I will join you in defending this book. Heinlein, first and foremost, was a science fiction writer. I don't know that he thought very hard about whether the politics in Starship Troopers were workable in the real world, I think he just wanted to build a great story on a thought-provoking theme. Plus too many of his critics just get the details of the novel flat-out wrong.
It’s an excellent book and I would go so far as to defend the politics of the world as the author thoroughly explains how their system came about. The military service based government came about because of the failures of the democratic system. Heinlein dives into the flaws of democracy as people vote for wars they will never fight, the starship trooper right to vote is determined by those who serve their country and become citizens. Rico could have taken the easy route and joined his wealthy father in business, instead he joins the military because he was inspired by his teacher and the pride that comes with military leadership. The book also has an interesting take on capital punishment and its favorability to prison sentences. Overall the book is badass and insightful. Agreed that this should be required reading for young men.
I really enjoy your thoughtful guidance on the "studying" of Great Books. I look forward to rereading The Time Machine using your method and guide, as a practical test of my ability to follow your coaching.
In the Time of Isolation (WuFlu lockdown) i realized my isolation was an opportunity to revisit books deemed too tedius to tackle alone. It is the longer historical/biblical tomes which initiated my subscription.
Thanks for the kind words. Don’t worry, there will be a lot more historical and theological texts on the way too. I’m planning to finish up Augustine’s Confessions soon and Dante’s Inferno. Really looking forward to getting to some C. S. Lewis and Boethius in the near future too.
I get the feeling I missed something when I read Starship Troopers.
My main takeaway from it was the political system in it would never work, and the bug war was being fought very poorly. Maybe I should reread it next year.
When did you read it before? I don’t know that the political system is defined well enough to say how well it would work. It is fairly Roman in that citizenship was granted only to certain people (those who did a term of service). I wouldn’t agree with that approach, although I do think that there should be some conditions on the ability to vote beyond being simply born here. Regardless, I find the book has a lot to offer in the way of fruitful discussion. It’s not that every philosophical idea in the book is solid, but that they are all provocative and make for great launch points into important discussions.
I was a year or so out of high school. I agree that the political system is a bit vague. My problem with it wasn't so much the citizenship system (though I didn't agree with it), rather, it was the idea that a society fighting a brutal, high casualty war would (could) have low taxes, lots of civil liberties, and no conscription. In short, the society seemed too perfect (I may well be misremembering details).
Anyway, it did make me think about a lot of things, and I enjoyed the story. I think I'll reread it next year along with your notes.
To each their own. I believe it has a lot of value. It’s not Homer or Plato or Shakespeare, but it has its own unique place in literary history and I think it’s well worth the read. A very good book for leaping off into bigger discussions about some important ideas.
Honestly, all I can say is that it just resonated with me. I just thoroughly enjoyed it and found it a unique setting to reflect on some important themes. I need to read more Heinlein, though. I just picked up his Have Spacesuit Will Travel today, looking forward to reading that one too.
I will join you in defending this book. Heinlein, first and foremost, was a science fiction writer. I don't know that he thought very hard about whether the politics in Starship Troopers were workable in the real world, I think he just wanted to build a great story on a thought-provoking theme. Plus too many of his critics just get the details of the novel flat-out wrong.
Definitely anyone who has only seen the movie should withhold comment.
It’s an excellent book and I would go so far as to defend the politics of the world as the author thoroughly explains how their system came about. The military service based government came about because of the failures of the democratic system. Heinlein dives into the flaws of democracy as people vote for wars they will never fight, the starship trooper right to vote is determined by those who serve their country and become citizens. Rico could have taken the easy route and joined his wealthy father in business, instead he joins the military because he was inspired by his teacher and the pride that comes with military leadership. The book also has an interesting take on capital punishment and its favorability to prison sentences. Overall the book is badass and insightful. Agreed that this should be required reading for young men.
I really enjoy your thoughtful guidance on the "studying" of Great Books. I look forward to rereading The Time Machine using your method and guide, as a practical test of my ability to follow your coaching.
In the Time of Isolation (WuFlu lockdown) i realized my isolation was an opportunity to revisit books deemed too tedius to tackle alone. It is the longer historical/biblical tomes which initiated my subscription.
Thank you!
Thanks for the kind words. Don’t worry, there will be a lot more historical and theological texts on the way too. I’m planning to finish up Augustine’s Confessions soon and Dante’s Inferno. Really looking forward to getting to some C. S. Lewis and Boethius in the near future too.
I picked up a surprise thrift-store find which I'm eagerly looking forward to reading:
A Year with CS Lewis, daily readings from his classic works.
It's my intention to standardize some important routines in the New Year, including daily meditation focused in theology rather than the secular.
Lots of benefits to knowing history, and oneself and...
Exciting prospects to reading others' insights!
I get the feeling I missed something when I read Starship Troopers.
My main takeaway from it was the political system in it would never work, and the bug war was being fought very poorly. Maybe I should reread it next year.
When did you read it before? I don’t know that the political system is defined well enough to say how well it would work. It is fairly Roman in that citizenship was granted only to certain people (those who did a term of service). I wouldn’t agree with that approach, although I do think that there should be some conditions on the ability to vote beyond being simply born here. Regardless, I find the book has a lot to offer in the way of fruitful discussion. It’s not that every philosophical idea in the book is solid, but that they are all provocative and make for great launch points into important discussions.
I was a year or so out of high school. I agree that the political system is a bit vague. My problem with it wasn't so much the citizenship system (though I didn't agree with it), rather, it was the idea that a society fighting a brutal, high casualty war would (could) have low taxes, lots of civil liberties, and no conscription. In short, the society seemed too perfect (I may well be misremembering details).
Anyway, it did make me think about a lot of things, and I enjoyed the story. I think I'll reread it next year along with your notes.
I had no idea you are such a comedian!
This Heinlein is NOT "Great Book" material.
The 1997 film, however was a campy, fun sci-fi romp resurrecting a trite plot with excellent dialog&gore, which became itself a parody of B movies.
Stranger in a Strange Land or Methuselah's Children, but not the bug wars, please.
Competing in the 1950's with Asimov, Clarke and Bradbury must've been a humdinger!!
Read on, fellow book lovers!!
To each their own. I believe it has a lot of value. It’s not Homer or Plato or Shakespeare, but it has its own unique place in literary history and I think it’s well worth the read. A very good book for leaping off into bigger discussions about some important ideas.
Indeed.
Class warfare, manumission v birthright, but tepid as a morality tale compared to his other works.
What makes this most compelling to you?
Honestly, all I can say is that it just resonated with me. I just thoroughly enjoyed it and found it a unique setting to reflect on some important themes. I need to read more Heinlein, though. I just picked up his Have Spacesuit Will Travel today, looking forward to reading that one too.