These kids are young when they are taken from their homes, barely school-aged. Ender is six years old when he begins at the Battle School, and it is sometimes jarring to be reminded of this. My suspension of disbelief wavered at times, but it held, simply because there were so many affirmations that Ender was extraordinary; the constant reaffirmation that Ender was virtually uniquely gifted made the flashes of insight and wisdom seem plausible in spite of his youth. Still, I don't think I ever pictured the children in these books as young as they are described. I just couldn't.
This effect, this unfathomability, may well be intentional. One of the interesting ethical questions that the book raised for me was about what we, as a society, are really asking our soldiers to become so that they can defend us. Several times in the course of the books, Ender expresses his discomfort with the traits that his teachers and mentors seem to be trying to draw out, yet even when he rebels, it's generally by being what they wanted but more so. After all, children are wired to try to please the people who care for them. As hard as it is to picture six-year-olds put in this position, the people that we, today, put in the equivalent position are themselves still children, still malleable, still short-sighted and innocent. To me, the age of the Battle School students is an amplifying of the stakes for dramatic effect.
One of the most fascinating things about this book might be the amount of room there is for interpretation. To me, this is a classic story of how we turn into what we despise, how maybe sometimes that might even be a necessary act of preservation, but is still, even then, a tragedy. I know, though, that this interpretation tells you far more about me than it does about the book. My biases about what it means to be a child, what is good and what is evil, and how things grow to become one or the other determined how I read the book. This book, to me, is an articulation of my ambivalent feelings about the way the military works, about the price we sometimes pay for peace. But looking through the text itself, I can see that those are my feelings, that the book never quite comes down on any side of the issues.
Article comments
1 - Gordon Hauptfleisch
Wonderfully-written review--cohesive, insightful.
2 - Vern Halen
Theh two parallel Ender series are endlessly diverting. The first folllows Ender as an adult into his future, where via the processes of relativity he has aged 20 years while his society has aged thousands, and he gets to see his childhood as a historical event.
The second series picks up right where Ender's Game finishes, and focuses on his battle school comrades, particularly Bean.
Card's a great writer - might even be remembered as one when all's said and done.
3 - Madison
Hi my name is Madison and I go to a high school located in San Diego. I had the opportunity to read the novel, Ender's Game, because it was mandatory for my English class. I assure to you that I am a credible student qualified to comment on this particular book because I have read and overall evaluated it along with my classmates.
Every one person has his or her own opinion on different books, in general. I for one, had both likes and dislikes on Ender's Game. I liked this book because it was an easy read, very interesting, and understandable. For example, when Card wrote scenes about Ender winning battles with his army, it was so easy to paint that picture in your mind, to understand the scenario. However, there were a few dislikes about the book as well, and that was because it was a sci-fi. I don't normally like sci-fi books because of the fact that its not real; and compared to a non-fictional or even a fictional book, it makes it harder to relate to in the real world.
I postulate that Orson Scott Card paced his book smoothly and evenly. There were a few chapters that were a bit lengthy but only to help keep the reader guessing and wanting more. Once you got into this book, it seems as if you didn’t ever want to put it down. And this only made it that more enjoyable to read. The characters kept a stable personality in which concluded in more of a boring connection to the audience. So the audience always knew how each character would react before it happened. Take Valentine for instance, people are always saying how she is so sweet and thoughtful. I would say that I somewhat resemble her because I am always trying to be nice to others and put them before myself. Valentine is a caring character who is polite to everyone she spends time with, especially Ender.
Card explicably uses many literary techniques in his novel to help emphasize meanings. One obvious technique is incluing, which he describes a different world other than Earth, where Ender goes to battle school. Throughout the story people, like Graff, are constantly saying how Ender is their only hope for killing the buggers and being the best soldier ever; this is the hyperbole technique. Card also shows some personification for the buggers; even though they are aliens, they have emotions of how their entire species will become extinct. In addition, Card uses a lot of conflict, especially with Ender and Peter; who are competitive brothers who always fight.
I am sure that many people would love this book. But specifically I believe Card targets kids who love science fiction, who are into "fighting off bad guys." Also it could be intended for those who are unsure of themselves and need better self-security; finding out who they are and what they will become in life. I think people who won't like it are those that dislike the imaginary and futuristic approach in books. There is a lot of violence in this book, so if you don’t like aggression, then you wouldn’t like it; but also this is a warning to parents of allowing or disallowing their kids of reading this particular novel.
4 - Adam
The enemy's gate is down.