We Are Legion (We Are Bob)

Why does the narrative juxtapose Riker’s large-scale project to save humanity with Bob’s small-scale intervention to protect the Deltans? What thematic concerns do these subplots address?

How does the novel present an engineering mindset as a philosophical worldview? Discuss how Bob and his clones approach existential crises, ethical dilemmas, and military conflicts as complex systems to be analyzed, contrasting this with the ideological rigidity of their antagonists.

Explore key moments of conflict within the Bobiverse, such as Milo’s refusal to join Riker’s mission or Garfield’s challenge to Bill. How do these instances of friction characterize the collective?

How does Bob’s relationship with the Deltans challenge the science fiction trope of non-interference? How does the novel critique his interpretation of the moral responsibilities of a technologically superior civilization?

How does the novel’s conversational, first-person narrative voice ground its high-concept scientific and philosophical themes in a relatable human perspective?

The deaths of Milo and Arthur introduce a new form of mortality based on information loss rather than biological failure. How does the concept of digital permanence challenge traditional notions of life and death?

Analyze the depiction of 22nd-century Earth as a dystopia fragmented by ideological conflict. How does this setting contextualize the Bobs as carriers of a humanist ethos that humanity itself has largely abandoned?

Using the contrast between the functional VRs of the Bobs and the mental health crisis of the Australian replicant Henry Roberts, analyze the novel’s argument about disembodied, post-human existence.