Emily
Enders game anticipation guide
Lying is justifiable if it's for the greater good. Before I read Ender’s game I gave this statement a 2 “I disagree with that statement for the most part but I think its ok to tell a few white lies a couple times in your life.” My opinion has mostly stayed the same but I think I would give it a 1 this time. After seeing how lies ruined Enders life, lying is never justified for the greater good. When Graff and Anderson didn’t tell Ender he was killing the buggers I think that was going too far with the lies. “Ender, for the past few months you have been the battle commander of our fleets...There were no games, the battles were real, and the only enemy you fought was the buggers. You won every battle, and today you finally fought them at their home world, where the queen was, all the queens from all their colonies, they all were there and you destroyed them completely. They will never attack us again...”(296)The fact that you let a person kill a race without telling them that is just wrong. I think you have something seriously wrong with you to be able to do that. In the end of the book Ender did discover that they didn’t need to kill the buggers(321) to me that shows that a lie could ruin someones life or in Enders case it could kill a race. When Ender killed Stilson and Bonzo I can see why the teachers didn't want to tell him because they knew how much he feared being like Peter and they didn’t want him to think of himself as a killer so in a way that was for the greater good. They were just trying to protect Ender but mostly themselves so that he would agree to keep training.
Sometimes violence is the only way to solve a problem. I originally gave that statement a 1. “I believe that there is always other ways to solve problems like talking it out.” After reading Ender's game I realized that isn’t always possible, but it is usually ideal but that doesn't always work out that way. I would definitely give that statement a 2.5. Because I think it is best to talk things out if the other person is listening. When the buggers first attacked the humans they had to fight back unless they wanted our whole race to die off. They had no choice but to fight. As for the second time when there was an attack on the buggers it wasn’t the buggers attacking us it was us attacking them.(296) What I got from the book is the only reason that the humans attacked the buggers is they didn’t know how to communicate so how could they talk it out. “Ender believe me, there’s a century discussion on this very subject. Nobody knows the answer. When it comes down to it, though, the real decision is inevitable: If one of us is destroyed, let’s make damn sure we’re the ones alive at the end”(253). Mostly they attacked them out of fear of someday making an encounter with them. When Graff was explaining the war that is going on between the humans and the buggers he basically told him if anyone has to die lets make sure it’s not us it’s them. They killed because they couldn’t communicate and because they were all cowards.
It is okay to kill someone in self-defense. I originally gave that statement a 3.”we do have the right to bear arms if we are truly in danger but I would try to avoid that option if I could.” After reading the book I think I would still give that statement a 3. If your life is being threatened I think you could protect yourself at all costs. Ender had sometimes when he did have to fight for his life. When Bonzo attacked him in the shower Bonzo truly wanted to kill him because he was so full of hate. I don’t think it was best for Ender to antagonize him because it made matters worse. “Be proud Bonito, pretty boy. You can go home and tell your father, yes, I beat up Ender wiggin, who was barely ten years old, and I was thirteen. And I had only six of my friends to help me, and somehow we managed to defeat him, even though he was naked and wet and alone- Ender Wiggin is so dangerous and terrifying it was all we could do not to bring two hundred.”(208) I think it was kind of an accident what happen to Bonzo but after all he only brought it upon himself. Ender didn’t mean to kill but that’s what had to happen and Ender couldn’t help it.
Words are stronger than fists. I
originally gave that statement a 5. “I'm sure talking would get you
farther than hitting someone.” I think that words would get you farther
than hurting someone. After reading Ender’s game I realized there are
some anger people out there who you simply can’t reason with. So I
think I would give that statement a 4 now because most of the time words
are stronger but not always. Like when Bonzo attracted Ender I don’t
think Ender could have tried to talk to him or reason with he was so
angry and hateful that he was set on killing Ender. “...You've killed
him...he meant to kill me.”(212)But in some situations most the time
words would be stronger but if you were being attacked I think fist
would be stronger. When Ender killed the buggers it would have been
better for the humans and buggers to communicate before they went and
killed them all. Because then they would of know that they were never
going to kill the humans or try to hurt them. “We are like you...we
didn’t mean to murder...we thought we were the only thinking human
beings in the universe, until we met you.”(321)
Bullies hurt others because they have low self esteem. I
originally gave that statement a 4. “Most of the time that is true but
that probably isn't the case always.” My opinion hasn’t changed since I
read Ender’s game. When Bonzo attacked Ender he was only doing it
because Ender was winning all the battle’s. He was upset that a ten
year old was that much better than him. He wanted to win not Ender.
Instead of trying to improve he tried to get rid of what was in his
way. To me that shows he had low self esteem. He was picking on
someone younger and smaller than him.
Only the best and brightest students should receive the best education to become a nation's leaders. I
gave that statement a 3 originally. “Smart people should received a
good education and maybe become a nation's leader but also not so smart
students should receive a good education as well.”
My opinion has stayed the same I would still give that statement a 3.
Bright students should receive a good education. I also think the
students who aren’t so bright should receive a good education. An order
for our society to work everyone needs to have a good education. Some
people may have a better education than others but that still doesn't
mean only certain people can become a national leader but most of the
time it will be the bright students but if you apply yourself than
anyone can do it. Most of the time in our world it will be the kids who
went to harvard and had a 4.5 there whole life. The battle school
choose Ender because he was exactly what they wanted. Ender was like
Peter and Valentine. He knew how to fight and he knew where to draw the
line in violence. When Ender killed stilson they knew he would be
perfect. He killed stilson without meaning to and he didn’t want to
fight. He would have been very upset at the time if he knew that he
killed him because he was compassionate. When Ender defeated the
buggers he became a national leader because he saved the world. Ender
was very bright and good at what he does so he is more likely to a
become a national leader than a student how isn’t very bright.
Revenge is never justified. I
originally gave that statement a 3 because I was undecided about this
topic. After reading the book I would give the statement a 1. Revenge
ruined Ender’s life. It was revenge when he killed the buggers. The
humans killed them for payback. They killed them for security. Revenge
is never justified it gets you back into a cycle of revenge. It doesn't
help it only destroys.
Crying is evidence of weakness. I
originally gave that statement a 3. “Crying does show your weak but
that is not always a bad thing I think its ok to cry sometimes.” When
Ender was in battle school I don’t it was ok to cry because you don't
want to show your weak there. You need to show them how tough you are.
Ender did cry at times in battle school but in the privacy of his
blankets and so did the other boys at first but after that you need to
show you are strong not weak. In the real world I think it is ok to cry
sometimes but not all the time but I think it’s best if you try not to
cry in public.
Any action is acceptable in war. I
originally gave that statement a 3. “Many things are expectable in war
like killing people but I wouldn't say anything is expectable in war.”
I would give that statement a 3.5 or 4. After reading the book I
realized how much the government can away with without anyone knowing.
Ender murdered stilson when he was six and got away with it. Then he
killed Bonzo. He got away with all of it and yes some of it was self
defense but since he was an asset to the war with the buggers he was
able to get away with it. They also killed the buggers for fear of them
coming back. That wouldn’t be acceptable anywhere else but in war.
They tricked a young boy into doing it because they believed that they
were at war. That was almost like saying anything goes if you're at
war.
Teenagers need discipline and rules because they can't control themselves. I
originally gave that statement a 2. “I do disagree but a suppose a
couple teenagers do need some guidance but I'm pretty sure I could
control myself perfectly fine.” My opinion has changed because I
realized that if there was no rules then probably no one would go to
school or do anything but have fun. I think I would give this statement
a 3 now. If there were no teachers in battle school enforcing rules
then they would have probably ended up killing each other.
Only through personal sacrifice can someone create positive change. I
gave that statement a 3. “Sometimes to change something you do have to
make a sacrifice depending on how great the change is.” My opinion
still hasn't changed for the most part. Ender made a positive change
when he wrote that book about the hive queen. He sacrificed a lot of
time to write the book and he sacrificed his pride because he was the
one who killed all the buggers and then he comes and says it was all for
no reason. Sacrificing your pride is a personal sacrifice. Ender
included in the book that if they would have communicated with the
buggers they would've known that they weren’t trying to hurt them. “If
only we could of talked to you, the hive-queen said in Enders words.
But since it could not be, we ask only this: that you remember us, not
as enemies but as tragic sisters, changed into a foul shape by the fate
or god or evolution.”(322)Generating compassion for your enemies is the only way to create peace. I gave that statement a 3. “That can be true but sometimes an enemy is an enemy and you can't really change that.” I would still give that statement a 3. I think that if you understand someone that could go a long way but Ender never really tried to do that with any of his enemies so he never got a chance to see how that works. Ender in the end had peace with the buggers because he had compassion for them. He understood them. Unfortunately it was too late though. He already killed most them. But with his luck he was able to find a cocoon with 10,000 baby buggers who would soon be born. After he realized it was an accident when the buggers attacked his home he was able to generate peace with them. They forgave the humans and Ender for gave them.
