Starship Troopers by Robert Heinlein is a seminal scifi novel that takes place in the distant future. It's about a young man, Juan (Johnnie) Rico who joins the Army and becomes a proud member of the Mobile Infantry (MI) which is the future version of paratroopers. It is mostly known for four things:
- Being turned into a movie that is famous for being a satire of the novel it's based on.
- Popularizing the concept of a mechanical armor- think Master Chief from Halo, Iron Man, etc.
- Exploring and, according to some, advocating fascist ideology.
- Being a military propaganda novel.
The first two points are indisputable, but I think some of the discussion around point three and four lacks nuance. I think Starship Trooper is a novel about operant conditioning, the result of which could result in fascism and militarism.
Operant Conditioning is when you control someone's behavior through a reward/punishment system. It's most famous proponent was the psychologist BF Skinner who, in Beyond Freedom and Dignity, argues that society should use operant conditioning to modify the behaviors of individuals to align with agreed social morals since, you know, freedom and individuality are just lies we tell ourselves anyway. Basically, he wanted A Clockwork Orange minus the ending, he wanted a Starship Troopers future.
Starship Troopers takes place in the future where operant conditioning has been and continues to be used, and it seems to be working because,
…personal freedom for all is greatest in history, laws are few, taxes are low, living standards are as high as productivity permits, crime is at its lowest ebb.
This near Utopian society is possible because only military veterans are allowed to vote and hold office. This "poll tax" is what gives this novel that military fascism vibe to some people, but the book explicitly tells you in Johnnie's History and Moral Philosophy class, that veterans are not smarter, not better disciplined, or more moral than civilians. The only difference between a civilian and a citizen is that citizens have proven, via their service in the military, that they are willing to put the good of society over their own. And, how can they be so sure that veterans are willing to do so when, morally and intellectually, they are the same as civilians? Because military service is their method of operant conditioning.
Beginning with boot camp and throughout the book Johnnie loses his semblance of individualism and freedom. Shortly after arriving at boot camp he is made to participate in an activity where he can either suffer greatly on his own, or act like literal sheep to ease his, and others' discomfort. As the book progresses his actions become almost entirely centered around the MI and his squad. By the end he become fully conditioned and doesn't know why he does what he does other than that's what an MI is supposed to do. He doesn't even know if they're winning or losing the war.
The idea of operant conditioning is introduced rather quickly during boot camp but is really explained during his high school History and Moral Philosophy Class where his teacher emphasize that you have to train people to behave the way you would house train a dog (back then),
You scold him so that he knows he's in trouble, you rub his nose in it so that he will know what trouble you mean, you paddle him so that he darn well won't do it again- and you have to do it right away!
His instructor goes on to say about us (as in the their past, our present),
They had no scientific theory of morals. They did have a theory of morals and they tried to live by it… but their theory was wrong– half of it fuzzy-headed wishful thinking, half of it rationalized charlatanry. the more earnest they were, the farther it led them astray. You see, they assumed that Man has a moral instinct… We aquire moral sense, when we do, through training experience, and hard sweat of the mind.
As Johnnie progresses through boot camp and graduate the humans have entered into a war with a spider-like alien species, the "Bugs". Why and how, we don't know because frankly, Johnnie doesn't care and this whole novel is told from his POV. However, in this society, humans treat war as a form of operant conditioning.
The purpose of war is to support your government's decisions by force. The purpose is never to kill the enemy just to be killing him… but to make him do what you want him to do. Not killing… but controlled and purposeful violence.
The book opens with a raid scene where the Sargent makes it very clear, that they're not there to win anything, but to show them force, purposeful violence.
I find the emphasis on operant conditioning interesting since Heinlein was an ardent libertarian. However, I heard that Heinlein likes to explore different ideology in his books and that they're not necessarily representatives of his own beliefs. If you're a fan of the movie, I don't know that I would recommend the book. But, if you're a fan of the Halo ODST trailer, I would 100% recommend this book.
by Anxious-Fun8829
2 Comments
i think maybe the most interesting point about the movie is that for it being a satire of the novel, everyone is happy take the line “Mobile Infantry Made me a Man I am Today**”** while he has losts his legs he is happy and has a job and there are a few other moments like this, where it says fascism bad, but then show happy looked after people
Fwiw the great success — and great failure — of operant conditioning is the theme of *Full Metal Jacket: viz.* Private Pyle, and the unnamed, lone, female Viet Cong sniper.