Rosalind Lutece



"When I was a girl, I dreamt of standing in a room looking at a girl who was and was not myself, who stood looking at another girl, who also was and was not myself. My mother took this for a nightmare. I saw it as the beginning of a career in physics."

- Rosalind Lutece

Rosalind Lutece is a quantum physicist in BioShock Infinite, who wrote books about scientific studies on alternate universes. She and her "twin brother", Robert, guide Booker DeWitt through his adventures in Columbia to retrieve Elizabeth.

History
From a young age, Rosalind was curious about the possibility of multiple realities, and decided she wanted to be a physicist. Many years later, in the course of experimentation with atoms, she was able to indefinitely suspend an atom in midair. Her colleagues referred to the process as "quantum levitation," while Rosalind herself dubbed it the "Lutece Field." She began to wonder about the possibility of suspending larger objects, up to and including a city.

At an indeterminate time, Rosalind met Zachary Hale Comstock, an influential religious figure who took great interest in her work. Comstock agreed to fund Rosalind's continued research into the Lutece Field in return for her help constructing a floating city which he had seen in a premonition.

Continued experimentation with the Lutece Field led to Rosalind's first interaction with Robert Lutece, a male version of herself in an alternate reality. By manipulating a pair of quantum entangled atoms, the two were able to communicate across space-time barriers through Morse Code. When she reported this information to Comstock, he instructed her to find a way of accessing such alternate realities, which he believed would act as windows into prophecy. She and Robert then collaborated to make a contraption that allowed them to enter other realities via the Tears.

Comstock would use the device extensively to see other realities and predict future happenings. He also provided access to the Fink brothers, who used the Tears to advance technology and music in Columbia by decades. However, the device had an adverse effect on Comstock, aging him rapidly and rendering him sterile.

Believing Columbia would only prosper if one of his bloodline sat the throne, Comstock approached Rosalind and Robert for a solution. The Luteces then sought, using their tear machine, to find a daughter for Comstock, and they were ultimately able to assist Comstock in procuring him a daughter, Elizabeth. On October 8th, 1893, Rosalind brought Robert and Elizabeth into her universe for the first time.

As Elizabeth grew older, it was discovered that she had the power to open Tears; Rosalind hypothesized this was due to her finger remaining in her home universe, as it was cut off when the Tear they brought her through closed too soon. Robert and Rosalind then discovered that, through the use of her powers, Elizabeth would fulfill Comstock's prophecy, leading to the destruction of New York City in 1983. Robert, wishing to undo their mistake, issued Rosalind an ultimatum: join him in sending Elizabeth back to her original universe, or he would part ways with her. Unwilling to separate from her "brother," Rosalind agreed to assist him, though she was not optimistic about their chances for success.

Upon discovering this plan, Comstock ordered Jeremiah Fink to sabotage the machine they used to access Tears. The deed was carried out, and they were declared dead on October 31st, 1909. However, they were not truly killed; instead, they were scattered across time and space, able to appear wherever and whenever they wanted. While Rosalind was satisfied with this state, as she would be able to remain with her brother indefinitely, Robert was dissatisfied with the way they left matters in Columbia. Therefore, they continued their plan in this state, and went on to find Booker DeWitt.

BioShock Infinite


At the outset of Infinite, the Luteces take Booker from his own universe to Comstock's and then to a Lighthouse off the coast of Maine. They leave him with a box of his belongings, a pistol, and other possessions to help him on his mission.

Shortly after Booker enters the city, he receives a telegram from Rosalind, warning him not to pick #77 at the raffle. Later on, he meets Rosalind and Robert at the Columbia Raffle and Fair, where they ask him to call a coin toss (which always results in heads). They continue to guide Booker through his adventure in Columbia, offering advice, suggestions, and supplies as they are able. They also set up several experiments for Booker and Elizabeth, to gauge their results and determine variability between universes.

Rosalind's books also feature in parts of Columbia, some of which are found in Elizabeth's room.

After Booker and Elizabeth destroy the Siphon, the two realize the Luteces' role in Elizabeth's discovery: Robert had sought out Booker DeWitt to give up his daughter, Anna, to Father Comstock in exchange for covering his debts. Booker initially agreed, but changed his mind and tried to get her back. The Luteces made it through the portal, but Elizabeth's pinky finger was caught, severing it.

Clash in the Clouds
Rosalind's Character model can be unlocked in The Columbian Archeological Society's museum. When both Robert's and Rosalind's models are unlocked, a Tear will appear, giving the player access to the Lutece Labs, where five new Voxophones can be obtained, recorded by Rosalind herself.

Burial at Sea - Episode 1


After the fight with the Big Daddy, Comstock remembers everything from his past life: In one universe, when Comstock tries to kidnap Anna Dewitt through a tear with the help of the Luteces, Anna loses her head instead of her little finger. This event caused Comstock to fall into a deep depression, to the point where he asked the Luteces to open a tear to a place where Anna Dewitt never existed; that place was Rapture. As Elizabeth confronts him, the Luteces reappear again, taunting him about his choices, just before Comstock is impaled by a drill.

Burial at Sea - Episode 2


Directly after Comstock is killed, the raging Big Daddy turns its attention to Elizabeth. With no time to react, Elizabeth is killed by the Bouncer. Due to her unique abilities, Elizabeth is given a choice to return to Rapture, to save the little girl Sally. She is transported to the Lighthouse, where she continues her journey, in a row boat commandeered by the Lutece "twins." They warn her about what's going to happen. As they drop her off, they drift away into the darkness, singing "Row, Row, Row Your Boat."

Later on, Elizabeth is forced to travel back to Columbia via a Tear from Rapture. While climbing through an air Vent, she passes next to the room where Jeremiah Fink and his son were held hostage by Daisy Fitzroy, during the Vox Populi's assault on the Factory. She overhears Daisy in counsel with the Luteces. Daisy offers her gratitude for what the Luteces have done to get the revolution against Comstock and the Founders in motion, but flat-out refuses to take the life of Fink's son along with his father's. The Luteces correct Daisy, meaning that she misunderstood their agreement; they never said that she must hurt the child or that she will be the one that takes down Comstock, meaning that she has to die for her revolution. Daisy is unsure but the Luteces tell her that the future she envisions is possible if she makes the right choice. The Luteces then explains that a girl is coming and that in order to change the world, she must leave a woman, and then asks: "What makes the difference between a girl and a woman?" Daisy answers with "blood," Daisy then asks them how, and they tell her to give the girl no choice. After the conversation the light flickers and the Luteces disappear. The Episode reveals that the Luteces had the choice to go back to their past lives, just like Elizabeth did, but the risk of losing their powers to explore the universe was too great, so they decided to stay as they are. If Elizabeth is killed during the episode, the Luteces will occasionally narrate under the loading screen, commenting on Elizabeth, Atlas and Suchong. It is unknown what happened to the Luteces after this and the end of Burial at Sea. They either stopped existing or they are still somewhere out there, exploring the universe.

Post-Death Quotes
Unlike its predecessors, if the player dies as Elizabeth, she does not respawn or get revived. Instead, the player resumes from the last saved point in their game. The loading screen consists of various locations within Columbia and Rapture, with either ambiance and music playing in the background, various audio diaries/voxophones, or several quotes and banter between the Lutece Twins regarding the various characters of Rapture, including Elizabeth and her choices.


 * Different
 * Rosalind: "What makes the girl different? I suspect it has less to do with what she is, and rather more with what she is not. A small part of her remains from where she came. It would seem the universe does not like its peas mixed with its porridge."
 * Elizabeth
 * Robert: "I imagine you view this as vindication of your theory."
 * Rosalind: "I take no joy in her failure."
 * Robert: "One must give her an "A" for effort…"
 * Rosalind: "But an "F" on results."
 * Robert: "You give her no credit for good intention?"
 * Rosalind: "The Universe does not grade on a curve. It's strictly pass/fail."
 * Robert: "Surely its better to have died trying."
 * Rosalind: "Better trying not to die."
 * Sally
 * Robert: "And what now becomes of the girl?"
 * Rosalind: "A burial at sea I suppose."
 * Robert: "I was referring to the child."
 * Rosalind: "Why ask questions you don't wish to hear the answer to?"
 * Robert: "You mean…"
 * Rosalind: "Enslavement, exploitation, extermination."
 * Robert: "There must be some hope for her."
 * Rosalind: "If it helps you to believe so brother, then I shall not be the one to disillusion you."
 * Atlas
 * Rosalind: "Though there's little to like in this Atlas fellow, one must admire the lilt in his brogue."
 * Robert: "I do commend this recent effort of yours to find the good in people."
 * Rosalind: "Sadly, it's all a lie."
 * Robert: "The effort?"
 * Rosalind: "The accent."
 * Robert: "I don't suppose there's much about the man that's authentic."
 * Rosalind: "He's authentically homicidal."
 * Robert: "And you view this as a positive?"
 * Rosalind: "Well, one has to start somewhere."
 * Yi Suchong
 * Rosalind: "A disagreeable fellow, this Suchong."
 * Robert: "That's surprising, I'd imagine he'd be right up your street."
 * Rosalind: "Hmph. I feel dirty sharing a universe with the man."
 * Robert: "How poorly we see our own traits in others."
 * Rosalind: "What do you mean?"
 * Robert: "You both see the world through a lens of science."
 * Rosalind: "And what's wrong with that?"
 * Robert: "Ask young Ms. Comstock."
 * Rosalind: "I would, but I don't suppose she's in any position to answer."
 * End of the Line
 * Robert: "She's gone for good now."
 * Rosalind: "She knew her ticket to Rapture was a one-way proposition."
 * Robert: "You can warn people not to collapse a quantum superposition but do they ever really listen?"
 * Rosalind: "So ends the DeWitt- Comstock line."
 * Robert: "Don't let your grief overwhelm you, sister."
 * Rosalind: "One could believe a mission is doomed to failure… and wish sincerely that it wasn't. Hopes, like quantum superpositions, have a tendency to collapse."

Publications

 * The Principles of Quantum Mechanics - This book is found in Elizabeth's tower, and is one of the books with which she attacks Booker.
 * Barriers to Trans-Dimensional Travel - A quote from this text is shown at the start of the game, and credited to R. Lutece. It was published in 1889.

Voxophones
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BioShock Infinite

 * Monument Island
 * The Source of Her Power
 * Soldier's Field
 * Viewing the Infinite
 * Emporia
 * Whispers Through the Walls
 * A Window
 * One and the Same
 * Downtown Emporia
 * A City, Suspended
 * Child of Science
 * On the Entropy of Genes
 * A Theory on Our "Death"
 * Hand of the Prophet
 * An Ultimatum
 * What's Done is Done
 * The Prophet is Dying
 * width="50%" |

Clash in the Clouds

 * Lutece Labs
 * A Better Father
 * No Cell Will Hold Them
 * Playing Prophet
 * The Constancy of Music
 * Unde Vigores?

Burial at Sea - Episode 2

 * Factory
 * The Lazarus Project
 * }

Behind the Scenes

 * Shooting either of the twins in The Blue Ribbon restaurant will result in Rosalind saying "You missed," several times before ultimately stating, "We can afford to do this all day, but the question is, can you?"
 * If Booker stays near the Luteces after the coin-flipping scene, Rosalind will tell him to leave several times, before saying, "If you don't go, I'll be forced to start repeating myself;" after which she does so. This is a prod at a common game mechanic wherein NPCs are given only a limited amount of recorded lines, which they must repeat after a while.
 * If Booker stares at the twins without looking at Chen Lin's body as told to do so by Elizabeth, Rosalind will comment, "This is starting to become rather awkward."
 * The Luteces role is very similar to Brigid Tenenbaum from BioShock. Both were scientists and both also go through great lengths to assist the protagonist for their own reasons (such as Tenenbaum assisting Jack and the Luteces assisting Booker). Both Lutece and Tenenbaum made a scientific breakthrough (Tears and ADAM) for good purpose but in the end brought both cities to the ground.
 * "Lutèce" is the French word for Lutetia, the name of an ancient Roman city that stood where modern day Paris stands now. Paris is mentioned several times in BioShock Infinite, as the city that Elizabeth desperately wishes to go to after escaping Columbia.
 * The name "Rosalind" may be a reference to the character of the same name from Shakespeare's As You Like It. Just as Rosalind Lutece exists in two alternate versions, one male, and one female, Shakespeare's heroine invents a male alter-ego by disguising herself as the youth "Ganymede".
 * Both Rosalind & Robert Lutece won the title as "Best Character of the Year" at the VGX 2013 Awards Irrational Games made two videos with the characters reaction, first to their nomination and then after winning.
 * The motion capturing for Rosalind Lutece was done by Lyndsy Kail, who also did Daisy Fitzroy's.