“There Ain't No Such Thing As a Free Lunch”
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“There Ain’t No Such Thing as a Free Lunch” The Development of Libertarian Ideology in Heinlein’s Speculative Fiction M. A. de Jong Leiden University MA Literary Studies English Literature and Culture 27 June 2018 Supervisor: Dr. E. J. van Leeuwen Second reader: Dr. J. C. Kardux De Jong 2 Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 3 Chapter 1: Beyond this Horizon (1942/1948) ............................................................................ 8 1.1 – A Brief Overview of the Great Depression ................................................................... 9 1.2 –The Structure of Horizon’s Society .............................................................................. 10 1.3 –Heinlein’s Vision of a Socialist Economy Based on the Theory of Social Credit ....... 13 1.4 – Libertarian Ideals in a Socialist Economy ................................................................... 18 1.5 – Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 19 Chapter 2: 1949 – 1959: President Eisenhower – Nuclear Weapons – Communism .............. 21 Chapter 3: Starship Troopers (1959) ....................................................................................... 25 3.1 – Individual Freedom and Responsibility in the Terran Federation ............................... 26 3.2 – Morality and Responsibility as Cornerstones of Society in the Terran Federation ..... 31 3.3 – Responsibility and Democracy in the Terran Federation ............................................ 34 3.4 – The Glorification of War and Militarism in Troopers ................................................. 39 3.5 – Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 40 Chapter 4: 1960 – 1966: Global Revolution – Domestic Politics – Civil Unrest .................... 42 Chapter 5: The Moon is a Harsh Mistress (1966) .................................................................... 46 5.1 – Moon as a Revolutionary SF novel .............................................................................. 47 5.2 – A Brief Overview of the American Revolution ........................................................... 52 5.3 – Moon as a Retelling of the American Revolution ....................................................... 53 5.4 – Heinlein’s Libertarian vision in Moon ......................................................................... 57 5.5 – Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 63 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 65 Works Cited .............................................................................................................................. 70 De Jong 3 Introduction Robert A. Heinlein (1907-1988) was one of the most influential science fiction writers of the twentieth century. During a prolific career which spanned almost five decades, he wrote thirty-two novels, fifty-nine short stories, numerous screenplays and even non-fiction. His output includes iconic works such as Starship Troopers, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, and Stranger in a Strange Land. During his career he won four Hugo awards and was named the first Grand Master of Science Fiction by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 1974. Together with Isaac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke, Heinlein is considered part of the big three of science fiction, defining the genre in its golden age (1938-1946). Heinlein is also credited with coining the term “speculative fiction” in “On the Writing of Speculative Fiction” (1947), a popular essay containing writing tips for beginning writers (Patterson, V2 88). His influence on those interested in science fiction and technology was considerable and “countless others have heard his pithy quotes, perhaps unknowing, on topics from sex and religion to government and gun control (McGiveron, “Heinlein” 3). In 1934, shortly after his retirement from the United States navy, Heinlein became politically engaged during Upton Sinclair’s Democratic gubernatorial campaign entitled “End Poverty in California” (Patterson, V1 174). At the time, Heinlein was a man of “socialist principles” and identified himself and his wife as Democrats and “radical liberals” (Patterson, V1 177). Like Upton Sinclair, Heinlein adhered to the form of socialism professed by H. G. Wells.1 During this campaign Heinlein was introduced to C. H. Douglas’ theories of Social Credit and became interested in its potential in reforming the economies of California and the 1 H. G. Wells was a proponent of so-called Fabian socialism. Unlike Marxist Socialism which called for a system without government or “private ownership,” Fabian socialism called for “social control of property through an effective and impartially administered state” which would come about not through revolution but through “persuasion and education” and “gaining influence within existing parties” (“Socialism”). De Jong 4 United States (Patterson, V1 219).2 The grassroots campaign Heinlein helped set up proved unsuccessful. Consequently, Heinlein decided to run for a seat in the California State Assembly in 1938. Despite his best efforts, he was defeated by his Republican adversary and decided to no longer pursue a political career; it had become clear to him that the EPIC movement was considered problematic to the Democratic party. Heinlein had only become involved in “party politics in the first place to make a radical break with business-as-usual – political as well as economic” (Patterson, V1 214-15). Rather than become part of the establishment, Heinlein decided to pursue a career as a writer. In 1939, Heinlein’s first story, “Life-line,” was published in Astounding Magazine. The following years he continued to write for the pulp magazines, establishing his reputation as a writer. From the late 1950s onwards, Heinlein’s work became increasingly controversial. Not only were his political ideas described as “conservative, radical, militaristic, iconoclastic, populist, anarchist, libertarian, and fascistic,” allegations were also made that his work was racist and misogynistic (Franklin 5). Ever since Science Fiction Studies developed as an academic field in the 1970s, critics who want to make a case for or against a specific claim have cherry-picked Heinlein’s immense body of work and have found sufficient evidence to support diverse and even conflicting arguments. Friday (1982), for example, is considered a misogynistic novel because its female lead “enjoys being raped” (Lord). Heinlein’s portrayal of women became less positive in his “post-1970 novels” when “the sexual revolution took a toll on him” and compromised “his ability to create three-dimensional women” (Lord). However, in most of Heinlein’s writing women are equal to men, often portrayed as more intelligent and capable, as is the case with Carmencita Ibanez in Starship Troopers, who unlike its male protagonist qualifies for flight training rather than Mobile Infantry. Even though Heinlein was a vocal supporter of civil rights throughout his life, Farnham’s Freehold 2 The theory of Social Credit states that “the issuance of additional money” or “subsidies to producers” provide the solution to the “chronic deficiency of purchasing power in the economy” (“Clifford Douglas”). De Jong 5 (1964) has been dubbed a racist text; its satire emphasizing rather than ridiculing racial stereotypes. Yet Heinlein is also said to have “advocated racial equality” several decades “before the height of the Civil Rights movement” (McGiveron, “Heinlein” 4-5). Many of his protagonists are of non-white ethnicity. Often this is not revealed until near the end of the book, as in Starship Troopers, whose protagonist Johnny Rico is a Filipino. Heinlein’s political notions have also been subject to debate. As a writer of speculative fiction Heinlein had the ability to take a political idea or principle and transplant it into a future version of the United States. Even though Heinlein remained consistent in his other ideas, his political notions went through substantial transformations. Heinlein adhered to a wide spectrum of political ideas throughout his career, which explains the “differences in how political themes are presented in … [his] work over multiple decades” (Reid 56). It is Heinlein’s penchant to continually develop the politics in his fiction in response to political developments in American society that is responsible for much of the “disagreement about the quality and meaning of Heinlein’s work” (Reid 56). Heinlein himself argued that his body of work revolved around a single theme: “Freedom and Self-Responsibility” (Patterson, V2 266). He also argued that “if a person names as his three favorites of my books Stranger, Harsh Mistress, and Starship Troopers… then I believe that he has grokked what I meant” (Patterson, V2 266).3 This thesis will explore Heinlein’s shift in political thinking between the conception and production of his major speculative fictions, Beyond this Horizon, Starship Troopers, and The Moon is a Harsh Mistress. As a political thinker Heinlein advocated personal freedom throughout his career. He progressed from a more liberal perspective to a more radicalized libertarian point of view