Old Man's War Manipulation Essay

How can greed, one of the seven deadly sins, be good? Military leaders in John Scalzi’s Old Man’s War and Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game gain power for themselves and for their nation, race, or other “entity” by manipulating and risking the lives of the story’s protagonists. Using this manipulation and risk, authors intricately display how the unadmirable human condition of greed can be used to promote a common good.
Various authority figures manipulated and risked John Perry’s life in Old Man’s War for their own, and their race’s benefit. They altered his life on both psychological and physical levels. At the beginning of the novel, the Colonial Defense Force recruits, including Perry, were required to participate in a series of tests performed

By performing this test, the CDF psychologically manipulated Perry in order to improve the quality of his life, and the human race as a whole. After undergoing and passing the psychological tests, the recruits were transferred into their new bodies. Perry states, “This version of me looked like he was muscled like a competitive swimmer. And it had a great head of hair” (Scalzi 78). John Perry is describing the young, new body the CDF will be giving to him. This particular physical manipulation portrays Kathryn Cramer’s idea of a “self-made species” in a peculiar way, and improves Perry’s quality of life. However, he must pay a price. In order for him to be nearly immortal, he must enlist in the CDF for a minimum of two years. Lieutenant Colonel Higgee explains, “After ten years—and yes, recruits, you will most likely be required to serve a full ten years—750 of you will have been killed in the line of duty” (119). If 750 out of the 1,022 recruits parish before their ten years are up, there is a huge risk to joining the CDF. However, for John Perry, this risk was worth it. On Earth, he was age 75 and his wife had passed away, leaving him

Because of his old age and loneliness, the risk of joining the CDF was very minimal at first, and proved to be rewarding for both himself and his race in the end. Perry reflects, “Crick stared at the memory module, and then scowled at me . ‘No one likes an overachiever, Captain,’ he said. ‘No, sir, I guess they don’t,’ I said, ‘although it’s lieutenant.’ ‘We’ll just see about that,’ Crick said” (346). This dialogue occurs directly after Perry saves both the skip drive technology and Jane during the last battle scene. After risking his life by joining the CDF and being both psychologically and