Good Tools

"'Human beings are free except when humanity needs them'" (67).
Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game (1985)



Points for Reflection

Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game (1985), pp.31-190

  1. is the name Andrew calls himself, “Ender,” appropriate?
  2. Orson Scott Card unabashedly admits to his scientific deficiencies, yet he writes fiction often classed as sci-fi.  In this futuristic world, what glimpses does he provide of advanced technology?
  3. what strictures curtail traditional freedoms in this vision of the future?
  4. this future era is a peaceful one at present.  Why?
  5. is Ender queer?
  6. surrounded by hostile, jeering faces, Ender wonders whether he’s a human surrounded by animals.  Is this distinction developed in Card’s novel as it was in Herbert’s Dune?
  7. does Ender have more, or less, privacy once he transitions from launchie life to army life?
  8. Ender’s parents don’t appear as mentally acute as their progeny, yet all three kids wield genius-level minds.  How can this be?  Are their parents extraordinary in any apparent way?
  9. what strategies does Ender use to control his emotions?
  10. does Card suggest a positive correlation between fraternity and leadership skill?
  11. is Valentine correct in her assertion that Ender is, deep down, not at all like Peter, his violent and sadistic brother (185)?
  12. do Ender’s problem-solving skills appear utterly fantastic in such a young child, or possible?
  13. can we forgive Peter his sadism, given his laudable geopolitical goals?
  14. what draws others towards Bernard, and how does Ender compromise Bernard’s rising power?
  15. how do we reconcile Ender’s harsh judgment of Bonzo’s leadership skills with Bonzo’s presence at this elite battle school?
  16. Valentine faults herself for the camaraderie that develops between her and Peter in Ender’s absence. Should the reader censure her too?
  17. what so tightly knits Ender and Alai?
  18. do the benefits of friendship with Salamander Army’s pariah, Petra, outweigh the drawbacks?
  19. why has Dink twice declined the commander positions offered him?
  20. why do Peter and Valentine play against type in their online roles as Demosthenes and Locke?
  21. Ender decides that what he detests most is lack of control over his own life (187).  Is this an accurate assessment of his situation?
  22. how do Ender’s leadership skills differ from those of his peers?


abstract image of sun in distant, its rays penetrating a bluish landscape in the foreground
Outfit for the Go Game (19th c.)
Kubo Shunman

Dr. Paul Marchbanks
pmarchba@calpoly.edu