Robert A. Heinlein

Robert A. Heinlein
Heinlein in 1976
Heinlein in 1976
BornRobert Anson Heinlein
(1907-07-07)July 7, 1907
Butler, Missouri, U.S.
DiedMay 8, 1988(1988-05-08) (aged 80)
Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, U.S.
Pen name
  • Anson MacDonald
  • Lyle Monroe
  • John Riverside
  • Caleb Saunders
  • Simon York
Occupation
  • Author
  • aeronautical engineer
  • lieutenant USN[1]
Alma mater
Period1939–1988
GenreScience fiction, fantasy
Notable works
Spouse
Elinor Curry
​
​
(m. 1929; div. 1930)​
Leslyn MacDonald
​
​
(m. 1932; div. 1947)​
​
​
(m. 1948)​
Signature

Robert Anson Heinlein (/ˈhaɪnlaɪn/;[2][3][4] July 7, 1907 – May 8, 1988) was an American science fiction author, aeronautical engineer, and naval officer. Sometimes called the "dean of science fiction writers",[5] he was among the first to emphasize scientific accuracy in his fiction, and was thus a pioneer of the subgenre of hard science fiction. His published works, both fiction and non-fiction, express admiration for competence and emphasize the value of critical thinking.[6] His plots often posed provocative situations which challenged conventional social mores.[7] His work continues to have an influence on the science-fiction genre, and on modern culture more generally.

Heinlein became one of the first American science-fiction writers to break into mainstream magazines such as The Saturday Evening Post in the late 1940s. He was one of the best-selling science-fiction novelists for many decades, and he, Isaac Asimov, and Arthur C. Clarke are often considered the "Big Three" of English-language science fiction authors.[8][9][10] Notable Heinlein works include Stranger in a Strange Land,[11] Starship Troopers (which helped mold the space marine and mecha archetypes) and The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress.[12] His work sometimes had controversial aspects, such as plural marriage in The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress, militarism in Starship Troopers and technologically competent women characters who were formidable,[13] yet often stereotypically feminine—such as Friday.

Heinlein used his science fiction as a way to explore provocative social and political ideas and to speculate how progress in science and engineering might shape the future of politics, race, religion, and sex. Within the framework of his science-fiction stories, Heinlein repeatedly addressed certain social themes: the importance of individual liberty and self-reliance, the nature of sexual relationships, the obligation individuals owe to their societies, the influence of organized religion on culture and government, and the tendency of society to repress nonconformist thought. He also speculated on the influence of space travel on human cultural practices.

Heinlein was heavily influenced by the visionary writers and philosophers of his day. William H. Patterson Jr, writing in Robert A. Heinlein: In Dialogue with his Century, states that by 1930, Heinlein was a progressive liberal who had spent some time in the open sexuality climate of New York’s Jazz Age Greenwich Village. Heinlein believed that some level of socialism was inevitable and was already occurring in America. He was absorbing the social concepts of writers such as H.G. Wells and Upton Sinclair. He adopted many of the progressive social beliefs of his day and projected them forward.[14]

Heinlein was named the first Science Fiction Writers Grand Master in 1974.[15] Four of his novels won Hugo Awards. In addition, fifty years after publication, seven of his works were awarded "Retro Hugos"—awards given retrospectively for works that were published before the Hugo Awards came into existence.[16] In his fiction, Heinlein coined terms that have become part of the English language, including grok, waldo and speculative fiction, as well as popularizing existing terms like "TANSTAAFL", "pay it forward", and "space marine". He also anticipated mechanical computer-aided design with "Drafting Dan" in his novel The Door into Summer and described a modern version of a waterbed in his novel Stranger in a Strange Land.

  1. ^ Woo, Elaine (January 26, 2003). "Virginia Heinlein, 86; Wife, Muse and Literary Guardian of Celebrated Science Fiction Writer". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on November 12, 2016. Retrieved June 25, 2017. Also reproduced at The Heinlein Society Archived December 18, 2019, at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ Wells, John C. (2008). Longman Pronunciation Dictionary (3rd ed.). Longman.
  3. ^ Houdek, D. A. (2003). "FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions about Robert A. Heinlein, the person". The Heinlein Society. Archived from the original on April 3, 2012. Retrieved January 23, 2007.
  4. ^ "Say How? A Pronunciation Guide to Names of Public Figures". Library of Congress, National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS). September 21, 2006. Archived from the original on October 6, 2019. Retrieved January 23, 2007.
  5. ^ Booker, M. Keith; Thomas, Anne-Marie (2009). The Science Fiction Handbook. Blackwell Guides to Literature Series. John Wiley & Sons. p. 155. ISBN 978-1-4051-6205-0. Archived from the original on July 5, 2019. Retrieved June 27, 2018. Sometimes called the 'dean of science fiction writers,' Robert A. Heinlein was one of the leading figures of science fiction's Golden Age and one of the authors most responsible for establishing the science fiction novel as a publishing category.
  6. ^ Mendlesohn, Farah (2019). The Pleasant Profession of Robert A. Heinlein. London: Unbound Publishing. ISBN 978-1-78352-678-9.
  7. ^ "Robert Heinlein's softer side". The Guardian. January 12, 2009. Archived from the original on January 25, 2021. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
  8. ^ "The Big Three—Asimov—Clarke—Heinlein—A Bibliography". SFandFantasy.co.uk. Archived from the original on September 1, 2016. Retrieved August 28, 2016. Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke and Robert Heinlein are informally known as the 'Big Three'—the best known members of the group of authors who brought science fiction into a Golden Age in the middle years of the twentieth century
  9. ^ Parrinder, Patrick (2001). Learning from Other Worlds: Estrangement, Cognition, and the Politics of Science Fiction and Utopia. Duke University Press. p. 81. ISBN 978-0-8223-2773-8. This short discussion of Asimov, Clarke and Heinlein—the so-called Big Three, who largely dominated American (and, to a lesser extent, Anglo-American) science fiction during the 1940s, the 1950s and well into the 1960s—should serve to suggest the particularly complex affinity between science fiction and critical theory in its Blochian version.
  10. ^ "Science Fiction Writer Robert J. Sawyer: The Death of Science Fiction". SF writer. Archived from the original on May 2, 2012. Retrieved November 26, 2017. And yet, the publishers do whatever they can to continue to milk the big three: Asimov, Clarke, and Heinlein
  11. ^ "15 Things You Might Not Know About Stranger in a Strange Land". Mental floss. July 14, 2015. Archived from the original on April 14, 2017. Retrieved November 26, 2017.
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference mises1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ Lord, M. G. (October 2, 2005). "Heinlein's Female Troubles". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 13, 2019. Retrieved February 26, 2019.
  14. ^ Patterson Jr., William H. (August 2010). Robert A. Heinlein: In Dialogue with his Century Vol 1 (1st ed.). New York, NY: Tor Books. pp. 122–125. ISBN 978-0-7653-1960-9.
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference SFWA was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  16. ^ Cite error: The named reference SFAwards was invoked but never defined (see the help page).