Johnny Rico In Starship Troopers Analysis

Military science fiction has grown up over the years. Gone are the days when a simple plot would suffice. Readers demanded more of an intricate story, something they can proverbially sink their teeth into. Because of this demand, story plots developed into more complex themes than in earlier years. In the stories presented this semester, story lines varied, but there was always once central theme in each story: survival. Characters were built up to accommodate the intricate plots. Themes matured and have reflected the state of current world events. All these points work together to supply the backbone of the stories. Over the past decade, story scenarios had become more enthralling to the reader. The adventures presented this semester provided …show more content…
More detail was given to Johnny Rico in Starship Troopers. He was a rich kid who had been ready to graduate high school, and had not decided yet what to do with his life afterwards. When his best friend had elected to join the Terran Federation, Rico decided to join him. This event had set the base for Rico’s character. Throughout the story, he was the wealthy kid transformed into a military super soldier. The seemingly stupid Arachnids were far from what people thought they were. An intelligent species, their hierarchy resembled those of an ant. The Old Guy in Megahitler loved to tell stories. As an Odin-Class war machine, it had travelled extensively throughout the universe and made friends with anything it encountered. Megahitler was an enemy, but a historical one. In his thoughts, he patterned himself after the original Hitler and that made him potentially dangerous. However, it was the Blade Fetish that was the true adversary, and there was meager knowledge about them. The fighting machine in Combat Unit was a feisty one. It was a proud member of the 5th brigade that found itself trapped in an area with no way out. The unit had fought a faceless enemy, but it was the circumstances that it found itself in that was the true adversary. Ender Wiggins was only a child, with a motley crew of kids what he had to train for battle. Unbeknownst to him, his higher-ranking adult officers were using him …show more content…
The idea for Arena centered on humanity facing a hostile species. At that time, World War II was nearing the end and Germany was the species being fought. Second Variety had a theme of mankind and their ability to destroy themselves. It was an apt theme, as the development of the hydrogen bomb was underway during the time the story was published. The subject for Starship Troopers was one of responsibility and doing what was best for the people. At that time, the world was suspending nuclear policy. It was thought that doing this was not in the best interest of the public. The premise behind Megahitler was captured in the opening sentence. An ignorant person, or group of people, is a dangerous thing. This theme could be tied to the war in Afghanistan, or Congress that seems to vote in favor of the unpopular agenda. A few themes were found in Enders Game. Games were the most prevalent of the few. This idea could follow any military campaign, such as the conflicts faced in Beirut during the time the story was written. One of the themes for On Basilisk Station was performing a duty no matter what the consequence was. Honor’s defense of Medusa did not make her popular, regardless she completed her job. The same can be said about the intervention in Somalia during that time. Old Man’s War had a theme of what makes one human. John Perry was given a new body, one that was genetically comparable to his old one. This could tied into the ethics