Previous
Suits
The Bugs’ society and government stands in opposition to the Terran Federation, representing the threat communism poses to democratic and individualistic societies. Starship Troopers was written during the Cold War, and its depiction of the conflict between the Pseudo-Arachnids (with their communal social organization and hive mind consciousness) and the Terran Federation (with its limited democracy and well-trained but still individual soldiers) parallels the contest between American democracy and Soviet Communism that played out in political, military, and cultural realms from the late 1940s through the early 1990s. As a philosophical and political system, communism seeks to share resources and work among the entire group of people equally; the Pseudo-Arachnids are a caricature of communism because individual Bugs are completely equivalent, indistinguishable, and replaceable. A brain Bug controls the warriors by a hive mind, so they can fight with ruthless efficiency and coordination as soon as they’re hatched, unlike human soldiers, who must first grow into adults and then undergo rigorous training. The Bugs don’t value their individuals either; while humans would start or resume a war to save just one individual, the Bugs will readily sacrifice their workers and warriors in battle and will even kill their “brains” and queens rather than allowing them to be captured. While Starship Troopers offers grudging appreciation for what total social coordination could accomplish, it maintains that it’s a totally unfit system for humans. The Bugs succeed because they’re evolutionarily adapted to “total communism.” The Bugs threaten to outcompete the Federation by sheer numbers, but the humans’ capacity for individualistic thought and action—even when working in coordinated groups—wins the day because it is what allows Zim to capture a brain bug on Planet P.
Bugs Quotes in Starship Troopers
The Starship Troopers quotes below all refer to the symbol of Bugs. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 13
Quotes
“Try to figure where the Bugs are going to break out. And then stay away from that spot! Understand me?”
“I hear you, sir,” I said carefully. “But I do not understand.”
He sighed. “Johnnie, you’ll turn my hair gray yet. Look, son, we want them to come out, the more the better. You don’t have the firepower to handle them other than by blowing up their tunnel as they reach the surface—and that is the one thing you must not do! If they come out in force, a regiment can’t handle them. But that’s just what the General wants, and he’s got a brigade of heavy weapons in orbit, waiting for it. So you spot that breakthrough, fall back and keep it under observation. If you are lucky enough to have a major breakthrough in your area, reconnaissance will be patched through all the way to the top. So stay lucky and stay alive! Got it?”
“Yes, sir. Spot the breakthrough. Fall back and avoid contact. Observe and report.”
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I did learn, eventually, why my platoon sergeant decided to go down into that Bug town. He had heard my report to Captain Blackstone that the “major breakthrough” was actually a feint, made with workers sent up to be slaughtered. When real warrior Bugs broke out where he was, he had concluded (correctly and minutes sooner than Staff reached the same conclusion) that the Bugs were making a desperation push, or they would not expend their workers simply to draw our fire.
He saw that their counterattack made from Bug town was not in sufficient force, and concluded that the enemy did not have many reserves—and decided that, at this one golden moment, one man acting alone might have a chance of raiding, finding “royalty” and capturing it. Remember, that was the whole purpose of the operation; we had plenty of force to sterilize Planet P, but our object was to capture royalty castes and learn how to go down in. So he tried it, snatched that one moment—and succeeded on both counts.
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Bugs Symbol Timeline in Starship Troopers
The timeline below shows where the symbol Bugs appears in Starship Troopers. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 1
...skinnier than humans). Johnnie prefers to fight the “Skinnies” rather than the arachnids because the “Bugs” nauseate him. Johnnie “bounces” off. With each jump, he looks for a worthwhile target, hoping...
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Chapter 10
...Valley Forge and his company, “Willie’s Wildcats,” the fighting in what would turn into the “Bug War” had been going on for a few years. Its official start is just after...
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The First Battle of Klendathu, or “Operation Bughouse,” takes place shortly after the Bugs destroy Buenos Aires. The loss of a major city...
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...Federation’s treaty obligations, and the military is also busy mounting an attack on Klendathu, the Bugs’ home world. Johnnie feels vaguely bad, but he is so busy preparing for the attack...
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...that the Federation should have blanketed Klendathu with atomic weapons by pointing out that the Bugs, properly called Pseudo-Arachnids, share a hive mind. Destroying the surface wouldn’t have killed the queens...
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Johnnie isn’t even sure that the Bugs can surrender. The workers can’t fight, and the soldiers can’t surrender. The Bug warriors are...
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...hours on Klendathu. Because he’s always been afraid of spiders, his first sight of the Bugs terrifies him. But the infantry is in better shape than the K9 Corps. The neodogs...
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Johnnie sticks close to Dutch and eventually learns how to kill a Bug without wasting his ammo, although he can’t yet tell the difference between a worker and...
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When Johnnie and Dutch respond to a call for help from their mates, a Bug pops up through a hole in the ground and shoots Dutch. After killing it, Johnnie...
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Chapter 11
...effectively. The soldiers don’t know about the Federation’s efforts to turn the Skinnies against the Bugs—the only hint is the command to destroy property but spare Skinny lives on drops. The...
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The Bugs lay eggs, which they can hold on to until they need to replace warriors. And...
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Nevertheless, the Terran Federation learns how to hurt Bugs: to distinguish workers from warriors (the fastest way is to see who’s shooting); and to...
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...Sanctuary is a delightful place that will be important to either the humans or the Bugs for a long time.
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Chapter 12
...the following day. Carmen and Johnnie mourn the loss of Carl, who died when the Bugs attacked the Pluto research station. Even though she’s shaved her hair off, Johnnie still thinks...
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The History and Moral Philosophy instructor, Major Reid, is blind. On the day that the Bugs destroy San Francisco and the San Joaquin Valley, the class discusses the events after the...
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...if humanity balanced birth and death just right, they’ll eventually encounter extraterrestrial species like the Bugs that are increasing. Humanity must spread out and wipe out the Bugs or be wiped...
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Chapter 13
...M.I. Division have already gained control of Planet P’s surface. Military intelligence believes that the Bugs are developing Planet P as an advance base for attacking the Federation. The Navy could...
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Worker Bugs are easy to capture; warriors can be captured if they’re injured seriously enough. But both...
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It may be an evolutionary weakness to expend lives trying to rescue these prisoners. The Bugs certainly don’t help their fallen members. But it’s a part of human nature to try...
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...the fight under the surface. At this point in the war, the troopers and the Bug warriors are evenly matched on the surface, but the M.I. hasn’t had any luck going...
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...under hypno- preparation in their sleep. The mission is important, but it’s also “just another Bug hunt.” The Navy has cleared the surface and ships orbit the planet to guard and...
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The Battle Plan also says to leave any Bug tunnels open. The strategy is simple and logical, if there are enough troops to support...
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...the corner because it’s occupied by a crater big enough to swallow the Tours. The Bugs like to use land mines, although the craters are usually smaller. He’s placed an offset...
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...while. Johnnie wants his men to set up ground listeners near it, fearing that the Bugs would send their warriors through lethal radiation to reach them. His sergeant suggests reorganization of...
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...an hourly replacement of the crater watch, a quick initial patrol sweep to identify potential Bug holes, and then a slow patrol to make sure they’ve all been located and to...
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Square Black One is flat and barren, which will make it easier to spot any Bugs. Still, the platoon is spread so thin that each spot lies unobserved for three or...
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...to “freeze” his men while he visits several spots and generates a map of the Bugs’ passageways. He isn’t in armor and doesn’t seem concerned about breathing the radioactive air.
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...the senser’s unit leaves, they hand Johnnie a dimensional map of the Square with the Bugs’ tunnels marked on it. One big artery lies under their feet, connecting the surface to...
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Burrowing Bugs sound like frying bacon. Blackstone tells Johnnie that the men should take turns listening and...
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...sleep also, and when Johnnie refuses—he can’t imagine sleeping knowing that there are so many Bugs beneath his feet—Blackstone uses a hypnotic command to put him to sleep.
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...as well. Johnnie checks in on each of the listening stations; he can hear the Bugs “chittering” below the surface—but not cutting through the rock.
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The “Bug boulevard” sounds like heavy traffic moving through at regular intervals. Johnnie calculates that a load,...
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...voice, but Blackstone sounds pleased. He tells Johnnie to try to figure out where the Bugs will break through—Johnnie suspects it will be at a spot called Easter 10. The troops...
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...they’ll have a better chance of defending each other if necessary. Johnnie wonders if the Bugs are driving a new horizontal tunnel just under the surface. He asks Blackstone what he...
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...that the current men, in slow marauder suits, would have been extremely vulnerable if the Bugs broke through. Hughes relieves the other listeners, and for 37 minutes he and Johnnie monitor...
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Everything turns chaotic as the Bugs surface in many places at once. As Johnnie relays reports to Blackstone, the ground falls...
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Cunha’s section lost three men when the Bugs broke through. He doesn’t know how many Brumby’s lost. The shock wave from the sapper’s...
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The Bug tunnel runs twenty feet below the surface. Two of the holes were diversions to cover...
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...their suits allow in the low tunnel. The must use their snoopers, confirming that the Bugs must see by infrared. When they come to an intersection, Johnnie considers the doctrines for...
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...find Brumby’s section and then return to the surface. He’s in a position where the Bugs can’t reach him, but he can’t escape either. When Johnnie gives him a direct order...
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...the same intersection where Brumby’s section fell under attack, Johnnie and the troops also encounter Bugs. Brumby’s section followed the noise of the fight and rejoined. They’ve sustained four casualties, including...
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The fight against the Bugs that have besieged the sergeant doesn’t last for long. The sergeant told Johnnie what to...
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...feint, so when he saw warriors coming from the main tunnel, he realized that the Bugs were making a desperation push and no longer had sufficient forces. Concluding that they were...
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Chapter 14
Johnnie addresses his platoon: this is another Bug hunt. Because the Bugs keep prisoners of war on Klendathu, the Federation can’t use a...
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