Starship Troopers by Robert A. Heinlein
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Book Reviews of Starship Troopers
Book Review: A Political Essay, Guised thinly as Science-Fiction
Summary: 5 Stars
I must admit I read the book only because I saw the film. I found the film to be very good (By my standards), however, in comparison to the book it was awful. I believe that the film and the novel should be rated on different standards. The only real similarities are the title ("Starship Troopers"), the character names (Although not genders!) and the vile alien foe, the Arachnids. All said and done, I though the film was interesting, although totally devoid of plot.
My theory on Starship Troopers (Keeping in mind all the other reviews about it "Lacking action" Or "Having no Plot") Keep in mind that the book was indeed written in 1959, where the use of the word "Damn" was barely legal. The book didn't need action. The plot was acceptable. My theory is that SST was not a sci-fi novel at all. Perhaps R. A. Heinlein started writing it as a sci-fi novel, but discovered he had a veritable political phenomena on his hands. It was changed, and became the essay it is today. Heinlein's ideas are brilliant. (...). Heinlein suggests that by sacrificing a few freedoms (...) We can attain a level of peace, security and well-being never before attained. The novel did place emphasis on Militarism, allowing the ignorant to immediatly draw conclusions that R.A Heinlein was a Nazi, Fascist, Totalitarian. The society outlind in SST was a socialist democracy, with hints of Fascism, yes, but the vital elements of it. I believe that SST was simply a manner of getting a wonderful way of though out in the world: I have heard it be called "Civitas"; that is: Civitas, the willingness to take personal responsibility for the safety and continuation of one's civil society. Is that a bad thing?
(...)There are many characters in this book that have facets that one would think unnaceptable in a "Fascist" society, as many have called it.
Johnny's name Juanito Rico, and Captain Frankel exhibits homosexual practices (True, check page 84. He asks Zim out to dance).
The world of SST, of the 'Terran Federation', is a wonderful one, one that I personnaly would love to inhabit. I have read this book more times than perhaps is healthy(!), and enjoyed it each time, discovering something new, a new debate or idea. It is the best "Science Fiction" Novel, ahem, Political Sciences essay, I've ever had the pleasure of reading.
Book Review: The book is great; the movie sucks.
Summary: 5 Stars
I get rather annoyed when a director has such contempt for both the audience and the material that he ridicules the former by trashing the latter, betting the audience is too stupid to notice. Verhoeven has said the he did not read the book, and that he thinks SF has no merit. Verhoeven's distorted Mobile Infantry make the Iraqi army look like Navy SEALs -- he either learned nothing in his stint in the Danish Marines, or he holds the moviegoing public in contempt. Overall, it was as bad a translation of a book to the screen as I have ever seen. Verhoeven and his screenwriter decided to take a book about civic virtue and substitute their own agenda, twisting the meaning into something it isn't and then making a parody of that. Thus, a discussion of the of citizenship in a democracy becomes how to get ahead in a police state; civic virtue in risking one's life to protect a wounded comrade becomes summarily executing the wounded; and individual thinking and initiative become torture for asking the wrong question.
In an earlier review, kaseido@earthlink.net from Los Angeles, CA makes several assertions (e.g., Heinlein's "notion that political power grows solely from the barrel of a gun") which make me wonder if he had actually read the book. By far the worse, though, was his comparison of Heinlein's Federation in _Starship Troopers_ with the Draka in Stirling's _The Stone Dogs_. He says:
> In both, the Citizen class are educated, upstanding, courageous paragons of virtue living attractive, prosperous lives
> based on a commitment to military service. Stirling shows us the slave labor and butchery of dissidents behind the
> pretty picture: with Heinlein we have to figure it out for ourselves.
The society of Stirling's Draka is explicitly, self-consciously, and unashamedly based on slavery justified not by religious or moral "right" but simply by force of arms. Heinlein's Federation bears no more resemblance to the Draka than does any Western democracy. One can certainly argue that Heinlein's Federation is unrealistic (to which I would argue that the book is about civic virtue, not government); claiming that Draka-like atrocities occur and that we have to "figure it out for ourselves" is the literary equivalent of libel.
Book Review: A good read
Summary: 5 Stars
I read a bunch of reviews by other peoples, some 5 star ratings, many 1-2 star ratings. Some people obviously didn't know what they were talking about, some were just interested in a book with lots of action and violence, and didn't like the idea of something thought provoking, something that might make em think too hard. Others were so insecure with their political feelings they didn't like the idea of someone else presenting some ideas. These people seemed mad that they were lured in with promises of lots of action and came out with political ideas, especially ideas that went against theirs.All I can say is Heinlein didn't always believe everything he wrote. He wrote the book to present ideas to people. If you didn't like his ideas and would prefer the society we live in now, then he did his job. If you did like his society and wish some harsher penalties would be enforced or what not, then he did his job.
Enough of that,
The book is set in the future where to vote you had to place your country before your individual self, by serving a term in the military or elsewhere. The idea being you didn't just get these rights but had to work for them.(this idea made some people mad) During the story the Federation is at war with a alien race of Bugs. The main character, Johny Rico, joins the military because several of his friends, including his girlfriend are joining. He looks over his options and decides the MI would be the best for him, and from there on the story goes back and forth between Boot Camp, his highschool Moral Philosiphy class and the war with the bugs and the different battles he is in.
Heinlein crafts a great story, giving the reader thought provoking messages.
If you are looking for pure violent action, hate even the littlest bit of philosiphy, then read something a bit more your level.
Heinlein didn't get to be the first man titled Grand Master of Science Fiction, he didn't write the first Science Fiction book to be put on the New York Times Best Sellers list, and he didn't recieve 4 Hugo Awards because he isn't any good.
oh ya, the movie is nothing like it. one reviewer said something about read a book that got past the machine gun stage. Obviously they never read the book and learned that each MI gets his own set of H-bombs.
Book Review: Fantastic, thought-provoking classic utopian novel
Summary: 5 Stars
I know the guidelines say not to comment on other reviews of this book, but the temptation is overwhelming. One thing that should be noted about Starship Troopers is that Heinlein himself wrote an essay discussing and answering most of the criticisms of his work that I see here. It is also equally apparent that most of the critics have never seen that essay. Essentially, the future society that Heinlein describes has as its criterion for aquisition of the franchise (and therefore political power) the requirement that an individual must voluntarily do service for the society. That's it. No fascism, no coercion. One cannot have fascism without coercion, gang. That's the whole point of that type of governmental system. It should be pointed out that Heinlein's governmental system in that novel took that point very seriously, even when Earth was being threatened by asteroid-throwing, bloodthirsty, giant spiders. The Mobile Infantry was all volunteer, with the option of resigning at any time, even in space between jumps, even up to the point of going into the capsules. Further, his use of corporal punishment in the novel was precisely defined, and was not random. The Amazon reviewer obviously did not get the point of school paddlings---this should be differentiated from child abuse, which was NOT encouraged in the book's society. I use the word Utopian to describe this novel because it has some of the flavor of a libertarian utopia---taxes are low, business not interefered with, and citizenship, although open to all, has responsibilities attatched. Everything, in short, is pay as you go, and TANSTAAFL is the order of the day. (If ya' don't know TANSTAAFL, ya' ain't read Heinlein.) One of the reviewers compared Heinein's society to the DRAKA of Stirling---only in some sick idiot's fantasy world are these even remotely similar! The DRAKA are ruthless fascist killers who subjugate their fellow human beings and turn them into slaves. I don't see the similarity. In Heinlein's society, non-citizens become rich and send their kids to Harvard. Anyway, that's my review and commentary. Awesome book. Great for kids and adults. Great intro to Heinlein. Oh, and the action scenes are much better than the movies'---the movie was garbage, and had nothing to do with the book (just like DUNE.)Book Review: Far, far more than a simple juvenile space yarn!
Summary: 5 Stars
On the face of it, an exciting juvenile adventure story in a marvelous classic hard sci-fi setting! The edition I read summarizes it well, "The Mobile Infantry of the startling twenty-second century attracts young and eager to serve Johnnie Rico. He enters basic training as a naïve youth who must learn quickly how to cope with every soldier's problems of courage, discipline and loyalty. But he barely learns the value of freedom before he finds he must fight for it bravely - in fantastic interplanetary battles against the most incredible adversaries of the future." Futuristic weaponry, interstellar travel, aliens, glitzy slam-bang technology, imagination and suspense - "Starship Troopers" has got it all!
But even a moment's analysis below that tantalizing, exciting surface story will reveal the much more profound, sterner stuff which will form the basis of numberless formal and informal philosophical debates for many, many years to come. The suggestion that the statement "Violence never settled anything" is utter nonsense; the surprising thesis that the term "juvenile delinquent" is an oxymoron; the proposition that man has no moral instinct, only a cultivated sense of moral duty that must be learned; the completely contrarian idea that franchise, the right to vote, is not a universal right but rather a responsibility which must be first earned and then exercised as a matter of duty; the suggestion that capital punishment is not only reasonable but should logically be carried out against a perpetrator judged "not guilty by reason of insanity"; the place of the fairer sex in the armed forces; the relationship between honor, experience, rights, duty and responsibility; the morality of imperialism and war; and much, much more - how is it possible that an author could cover so much ground in a mere 200 pages?
Only an author of the caliber of Robert A Heinlein could pull it off! Hand "Starship Troopers" to your 10 year old child who enjoys a rollicking space adventure and you'll turn him into a science fiction fan for life. Hand it to the dean of the philosophy department at your local university and you'll spark a series of fascinating, intellectual debates that could last until the turn of the century.
Highly recommended.
Paul Weiss