Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Starship Troopers, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Militarism
Citizenship
Moral Decline and Discipline
Communism vs. Moral Individualism
Summary
Analysis
Every year, the Federation takes a little more territory. Johnnie’s Candidate Officer, Third Lieutenant Jimmie Bearpaw, summons him for a drop. Johnnie tells Jimmie to stick with him and keep out of his way, have fun and use up his ammo, and—if Johnnie buys it and he assumes command—to listen to the platoon sergeant’s suggestions. As they enter the drop room, the sergeant calls the troops to attention. Johnny inspects the first section and Jimmie inspects the second.
After earning his own officer’s commission, career soldier Johnnie Rico now follows in the footsteps of his mentors Sergeant Zim and Captain Blackstone by training up the next generation of Federation officers. The advice he gives to Jimmie is almost identical to the advice he’s been given and the alliteration of their names—Johnnie/Jimmie—hits at the continuity of military service at the heart of the Mobile Infantryman’s vocation. The names may change, but the mission and the values are timeless.
Themes
Johnnie addresses his platoon: this is another Bug hunt. Because the Bugs keep prisoners of war on Klendathu, the Federation can’t use a nova bomb there, so the orders are to go down, take territory, and hold it. They won’t be retrieved; the boat will bring them more supplies instead. If anyone is captured, they should know that their outfit is behind them, and they won’t be abandoned. They’re only responsible for one little part of the operation. Johnnie tells them that he’s just heard from Jelly, who reports that his new legs work well and wants them to know he’s thinking of them and he “expects [their] names to shine!”
Johnnie’s pre-drop speech offers a final reminder of the stakes of being a soldier: it’s taken the Federation so long to rebuild its force after the rout of Klendathu in Chapter 10 that Johnnie has been promoted to captain of the platoon; Jelly was disabled in some action in the meantime; men are held as prisoners on the planet below. The platoon is about to enact the academic debate about the number of humans over which war should be waged—no one will be abandoned who is still alive, and any number of lives is worth fighting for, no matter how small. The words that Johnnie puts into Jelly’s mouth in this moment are the same words that Jelly put into Rasczak’s mouth in Chapter 1; along with Johnnie’s pre-drop shakes, they bring the story full circle.
Themes
Johnnie’s shakes begin. Johnnie and Jimmie inspect the men as they enter their capsules. When Johnnie seals Jimmie into his capsule, his shakes intensify. But his platoon sergeant—his Father—embraces him, reminding him that it’s just like drill. Johnnie’s shakes stop immediately, and the Navy drop crew seals them into the last two capsules. He calls the bridge to report that “Rico’s Roughnecks” are ready, and he listens to the Roger Young’s fight song as he waits to drop.
Johnnie’s story begins and ends with his shakes; he’s still human and capable of fear. Despite his training and experience, he understands the danger and chooses to put his life on the line in every drop anyway, because that’s what a good soldier and a virtuous citizen does. His father’s presence reinforces the familial nature of military service. The fact that Johnnie outranks his father not-so-subtly suggests that his choice to volunteer as a teenager was the correct one. Mr. Rico has fulfilled his own sense of duty but will never be the soldier his son is, because he chose to ignore that calling for so many years of his life.
Themes
