Editing Starship Troopers (section)

==Influence==
[[File:US Army powered armor.jpg|thumb|upright|A real-life concept of powered armor, an idea popularized by ''Starship Troopers''<ref>{{cite web | last=Liptak | first=Andrew | title=18 suits of power armor from science fiction you don't want to meet on the battlefield | website=The Verge | date=2017-12-10 | url=https://www.theverge.com/2017/12/10/16173596/science-fiction-power-armor-exoskeletons-iron-man-expanse-starship-troopers-halo-list | access-date=2023-06-25 | archive-date=February 15, 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230215030054/https://www.theverge.com/2017/12/10/16173596/science-fiction-power-armor-exoskeletons-iron-man-expanse-starship-troopers-halo-list | url-status=live }}</ref>]]

Heinlein's books, and ''Starship Troopers'' in particular, had an enormous impact on political science fiction, to the extent that author Ken MacLeod has stated that "the political strand in [science fiction] can be described as a dialogue with Heinlein," although many participants in this dialogue disagree with Heinlein.{{sfn|Macleod|2003|p=231}} Science fiction critic [[Darko Suvin]] states that ''Starship Troopers'' is the "ancestral text of US [[military science fiction|science fiction militarism]]" and that it shaped the debate about the role of the military in society for many years.{{sfn|Suvin|2008|p=123}}

In addition to his political views, Heinlein's ideas about a futuristic military as depicted in the novel were deeply influential among films, books, and television shows in later years.{{sfn|Booker|Thomas|2009|p=221}} Roger Beaumont has suggested that ''Starship Troopers'' may some day be considered a manual for extraterrestrial warfare.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Beaumont|first1=Roger|title=Military Fiction and Role: Some Problems and Perspectives|journal=Military Affairs|date=April 1975|volume=39|issue=2|pages=69–71|doi=10.2307/1986930|jstor=1986930}}</ref> Suvin refers to Juan Rico as the "archetypal Space Soldier".<ref name="Suvin">{{cite journal|last1=Suvin|first1=Darko|title=Of Starship Troopers and Refuseniks: War and Militarism in U.S. Science Fiction, Part 2|journal=Extrapolation|date=2006|volume=48|issue=1}}</ref> ''Starship Troopers'' included concepts in military engineering which have since been widely used in other fiction, and which have occasionally been paralleled by scientific research. The novel has been cited as the source of the idea of [[powered armor]] [[exoskeleton]]s, which Heinlein describes in great detail.<ref name="Intersections">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Zao2IFNhvQkC|title=Intersections: Fantasy and Science Fiction Alternatives|date=1987|publisher=Southern Illinois University Press|isbn=9780809313747|location=Carbondale, Illinois|pages=210–220|last1=Slusser|first1=George E.|access-date=July 1, 2017|archive-date=March 13, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230313134034/https://books.google.com/books?id=Zao2IFNhvQkC|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last1=Mikołajewska|first1=Emilia|last2=Mikołajewski|first2=Dariusz|date=May 2013|title=Exoskeletons in Neurological Diseases – Current and Potential Future Applications|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/229012056|journal=Advances in Clinical and Experimental Medicine|volume=20|issue=2|pages=228 Fig. 2|access-date=July 1, 2017|archive-date=April 3, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200403142703/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/229012056_Exoskeletons_in_Neurological_Diseases-Current_and_Potential_Future_Applications|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.sciencenews.org/articles/20010630/bob8.asp| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060116201552/http://www.sciencenews.org/articles/20010630/bob8.asp| archive-date=January 16, 2006| title=Dances with Robots| publisher=Science News Online| access-date=March 4, 2006| first=Peter| last=Weiss}}</ref><ref name=Camp/> Such suits became a staple of military science fiction. Franchises that have employed this technology include ''[[Iron Man]]'', ''[[Exo Squad]]'', ''[[Halo (series)|Halo]]'', ''[[District 9]]'', ''[[Elysium (film)|Elysium]]'', and ''[[Edge of Tomorrow]]''.<ref name="Liptak"/> During the shooting of the science fiction film ''[[Aliens (film)|Aliens]]'', director [[James Cameron]] required the actors playing [[space marine]]s to read ''Starship Troopers'' to understand their parts, and also cited it as an influence for the space drop, terms like "bug hunt", and the cargo-loader exoskeleton.<ref>{{cite book|title=Aliens: The Illustrated Screenplay|chapter=Mothers With Guns|author=Cameron, James|editor=Sammon, Paul M.|pages=10–20|publisher=Orion|year=2001|isbn=0752831933}}</ref>

''Starship Troopers'' had a direct influence on many later science fiction stories. [[John Steakley]]'s 1984 novel ''[[Armor (novel)|Armor]]'' was, according to the author, born out of frustration with the small amount of actual combat in ''Starship Troopers'' and because he wanted this aspect developed further.<ref>{{cite web|first = Dave| last = Alpern| title = Steakley Interviews – First Chat| publisher=The Official Unofficial John Steakley Site|date=November 1997| url = http://johnsteakley.com/inter.html| access-date=February 22, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080606225719/http://johnsteakley.com/inter.html |archive-date=June 6, 2008}}</ref> The "Mobile Suits" from the 1979 [[Nippon Sunrise]] [[anime]] series ''[[Mobile Suit Gundam]]'' were inspired by the powered armor from ''Starship Troopers''.<ref>{{cite book |last=Tomino |first=Yoshiyuki |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E5U95deDqxkC&q=Yoshiyuki+Tomino+starship+troopers+gundam |title=Mobile Suit Gundam: Awakening, Escalation, Confrontation |publisher=Stone Bridge Press |year=2004 |isbn=978-1-880656-86-0 |page=8 |access-date=September 24, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215082247/https://books.google.com/books?id=E5U95deDqxkC&dq=Yoshiyuki+Tomino+starship+troopers+gundam |archive-date=February 15, 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref> The 1988 [[Gainax]] [[OVA]] series ''[[Gunbuster]]'' has plot elements similar to ''Starship Troopers'', depicting humanity arrayed against an alien military.<ref name=Camp>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=X6YtQxURSvUC|title=Anime Classics Zettai!: 100 Must-See Japanese Animation Masterpieces|last1=Camp|first1=Bryan|last2=Davis|first2=Julie|publisher=Stone Bridge Press|year=2007|location=[[Berkeley, California]]|isbn=9781933330228}}</ref> Scholars have identified elements of Heinlein's influence in ''[[Ender's Game]]'', by [[Orson Scott Card]], as well. Hantke, in particular, compares the battle room in ''Ender's Game'' to Heinlein's prosthetic suits, stating that they both regulate but also enhance human agency.{{sfn|Hantke|1998|p=504}} Suvin suggests parallels between the plots of the two novels, with human society in both stories at war against insect-like aliens, but states that the story of [[Ender Wiggin]] takes a very different direction, as Ender regrets his genocidal actions and dedicates his efforts to protecting his erstwhile targets.<ref name=Suvin/>

Conversely, [[Joe Haldeman]]'s 1974 anti-war, [[Hugo Award|Hugo]]- and [[Nebula Award|Nebula]]-winning science fiction novel ''[[The Forever War]]'' is popularly thought to be a direct reply to ''Starship Troopers'', and though Haldeman has stated that it is actually a result of his personal experiences in the [[Vietnam War]], he has admitted to being influenced by ''Starship Troopers''.<ref name=Haldeman/><ref name="WWE-1976">{{cite web|url=http://www.worldswithoutend.com/books_year_index.asp?year=1976|title=1976 Award Winners & Nominees|work=Worlds Without End|access-date=July 27, 2009|archive-date=August 4, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090804022800/http://www.worldswithoutend.com/books_year_index.asp?year=1976|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="WWE-1975">{{cite web|url=http://www.worldswithoutend.com/books_year_index.asp?year=1975|title=1975 Award Winners & Nominees|work=Worlds Without End|access-date=July 27, 2009|archive-date=April 18, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120418233801/https://www.worldswithoutend.com/books_year_index.asp?year=1975|url-status=live}}</ref> Haldeman said that he disagreed with ''Starship Troopers'' because it "glorifies war", but added that "it's a very well-crafted novel, and I believe Heinlein was honest with it".<ref name="Haldeman">{{cite web|last=Haldeman| first=Joe| url=http://www.scifi.com/transcripts/1998/JoeHaldeman.html| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060315063638/http://www.scifi.com/transcripts/1998/JoeHaldeman.html| archive-date=March 15, 2006| title= 1998 SciFi.com interview| year=1998| access-date=March 4, 2006}}</ref> ''The Forever War'' contains several parallels to ''Starship Troopers'', including its setting. Commentators have described it as a reaction to Heinlein's novel, a suggestion Haldeman denies; the two novels are very different in terms of their attitude towards the military. ''The Forever War'' does not depict war as a noble pursuit, with the sides clearly defined as good and evil; instead, the novel explores the dehumanizing effect of war, influenced by the real world context of the Vietnam War.<ref name=JH>{{cite book|last=Gordon|first=Joan|title=Joe Haldeman|publisher=Wildside Press LLC|page=33|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T8xA-sA5z80C|isbn=9780916732066|location=[[Rockville, Maryland]], US|year=1980|access-date=February 16, 2016|archive-date=March 13, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230313134036/https://books.google.com/books?id=T8xA-sA5z80C|url-status=live}}</ref> Haldeman received a letter from Heinlein, congratulating him on his Nebula Award, which "meant more than the award itself".<ref>Requiem, Yoji Kondo, editor, p. 274</ref> According to author [[Spider Robinson]], Heinlein approached Haldeman at the awards banquet and said the book "may be the best future war story I've ever read!"<ref>Requiem, Yoji Kondo, editor, p. 315</ref>

[[Harry Harrison (writer)|Harry Harrison]]'s 1965 novel ''[[Bill, the Galactic Hero]]'' has also been described as a reaction to ''Starship Troopers'',{{sfn|Booker|Thomas|2009|p=214}} while [[Gordon R. Dickson]]'s 1961 novel ''[[Naked to the Stars]]'' has been called "an obvious rejoinder" to ''Starship Troopers''.{{sfn|Macleod|2003|p=213}} ''[[Ring of Swords]]'', written by [[Eleanor Arnason]] in 1993, also depicts a war between two highly aggressive species, of which humans are one. The story deliberately inverts several aspects of ''Starship Troopers'': the story is told from the point of view of diplomats seeking to prevent war, rather than soldiers fighting it, and the conflict is the result of the two species being extremely similar, rather than different.{{sfn|Hollinger|2003|pp=132–133}}