Robert A. Heinlein met Virginia Gerstenfeld where they both worked at the Philadelphia Navy Yard during World War 2. They married her 1948. She, like her husband, was a former naval officer. By all accounts, Virginia was and still is a remarkable human being, as were most of the female protagonists in Heinlein’s fiction. “Ginny” learned the Russian language prior to the couple’s famous visit to the Soviet Union in 1960s. She helped him build their home in Colorado. Virginia not only nursed her husband a series of illnesses, she handled virtually all his correspondence and assisted him in writing and research. If not for her, there would have been no Stranger in a Strange Land, no Starship Troopers and no Moon is a Harsh Mistress, nor would there exist his profound influence on the entire genre. The world of science fiction owes her a debt of gratitude.
But there are those who believed that Mrs. Heinlein deserved more “blame” than “gratitude.” This group includes Isaac Asimov:
“… although a flaming liberal during the war, Heinlein became a rock-ribbed far-right conservative immediately afterward. This happened at just the time he changed wives from a liberal woman, Leslyn, to a rock-ribbed far-right conservative woman, Virginia… I used to brood about it in puzzlement (of course, I never would have dreamed of asking Heinlein — I’m sure he would have refused to answer, and would have done so with the uttermost hostility), and I did come to one conclusion. I would never marry anyone who did not generally agree ith my political, social, and philosophical view of life.” (From I, Asimov: A Memoir, 1994.)
Asimov is wrong on many levels.
His description of Heinlein as a “rock-ribbed far-right conservative” is incorrect. Many of Heinlein’s beliefs are shared with the right. There is no “right,” as far as liberals are concerned. “Far-right” is their term for anyone less liberal than they. Other of Heinlein’s beliefs would be described as left wing. Also, Heinlein’s politics never shifted that much, but the concept of what defines “liberal” and “conservative” did change. Asimov commits a mistake in reasoning, namely that if B followed A, then A caused B. What really caused a change in Heinlein’s political outlook was the development of nuclear weapons. He started writing cautionary tales almost immediately afterwards.
On a personal level, Asimov’s attempt to blame Mrs. Heinlein for her husband’s shift in politics is nothing less than an attempt to emasculate Heinlein. Democrats tried to do the same thing to Ronald Reagan when they blamed his change from a New Deal Democrat and leader of the actor’s union into a Republican.
Asimov’s ego just couldn’t handle the fact Heinlein dared to have strongly held opinions differing from his own. What did Asimov think Mrs. Heinlein was doing, rewriting his books to insert conservative dogma? Perhaps Starship Troopers was originally about a non-violent Galactic Peace Corps? Perhaps the revolutionaries of The Moon is a Harsh Mistress staged sit-down protests and hunger strikes? Bull! Heinlein was forcefull personality, unlikely to completely to be compelled by anyone to alter his way of thinking.
After her husband’s death, she edited several titles, including Tramp Royale (the story of the couple’s tours across the world) and Grumbles from the Grave (a collection of letters). Mrs. Heinlein is alive and well and resides on the Atlantic coast.
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