Summary:
In Heinlien's controversial novel Starship Troopers women play a significant role in everyday life.
Women play a significant role in everyday society. In the twenty first-century woman are considered equal to men in many perspectives although sometimes woman can be looked down upon. Women do many jobs that men do, they can be firefighters, policewoman and even enroll in the army with no hassles. In the fifties these jobs were only for men and men ruled society. Women were supposed to clean the house, watch the kids, cook and wear their pearl necklaces while vacuuming. Robert A. Heinlein did not take these elements into consideration while writing his controversial novel Starship Troopers. Heinlein wanted to portray woman as being equal or even better then men. Women were looked higher upon than the men were in the science-fiction classic Starship Troopers.
"He ignored us. He managed to bow while sitting down and said, Good morning young lady, what can I do for you"" This passage from page twenty-three shows the difference of feelings that the enlister had on Johnny and Carl versus the feelings portrayed to Carmen. In Starship Troopers woman were pilots, they drove the intergalactic ships needed for battle. "Yes, yes I know they (woman) make better pilots than men do; their reactions are faster, and they can tolerate more gee. They can get in faster, get out faster and thereby improving everybody's chances, yours as well as theirs."
Woman's physical and mental features surpassed the males in certain areas. Piloting was one of those areas. To be a pilot in the army was a great accomplishment. They were looked up to, a leader. A pilot needed to be trusted and also have trust for their crew for the system to work correctly. The title of a pilot was a prestigious ranking and only the best could have it. It is ironic that woman got that position and are better than men at it, especially in the fifties. This could be one of the reasons why the book is so controversial. The constant reminder that woman are better than men in somethings in a male dominated society.
Heinlelin was a pioneer in the fifties for his controversial statements of government, religion, warfare and the role of woman. His ideas in his novel are all progressive for the time period. His thoughts and opinions on certain topics showed his intelligence in thinking about the future. Most of his theories of the future portrayed in his novel make perfect sense. The logic and reasoning play themselves out perfectly. He seems to stand for many things including woman's rights. Any other author of that time period would have made the book with male pilots and male soldiers just like the male dominated society of the fifties.
"Besides the obvious fact that drop and retrieval require the best pilots (i.e. female), there is a very strong reason why female Naval officers are assigned to transports: its good for trooper morale." In Starship Troopers woman in the army/navy are very important. Not just for their skills but also for their charm. Before the soldiers enlisted in the army they probably took woman for granted, not seeing the greater qualities that we all love about them. After a couple of months pass, hearing a woman's voice, smelling her perfume or seeing her makes all your worries go away for that split second. There is nothing more pleasant in life then to experience this. "In a mixed ship, the last thing a trooper hears before a drop (maybe the last word he ever hears) is a woman's voice, wishing him luck. If you don't this is important, you've probably resigned from the human race." Passages like this placed throughout the novel give indication that Heinlein believes that woman are superior and their presence can make any man become happy, even if he knows for sure that he is going to die.
Woman are precious, they should be treasured for all of their qualities. This is one of the messages that Heinlein is trying to get through to his readers. Woman being able to do certain prestigious jobs that men cannot do shows his woman rights beliefs. Also showing how woman have such a positive effect on men, gives a vibe that woman and men must live together or else their would be no need to live, no treasure, no goals to aim for. Society would be boring and insatiable. Men and woman must come together and live with equal rights to live properly.
This is the complete article, containing 742 words
(approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page).
