Old Man's War

With the raging intergalactic war as its central conflict, Old Man’s War examines the morality of warfare, particularly as a means of colonialism and expansion. The Colonial Union and its Colonial Defense Force are a machine, expending money, technology, and human lives to fight for control of the galaxy while slaughtering other sentient species, all under the guise of ensuring the survival of the human race. The novel thus paints a portrait of war as violent, duplicitous, and counterproductive, ultimately eroding the very humanity it claims to protect.

Hints of this emerge even in the recruiting of CDF soldiers. The parameters for enlistment in the CDF are designed to entice humanity: The military only takes 75-year-olds, and the soldiers are promised a new life. This promise of excitement and exploration masks the true reality of war—quite literally, as the fact that soldiers do not return to Earth after their service prevents word of that reality from spreading. These methods of recruitment call into question the morality of military recruitment as a whole, suggesting a fundamental disregard for the autonomy of recruits. 

As John’s journey unfolds, the novel elaborates on this portrayal, showing how his service leads to