English Question 8: Ender's Game

Entry of your choice

A Sonnet:

A hero, predestined to save the Earth
Has a burden that greatly troubles him
It has injured his spirit since its birth
He feared there was no way to repay them

His unpardonable sin was dire
But he did not know what the closet held
Something prized over the best sapphire
A quest for him set by those whom he felled.

So, perhaps one day he will recover
And will find a refuge for this new queen
Who is waiting for him to arouse her
When that times arrives, he will be redeemed

Until that time comes, soundly will she sleep
Waiting for an era when none will weep.

I thought that this book was very good. I enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone who likes science fiction. It was sad, hopeful, tense, beautiful, suspenseful, mysterious, and exciting all in one. I liked the characters and the way the author developed their characters. The author was very descriptive in his settings and you can easily picture it in your mind. I appreciated the way that Valentine stayed true to Ender and didn’t forget him no matter what happened. They truly loved each other and I was happy when they were finally free to live and be children. This book is substantial and it’s fascinating how everything is related to each other. I liked the battle school the best. Ender was truly a genius, and I felt bad when he was tricked into decimating a whole race and civilization. That is what my poem is based on his feelings and how I think the book is left off.

This video relates to Ender in the sense that Valentine is the only person who understands or 'gets' him as this song puts it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8JtxIcaalU

http://monikaonline.net/Blue_Rose2.jpg

**IMPORTANT NOTE** I edited this picture

English Question 7: Ender's Game

Are there any settings in this novel which you have found to be beautiful? Or disturbing? Or memorable? Describe these settings and comment on why they were meaningful to you.

One setting that I found to be beautiful, disturbing, and memorable all in one was when Ender went to the bugger colony and found the new queen and begins having flashbacks on how the colony was before. On how the old queen saved her new queen, and that in itself is a tragic. When I read this I think of a pink, a dark rose pink, and grey or black. You find out what the buggers were really like and what happened when their planet was invaded and their people decimated. You find out that the buggers had prepared a place for Ender, that they had been trying to communicate to Ender for all of this time.

In its own way its beautiful, and the writer paints a beautiful world that has been destroyed, but yet, at the same time it is terrifying. You don’t know what to expect, and the flashbacks are frightening. And the book had foreshadows all through it of the bugger world through the game that Ender played and so this is quite startling to ‘see’ this picture that the writer has been paint throughout the whole entire book. It gives you goose bumps. The reason it’s so memorable is because you weren’t expecting it and it’s plain freaky. It is also symbolic because Ender is being ‘forgiven’ by the old queen and he is able to help restore things to the way they were. The game seems to make more sense now. Everything that happened there is related to what happened to him in some way. I think that when he sees Peter’s face the buggers are telling him that he is killing them just like Peter kills the squirrels. And that is one of the things that Ender fears the most, becoming like Peter.

http://d21c.com/funnyface/ROSES/rose_heart_pink.gif

English Question 6: Ender's Game

Please choose one passage from this novel that is significant to you. Why is this passage meaningful? Please type it into one of you entries and comment on what you think about the passage.

She also knew, though, that Peter was not insane, not in the sense that he wasn’t in control of himself. He was in better control of himself than anyone she knew. Except perhaps herself. Peter could delay any desire as long as he wanted to; he could conceal any emotion. And so Valentine knew that he would never hurt her in a fit of rage. He would only do it if the advantages outweighed the risks. And they did not. In a way, she actually preferred Peter to other people because of this. He always, always acted out of intelligent self-interest. And so, to keep herself safe, all she had to do was make sure it was more in Peter’s interest to keep her alive than to have her dead. p.125

You may wonder why I would find this passage interesting and I must confess that I find it absolutely intriguing. This passage really gives a new depth to Peter’s character. You find that he isn’t just a hateful, warmongering genius, but in fact a real person with ambitions. Egotistical, yet he is willing to admit his faults. He uses other people like Valentine to refine his thoughts and ideas. He is indeed a genius, but he has this streak, this vein of needing power, and that is what fuels him, what drives him to success. So, why the reason I like this passage is because it the practicality of Peter and Valentine both. Valentine has to stay a step ahead of Peter; she has to make herself indispensable to him and his purposes.

I also admire Peter for the same reason Valentine prefers him to other people. I have a passion for expediency and although I do not admire Peter’s character or the role he plays in this book, I admire the fact that he can conceal his emotions, that he is in control of himself, and that he would only do things if the advantages outweighed the risks. The one thing I disdain is that everything he accomplishes and does is out of self-interest. I also admire Valentine because of how sensible she is about the whole situation. She has seen what Peter did to the squirrels and he has threatened to kill her, but she is smart enough to figure out a way to make herself vital to him. They both display high levels of maturity and intelligence and they need each other. Peter has the ideas and Valentine has the skills, and the way that they worked together was interesting. That shows that we need all kinds of people in our world to function. There is a necessity for evil people and good people and smart people and dumb people, its just part of our lives, but how we deal and interact with those people that we meet is the most important.

http://esamultimedia.esa.int/images/smart_1/wallpaper_SMART1_002.jpg

English Question 5: Ender's Game

What is the mood of this novel? Do you find this novel saddens you in any way? Why?

The mood of this novel is mostly tense, stressful, and lonely.

It is tense in the sense that time is running out for Earth and that everybody is relying on Ender to be ‘the one’ and to save them from the buggers. Ender can never relax he is always be put into more and more difficult situations. There is always a time pressure on him and that makes Ender himself tense. The novel is stressful because of all the pressure on Ender to again be this great hero and save the world. He is always pushed past the limit. But he also always succeeds and overcomes anything that he has to face or do. Ender is never allowed to stay in a happy or desirable situation for long. He is always lonely. The government deprives him of being in a situation where he can make friends and actually get to know them. But despite these obstacles he does make friends like Alai, Petra, and Bean. At the end though we see how all the tenseness, the stress, and the loneliness all take their toll on Ender.


The part that saddens me is how Ender is always moving and never getting to live a halfway normal genius life. It’s not fair to Ender not to have any choices in his life, and to constantly be lied to. But in a way in was necessary, a normal person couldn’t have endured all that he had and still be able to function and ‘play’ like Ender had to play. Everything that happened from the time he was chosen happened for a purpose and although it was necessary it didn’t always seem right, ethically or morally.


http://www.gradethenews.org/dreamhost%20files/mediafolder/fist%20on%20table.jpg
IMPORTANT NOTE **I edited the picture**

http://ftp.pcworld.com/pub/screencams/stress.jpg

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i237/Darkshyne/Purplelake.jpg

IMPORTANT NOTE **I edited the picture**

English Question 4: Ender's Game

What is the climax of this novel? What happens? How do the events of this novel make you feel?

The climax of this novel is the point where Ender realizes that he really destroyed the bugger planet and that the ‘final test’ was no test at all, but real warfare. After that the past events in his life begin to make sense and he realizes that everything that happened was not only for a purpose, but also necessary. Earth needed him, but was the victory against the buggers really worth the toll it took on Ender and the destruction of the bugger planet? No. It wasn’t worth it. How can you condemn millions of innocents? You can’t. You don’t have the right to. That ‘right’ is only reserved for God.

What happened is something that you know is destined to fail but later as you will or have seen it doesn't. This thing I’m referring to is the ‘final test’. Ender is fed up with his life and not caring whether he passed his test or not. He decides that he can cheat and ignores all of his losses to reach his target, only later does he learn that he sentenced many of his own men to death by his actions. He my have won the war, but the decisions he made lies heavily on his mind and takes its toll on his mental, physical and physiological health.

You feel bad for Ender because he was tricked into decimating the bugger’s home world and seemingly slaughtering all the buggers. Despite all of his trials, he takes comfort that he can save the young Queen safe inside her cocoon and that the previous Queen forgave him for the killings.
http://products.priceclash.co.uk/images/nodrop/220/185723720X/books/enders-game-the-ender-saga.jpg

English Question 3: Ender's Game

Who are the main characters in the novel? Do you like them? Why or why not? What is special about them? What do they reveal about the universal human experience?

There are more than three main characters, but I am choosing to focus on the three most important ones. Those three are Ender, Valentine, and Peter. I will begin with Ender.

Ender is a ‘third’, which means he is the third child on his family by government request. Ender, his brother, Peter, and his sister, Valentine, are all genius who has, at one time or another, been considered in an attempt to find a hero to save Earth from Buggers. He is a good leader, but he carries certain sadness with him. Only one person truly loves him and every time he starts doing well and starts to his place he is ‘relocated’ and put in a seemingly impossible situation that he stunningly overcomes. He carries the immense burden of being ‘the one’ who will deliver Earth from the buggers. He also has this computer game that has exceeded far beyond its original purposes, but it confuses and troubles Ender. After his final ‘test’ he goes to the bugger planet for a while and then travels with his sister across the galaxy.

I shall now go onto the one person in his life that loves him, and that would be his sister Valentine. She was too gentle to be ‘the one’, and she protects Ender from Peter as much as she can. After Ender leaves she is heartbroken. As the book progresses Peter enlists her help in an imperative and gargantuan undertaking. They begin a campaign to keep Russia at bay by using the Internet and making up identities to bringing awareness to the common people. After she gains evidence of Peter’s cruelty she uses that to buy not only her freedom, but Ender’s also.

Peter is a complex character that loves power and always weighs out the advantages and disadvantages before making a decision. He is cruel and conceives the whole Internet plan to gain power for himself. Like his brother and sister he is extremely smart and threatens people to acquire what he wants. After his sister leaves he becomes a world leader.

I like Valentine the most. She does all in her power to protect Ender and she remembers him when no one else does. She is his beam of light and for the most part it is her, and her love that keeps him going especially through the first part of battle school. I think Ender is fascinating, but you feel sorry for him because he is always hurting inside. Peter surprises you, but he is not likable. His humor and torturing of animals is alarming.

You can compare each of the characters to different roles in life. Ender is our hero yes, but he is nothing without his the driving force that presents itself in the form of his brother and sister. Peter is the memory or person that keeps him from going off the edge. The fear of becoming like Peter is what helps him stay on task. Valentine’s love for him is what keeps him going in a sense. He wouldn’t have the heart to do anything without her love.

http://www.hatrack.com/osc/books/endersgame/endersgame.jpg

English Question 2: Ender's Game

Are there are any current situations in the world that relate to the novel? What are they, and how do they relate? Does the novel shed any light on how current situations could be resolved or "fixed"?

A big aspect in this novel is the LOI (Lack Of Integrity) a.k.a. lying.

Ender hardly ever is told the truth and a majority of his training is a lie.

“You never asked me! You never told me the truth about anything!”
“You had to be a weapon, Ender. Like a gun, like the Little Doctor, functioning perfectly but not knowing what you were aimed at. We aimed you. We’re responsible. If there was something wrong, we did it.”

This is a conversation between Ender and Mazer after Ender learns that his final test was not a game. It not only demonstrates but also proves my point on the amount of lies that a person must go through to find the core of what is real in life. Does this remind you of anything in out everyday lives? Well what do you think about this statement? Pretty much everything in our life is a lie. How do you define truth? Something that is not false? What is not false besides God, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit or the Trinity? Nothing.

So how does this relate to our world today? In our world today we are assailed with colossal lies by television and newspaper and radio Medias. They all want us to believe these pictures that they paint for us, but how many are actually true? How many actually show what is really happening in the world and the true situations in the world? The world tells us just to do things that make us ‘feel good’. Well, what is ‘feeling good’? Is ‘feeling good’ getting drunk and injuring or killing yourself and/or other people by your actions? Is ‘feeling good’ getting ‘high’ and killing your brain cells that will never grow back? Is ‘feeling good’ living only for yourself? No.

Ender had a gift. He used his gift and he saved Earth. But was all of the lying really necessary? In this book lying was deemed the only way, but in our lives we can accomplish goals and tasks without lying. I think the way Ender felt like he had been forgiven was by allowing the new queen to live and finding a safe place for her to stay. The moral: Seek the truth, and you will find it.



Here are some of the lyrics to the video above:

So long I’ve been
Puttin’ all my effort into you
My heart is bare
I’ve been lookin’ everywhere for truth
You know exactly what you’re doing to me
That’s okay 'cause I’m not playin’ any more

I see what you’re tryin’ to hide
Didn’t take me long to realize
You can’t fool me with your disguise
I can see right through your lyin’ eyes
Take your shot, push me around
You’re never gonna take me down
So get outta my face with your masquerade

Since I’ve moved on
Things are goin’ every way but wrong
It’s a brighter day (whisper) across the sky
A new life, new friends
It’s got me wonderin’ where I’ve been
I was in a haze
I know you’re still bearin’ down on me
That’s okay ’cause I’m not runnin’ any more

This really applies to what I was saying about Ender and the Lack of Integrity. Ender was looking for truth when he went to the bugger's home world, and I think that in a way he found it. You can relate this whole song to Ender's journey: He was living in a lie, everything since the day he was born was a lie (1st stanza). He saw all the lies when the fact was revealed to him that his 'final test' was the destruction of the bugger home world (2nd stanza). He went to the bugger world and found peace (3rd stanza). (Please excuse the fact that this IS NOT the official music video for Masquerade, my response is based only on the lyrics above)

http://www.abcgallery.com/B/bruegel/bruegel86.html

IMPORTANT NOTE **I edited this picture**

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NWsLsrpHSc

English Question 1: Ender's Game

What is the major theme of this novel?

The theme of Ender's Game is in fact "the game”. This whole book is centered around Ender and how he is constantly trying to defeat the game, or what he perceives the game is. The problem with his perceptions is that he doesn’t find out until it’s too late that things are not as they appear, something often true in today’s world. “The game” is a phrase referring that starts at the beginning Ender’s battle training and ends at the destruction of the ‘buggers’. Ender for all of his wits and brilliance doesn’t find out until too late that he has indeed destroyed the ‘buggers’ and saved Earth. Then he finally realizes everything that has happened to him happened for a reason or a purpose. He finally realizes everything he has had to suffer physically, mentally and psychologically. But instead of triumph he feels sadness of having killed a living thing, which is another theme in this story. What is compassion? It is a sympathy or kindness for someone else. And Ender displays that time and time again he has compassion for people and that (in the minds of the generals and his superiors) is his weakness. That is what separates him from his brother Ender, and that is why he had to believe that the attack on the bugger homeland truly was a game.

Why is this theme important to a teenager living in 2007?

This duo theme of “the game” and compassion can be related to our lives of us, teenagers. We often tend choose to believe what we want rather that what we should believe, and that would be the truth. You can think of life as a big game, but unless you find out what lies beyond the essence of the “game” itself, you will never be able to discern between what is real and what is not until it is too late. As I mentioned before compassion is essential to us, as people. We must have compassion for others, otherwise how will we learn to stand for what is morally or ethically right even if it isn’t considered ‘wrong’ or ‘bad’. Our idea for normal in our society is based on out mindset and how we perceive things, so don’t wait until you have destroyed something to find out what the truth really is.



I love the lyrics of this song, especially the chorus:
I wanna know, wanna know, wanna know what you were thinking
I can't imagine why it didn't even sink in
they say you never know what you got till it's gone never know what you got till it's gone

I find more and more in life how true that is. I will refer to what I said before, don't wait until you have destroyed something to find out what truth really is. Or else you might find that you really didn't know what a good life or how blessed you were with someone until they are gone. Don't wait forever, you never know when something might happen that will change your life forever.

http://www.unm.edu/~keithw/pictures/graphicArt/cgiRendered/Space_Station_2.jpg

http://youtube.com/watch?v=ZdXn8xciKos