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How does literature affect our society
How does literature affect our society
Literature and its impact on society
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Written in 1985, Ender’s Game was one of the first novels published on-line only prior to going to print. It has undergone several revisions, been adapted into a film, comic book and audio-play. It has won a Hugo and Nebula award, been nominated for a Locus award and is regularly featured in the top lists of books to read. It is also recommended reading in military academies, initially the U.S. Navy and then many others, for its theories on leadership and warfare.
As a young adult science fiction novel, an initial reading gives the impression that the theme of the book appears to be about lying to the protagonist to achieve the main goal of winning a space war whilst playing games. It’s not - it’s about control. 100% absolute control of an
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organic component of a weapon system, one that will save mankind from extinction. The opening of the story briefly hears disembodied voices speaking of Ender’s suitability and their control over his life: this is immediately followed with Ender, whilst at school, having his Monitor removed - a device that relays everything that the subject sees, hears, and feels used to control the decisions of his over-watchers - his first experience without the Monitor, was to get into a fight with those that were jealous of him for being a Third. Being a Third is a derogatory term, due to the Government keeping control of its population. Ender is a rarity from the beginning, apart from being a genius, he is part of an eugenics program. He wins the fight in an absolute manner, whilst those in control were watching and overseeing the outcome. This becomes the next theme where Ender never starts a fight but always finishes it. From this experience and the introduction of his average parents and above-average siblings, an empathetic sister and sociopathic brother, the major controlling element of the story is brought in by introducing the biggest factor of Ender’s life, that of Colonel Graff. He takes control of Ender and his family from the beginning, persuading Ender with a mixture of lies and truth in believing in the path laid out before him by joining the military Battle School. He takes Ender away from his family and into space where the school in located, to be trained in space combat alongside many other children of similar ages in a controlled environment. The central part of the story revolves around Ender being thrown into the school and forever being disassociated from comforts, friends and reliance on anyone. The deconstruction of his personality allows those controlling him to use what is left, guiding him to be the best weapon in the war. Wargaming in a zero gravity arena is where Ender excels despite the seemingly rigid rulesets imposed by both the creators and the opponents.
Games play a large role in the book, from the childish ones with his brother, the space simulations, the zero-gravity battle room and a mind-controlled psychological testing game run by a nascent A.I. which features in later books.
During this time, Ender has control over one thing in his life, that of the mind-control game where he breaks it when he meets the section called The Giant (a no-win scenario to teach about frustration). No-one else passes this point, but Ender, so the A.I. creates a story for him to follow, without knowing that the information is being supplied by the aliens via an instantaneous communication device called the Ansible (created by Ursula K. Le Guin).
The control via the wargames shapes Ender into a formidable foe towards anyone who opposes him - he is placed in the hardest unit to train with and eventually given command of new recruits and dropouts to act as his own unit when he is promoted. He uses anything available to control the outcome of battle simulations, rapidly climbing the game scoreboards until a fatal encounter with a character called Bonzo. Due to this Colonel Graff promotes him out of the Battle School into Command School. Graff controlled the aftermath of the fight between Ender and Bonzo to prevent Ender being sidetracked by grief and doubt over his role in the
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military. Prior to Ender being taken to Command School, where he will start to have his own control over outcomes, he returns to Earth where he meets up with his sister Valentine - who has had Graff’s controlling warning to persuade him to return - this segue changes Ender more than anything else by showing him love and compassion at his lowest point in his journey. Command School is a lie from the outset, as Ender is in direct control of the fleet via Ansible and fights his way through the aliens guided by the new controlling factor of Mazer Rackham, the previous war hero. For the final battle, Ender decimates the aliens thinking it was only a game and awaits his promotion, only to find the truth hard to bear. In his final arc of the book, Ender finally has complete control of his life and leaves the military with anything that he wishes - on an alien outpost he rescues one of the alien’s eggs so that one day he may be able to restore them to life. As a theme, the hero’s journey of Ender Wiggin, from someone who has no control and eventually has it all, is linear in fashion and easy to digest which is why it has resonated with so many readers of all ages.
The method of control is varied from Ender’s brother, who bullies Ender mercilessly; Colonel Graff’s absolute control over Ender’s upbringing and training, even to the point of clearing Ender of murder twice; the alien’s, who control the mind-game to make contact with Ender and to give them a second chance; on to Ender becoming a Speaker of the Dead, atoning for his crimes against life and taking control of his
destiny.
Introduction: Ender is one of the main characters in this book, Ender is intelligent on and off the battlefield he is the youngest in the salamander army but he is more skillful than anyone else in the army. The book Ender’s game is written by Dr son Scott Card, This book was the Hugo and Nebula winner.
The Enders Game written by Orson Scott Card provides understanding of the characters and their relationships with others through indirect characterization and diction. Orson Scott Card uses literacy devices and specific word choice to let the reader draw conclusions about the characters and the relationships between Peter and Ender, the symbolism of the bugger mask/bugger-astronaut game, and the foreshadowing of Peter and Valentines death. The author reveals the relationship between Peter and Ender through Peter’s perception of Ender and the astronaut-bugger game. “Ender did not see Peter as […]
From the first moment that we wake up we know that we are awake, but have you ever had a sensation that you are dreaming but you know you are awake? This is the same way Neo felt in his world in the movie the Matrix. Ender Wiggen was in the same situation in the novel Ender’s Game, written by Orson Scott Card. He was living in a place where no one accepted him because he was a third, which means that he belongs to the government for a special purpose. The comparisons of Neo and Ender through their different conflicts made believe, important decision to make and stimulus that people need and the consequences that brings after making decision.
In this book, Ender is most particularly manipulated by Graff, the I.F. soldier who watches over him. Even though Graff is secretly Ender’s friend, Colonel Graff is the recipient of a lot of doubt and negativity coming from Ender. The constant belief that Graff is supposedly deceitful pushes Ender to perform better. Now away
Ender is selected to go to Battle School in space because of the actions he has displayed against a bully after a device known as a monitor, which allows the leaders of the I.F. to watch and hear everything Ender perceives. Although Ender’s conception was predetermined (in this time period, families are only allowed to have two children unless stated by the government which is why Ender is often called a “Third”), he had to display the correct characteristics to be selected. Ender’s siblings, Peter and Valentine also wore the monitor, but neither wore it as long nor was selected because Peter was too cruel and Valentine was too mild. Once Ender arrives, he makes a couple new friends from the other selected children, including a boy named Alai. When Ender is alone, he plays a mind game and progresses farther than anyone has before so out of the blue, Ender becomes promoted to a group called Salamander Army, where he befriends the only girl, Petra Arkanian, at Battle School. As Ender continues to display his brilliance, he is continuously being promot...
Leading up to that he faces enemies and obstacles in the form of bigger kids and the games that he wins thoroughly, to the point where he cannot be beat. He always is one set ahead of whatever is thrown at him. Until Ender finds the Bugger Queen pupa.” Reached into the cavity and took out the cocoon.” (Card 321) Here in this scene Ender is going against what we have come to see as part of who he is. He has the intent to allow the Buggers to rebuild and try to live along side of humans. Normally he destroys something so thoroughly that it can never hurt him or the people he is fighting for again. This is perhaps one of the very best examples of the theme that one’s past does not define them or their
Ender’s game is a science fiction novel written by Orson Scott card it was published in 1985. This book is in the future when in the story earth has been invaded by an alien race and is almost destroyed by the invasion but wins the battle and to prevent earth from being destroyed if they return they create the International fleet which recruits kids an teaches them to be commanders. The chapter that I am going to analyze is chapter one which is called Third. This chapter shows how Ender is being manipulated since the start and how he has to deal with being different by being a third.
After years of being monitored by government officials, Ender Wiggins, the main character of Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game, finds himself completely alone. The loneliness set's in as he finds himself in a new school, away from the watchful eyes of the government and bared to the world. He is a Third. This feeling of being a third makes Ender feel even more isolated, "It was not his fault he was a Third. It was the government's idea, they were the ones who authorized it - how else could a Third like Ender have got into school?" (Card 5). There was no one there to keep the bullies away now. Although he never really liked the monitor, he now found himself alone and missing the advent ages of having it on and knowing that someone, somewhere was always with him and watching him. At battle school, Ender knows that he will be isolated from the other students. Colonel Graff tells the other students of Ender and how superior his talents and intelligence is compared to the rest of the group. The other students don't like Ender and don't trust him. Throughout battle school, Ender is kept from his family and isolated from other children.
This book is anti-war since it shows how war could advance someone’s life into a huge disaster, how anyone can break down from the stress that others impose on them, just to be able to produce someone who can save humanity, and how someone’s life was controlled by someone else since they were born and can not be able to change and let themselves hold on to their own life, fate, and future. War destroys everything but Ender’s Game shows how war had affected and destroyed Ender’s whole entire
In the beginning of the book, Ender is ashamed when his decisions harm others. After receiving ‘special treatment’ on his way to Battle School, Ender is being harassed
Throughout the novel, Ender gradually begins to realize that he is not so different from his brother Peter. Ender grew up being punished and beaten up just for being a third who was smarter than Peter. This explains why Ender wants nothing to do with him when he leaves home. The mind game periodically reminds Ender that he is not completely different from him through certain levels. On the first obstacle that proved difficult, he brutally
One key component that is produced through Ender’s struggles at his young age is self-reliance. Ender is born unto a family where he is seen as an outcast; he’s a “third.” In a world where population control is major concern, a third-born child is looked upon in disgust. He is isolated even before he is brought into the world. John Kessel reveals his insights into Card’s interpretation of Ender’s exploitation when he says,” Orson Scott Card presents a harrowing tale of abuse. Ender’s parents and older brother (. . .) either ignore the abuse of Ender or participate in it” (Kessel 1). No one contributes more to this abuse than his older brother, Peter. Along with his birth, jealousy and hatred are especially common towards Ender. This disapproving outlook is particularly apparent from Peter. Peter let’s Ender know hi...
Ender’s Game is a novel that emphasizes the colliding parallels of society on Earth with paranoia in space. Card’s work examines elements of a dystopian universe by including rich connotations of the following concepts: deceptive reality, isolation, illusion, totalitarian mannerisms, and persuasive theory.
Ender's Game. Dir. Orson Scott Card and Alan Smithee. Perf. Asa Butterfield. Summit Entertainment, 2013.
In present society, humans constantly use others for their own intentions. In the novel, Ender's Game, by Orson Scott Card characters use people's naivety to their own advantage. The adults in this novel use the children's innocence for their own nefarious purposes and consequently, manipulating the children leads to having powerful individuals as the story progresses.