Starship Troopers Themes

The world in which Johnnie Rico, a “cap trooper” of the Terran Federation, comes of age is ruled by the military. Starship Troopers sees evolutionary pressures—especially survival of the fittest and self-preservation—as the primary drivers of humanity’s destiny. Although a few civilians try to claim that violence isn’t necessary, the Bugs’ attack on Buenos Aires shatters this illusion, proving yet again that those who forget the power of violence to shape history…

In the futuristic society of Starship Troopers, only people who have served in the military become full citizens. Civilians are merely “legal residents,” barred from voting or working in the government. The novel thus presents a strong argument that the most successful form of government is a limited democracy in which only those with moral virtue hold power. In History and Moral Philosophy Class, Major Reid demonstrates that all forms of government have…

In Starship Troopers, the Terran Federation wages war with an alien species called the Pseudo-Arachnids, or Bugs, a battle that is symbolic of the strife between democracy and communism in the 20th century. The Bugs—which represent how effective communism would be in a species evolutionarily adapted to it—share a hive mind. While this centralized control by “brains” and “queens” allows workers or warriors to work together in perfect coordination, it also has disadvantages…