Starship Troopers

[qbert]

I don’t quite understand the terminology in the alone title of “Starship Troopers”.

I know it’s being quite literal, but it boggs my mind.

When given to you, does it mean that you’re also given a residence on a “Starship”, which you are allowed to “Troop” around on?

Or are you simply a “Trooper” that comes from a “Starship?”

And why do they call it a “Star-Ship?” If it came anywhere close to a star, it’d blow the hell up!

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luke… i am your sperm donor.

[dpr]

Bear in mind it was written long ago (which showed in the military tactics).

Troopers (grunts/marines) being carried in starships (ships that travel to 'stars as in space/other galaxies/out there).

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The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.

[Lexicon]

Or are you simply a “Trooper” that comes from a “Starship?”

Yes.
Bear in mind, that was only the title. In the actual book, they (the men and women of the Mobile Infantry) were referred to as “Cap Troopers”, because they dropped to the planets surface out of huge war ships capable of interstellar travel in capsules.
So that is why they were “Starship Troopers”.

And that’s the Straight Dope.

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Sticking feathers up your butt does not make you a chicken.

[Guy_Propski]

Similarly, in the book “Two Years Before the Mast”, the author is not implying that the hero stood for two years directly in front of the mast. Nor were there actually stars engaged in battle with one another in “Star Wars.” Also, Scarlett O’Hara was not blown across Georgia in “Gone With the Wind.”

[sdimbert]

Originally posted by Guy Propski:
**Similarly, in the book “Two Years Before the Mast”, the author is not implying that the hero stood for two years directly in front of the mast. Nor were there actually stars engaged in battle with one another in “Star Wars.” Also, Scarlett O’Hara was not blown across Georgia in “Gone With the Wind.” **

RPFLMAO!

[Lissa]

Remember that episode of * The Simpsons * in which Bart Milhouse and Nelson go to see * Naked Lunch * “I can think of two things that are wrong with that title.”

[InutilisVisEst]

Guy – LMAO as well!

As dpr mentioned, it’s an old book (1959) and its title is so pulp-sounding that I wonder if Heinlein himself chose it. My mother bought me a copy when I was in 7th grade, and it took me a year to get over the title and actually read it. If only it had a title like “The Suit is a Harsh Mistress” or “The Armor That Walks Through Walls.”

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“I always get the shakes before a drop.”

[Guy_Propski]

Thank you, thank you. I’m here all week. Don’t forget to tip your waitress.

InutilisVisEst --I don’t see anything pulpy about the title. They were troopers and they flew in starship. It’s not like it was called “Space Commandoes.”

[InutilisVisEst]

Wow, you’re right. “Commandoes Flying Through Space” is much pulpier than “Troopers Travelling in Starships.” :rolleyes:

Actually, half of Heinlein’s titles (especially the early ones) fall into the “Gratuitous Use of Star/Space/Rocket in a Science Fiction Title” category. Never kept me from enjoying the stories themselves, once I got around to reading them.

[Guy_Propski]

It was the 50’s; almost everything SF had “Space” or “Star” in the title:
The Star Beast
Currents of Space
Double Star
Stars Like Dust
The Space Merchants
Have Space Suit, Will Travel
…and so on.

[sdimbert]

Just 'cuz y’all are interested, I point out Heinlein Books and Movies.

[DSYoungEsq]

I wish I had my copy of Starship Troopers readily available to peruse: it had one of the all-time best lines in a book, something like:

I’m not making fun of you. I’m heaping abuse on a ridiculous notion.

someone can correct the quote for me. please.

[tanstaafl]

someone can correct the quote for me. please.

No problem… I’ll even throw in the context.

I thought about it during the last session of our class in History and Moral Philosophy. H. & M. P. was different from other courses in that everybody had to take it but nobody had to pass it – and Mr. Dubois never seemed to care whether he got through to us or not. He would just point at you with the stump of his left arm (he never bothered with names) and snap a question. Then the argument would start.

But on the last day he seemed to be trying to find out what we had learned. One girl told him bluntly: “My mother says that violence never settles anything.”

“So?” Mr. Dubois looked at her bleakly. “I’m sure the city fathers of Carthage would be glad to know that. Why doesn’t your mother tell them so? Or why don’t you?”

They had tangled before – since you couldn’t flunk the course, it wasn’t necessary to keep Mr. Dubois buttered up. She said shrilly, “You’re making fun of me! Everybody knows that Carthage was destroyed!”

“You seemed to be unaware of it,” he said grimly. "Since you do know it, wouldn’t you say that violence had settled their destinies rather thoroughly? However, I was not making fun of you personally; I was heaping scorn on an inexcusably silly idea – a practice I shall always follow.

Anyone who clings to the historically untrue – and thoroughly immoral – doctrine that `violence never settles anything’ I would advise to conjure up the ghosts of Napoleon Bonaparte and of the Duke of Wellington and let them debate it. The ghost of Hitler could referee, and the jury might well be the Dodo, the Great Auk, and the Passenger Pigeon. Violence, naked force, has settled more issues in history than has any other factor, and the contrary
opinion is wishful thinking at its worst. Breeds that forget this basic truth have always paid for it with their lives and freedoms."

—Robert Heinlein - Starship Troopers

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“Sometimes I think the web is just a big plot to keep people like me away from normal society.” — Dilbert

[DSYoungEsq]

I think it would be fun to have Mr. Dubois over in GD.

thanks for the quote!

[sdimbert]

tanstaafl:

Thanks for the research… I’ve got that new sig line I’ve been looking for!

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“I was not making fun of you personally; I was heaping scorn on an inexcusably silly idea – a practice I shall always follow.”
-Robert A. Heinlein

[Irishman]

qbert said:

Or are you simply a “Trooper” that comes from a “Starship?”

Yes, trooper as in soldier (infantry), starship as in space vehicle that travels between star systems.

And why do they call it a “Star-Ship?” If it came anywhere close to a star, it’d blow the hell up!

As above. Note that Roddenberry named his space vehicles “starships” as well.

InutilisVisEst remarked:

As dpr mentioned, it’s an old book (1959) and its title is so pulp-sounding that I wonder if Heinlein himself chose it. My mother bought me a copy when I was in 7th grade, and it took me a year to get over the title and actually read it. If only it had a title like “The Suit is a Harsh Mistress” or “The Armor That Walks Through Walls.”

Actually, half of Heinlein’s titles (especially the early ones) fall into the “Gratuitous Use of Star/Space/Rocket in a Science Fiction Title” category. Never kept me from enjoying the stories themselves, once I got around to reading them.
[/quote]

Guy Propski added:

It was the 50’s; almost everything SF had “Space” or “Star” in the title:
The Star Beast
Currents of Space
Double Star
Stars Like Dust
The Space Merchants
Have Space Suit, Will Travel

Keep in mind the books are from different eras, different markets, and different formats. (Those, vs. the ones modeled originally by IVE.) Actually, Starship Troopers was a pulp.

The books listed above (including ST) were technically juveniles - marketed to teenage boys. Thus the general themes, tones, characters, etc. Though ST was actually the last juvenile Heinlein wrote, and really it was a bridge book for him. He was marketing it as a juvenile because that’s how SF sold, but he really wrote it as an adult book.

I have “Grumbles From the Grave”, I will try to remember to look if that was his idea or not.

[Cartooniverse]

HMMMMMMMMMM Not for nothing, but I thought it was named for that amazing song off of “The YES Album”…

Cartooniverse

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If you want to kiss the sky, you’d better learn how to kneel.

[The_Ryan]

Gee, with such a ridiculous name, who would think that tanstaafl would be a Heinlein fan?

[qbert]

i see the light…

[Irishman]

I’m reviving this old thread because I finally got around to checking the point I said I would.

Grumbles From The Grave does not conclusively state whether the title Starship Troopers was Heinlein’s idea or not. However, two previous working titles of the story were Sky Soldier and Starship Soldier.

Given that, and the various other titles of Heinlein stories in this time period from this publisher to this market (aka the juveniles), I would accept that it was his idea.

Okay, you can ignore my comment.