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Asking the last question

The primary motif within the story is the ceaseless repetition of "the last question," more or less summarized by the query "Can entropy ever be reversed?" The frequency with which humanity poses this question to Multivac and its many successors demonstrates a relentless pursuit of knowledge along with a constant obsession with prolonging human survival and preventing the inevitable degradation of humanity and the universe. The various phases of humanity that we visit throughout the text are vastly different from one another. For example, consider Adell and Lupov's world. Their way of life is unrecognizable from Zee Prime's. Furthermore, none of their worlds are at all comparable to the time when AC eventually absorbs the collective consciousness of the entire human race. But through the ages, one constant remains: humanity will always turn to "the last question." Once AC has consumed humanity, it takes on humanity's role of relentlessly asking the question and becomes fixated, unable to accept that there may not be a solution. The question showcases humanity's survival instinct. Entropy signifies the end of the universe, the human race, and life as we know it. The "the last question," then, is a desperate attempt to find a way to avoid such a desolate fate.

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