then is unperturbed by that fact. Dors dies in Seldon's arms after being his spouse for 28 years, apparently as a result of both the EM
Electromagnetism
Electromagnetism is one of the four fundamental interactions in nature. The other three are the strong interaction, the weak interaction and gravitation...
damage inflicted during the attempt on her life by a traitor in Seldon's ranks, Tamwile Elar, and a violation of the First Law of Robotics
Three Laws of Robotics
The Three Laws of Robotics are a set of rules devised by the science fiction author Isaac Asimov and later added to. The rules are introduced in his 1942 short story "Runaround", although they were foreshadowed in a few earlier stories...
as Dors kills Elar in defense of the Psychohistorical Project, thus essentially choosing to follow the Zeroth Law and suffering a fate similar to that of R. Giskard Reventlov. At the point of Seldon's death, he thinks of his protectress and wife in love, not in anger over her deception.
Together they raise Raych
Raych Seldon
Raych Seldon is a fictional character in Isaac Asimov's Foundation Series. Raych is the adopted son of Hari Seldon and Dors Venabili, the primary characters in the first two books of the series...
, whom they encounter as a 12 year old boy while in the Dahl sector of Trantor.
Dors reappears in The Second Foundation Trilogy after her apparent death, having been repaired by Daneel. She is originally assigned new duties, but has difficulty adapting to them. Having been built for the specific purpose of caring for Hari Seldon, her absence from his life and her knowledge of his impending death give her new perspective on Daneel's orders. Eventually, she leaves his service entirely, and it is implied that she takes up with the robot Lodovik Trema, but only after one final visit to her husband, whose last recorded word was her name.