Ender's Game (Themes)

Themes

Alienation and Loneliness

From the beginning of the story, Ender feels alienated from almost everyone around him. First, he is a "Third" — an extra child that under ordinary circumstances would not be allowed in school. In addition, the International Fleet has branded him as different by implanting a device that monitors his every move. Other children, including Ender's brother Peter, understand that the gifted Ender is being considered for selection to the Battle School. This creates jealousy, making him a target for bullies. They delight in tormenting Ender, especially when the monitor is removed and they think that Ender is a failure. Not only does Ender have to endure ridicule at school, he also faces it at home from Peter. Although his sister Valentine comforts him and commiserates with him, she does not receive the same treatment from their brother as Ender does.

Ender's solitude is crucial to his development as a military leader. "His isolation can't be broken," one of the school supervisors says. "He can never come to believe that anybody will ever help him out, ever. If he once thinks there's an easy way out, he's wrecked." As a result, the International Fleet deliberately isolates Ender at the Battle School. Even before Ender's arrival, Colonel Graff deliberately praises him so that the other boys on the transport will resent him. As soon as Ender begins to make friends within one group, he is transferred to another. All the other students recognize that Ender has a genius that they do not possess; even when they do not resent him for it, they still hold him in awe. When Ender is given command of an army, he is further isolated by his inability to share the burdens of command. Even Ender's success against the buggers alienates him; the celebrity and guilt it bestows on him ensures he will always be different from everyone else around him.

Good and Evil

Throughout Ender's Game, the line between good and evil acts is continually blurred. Is it acceptable to commit an evil act in order to protect oneself? To find a military commander who will save humanity from the buggers, the International Fleet separates children from their families, while their "teachers" manipulate the emotions of children. These despicable acts seem acceptable, however, because they occur to bring about an eventual good for all mankind. Ender himself embodies these contradictory impulses. In order to protect himself from harm, he kills two other children. He also ends up destroying an entire species of beings. Ender remains a sympathetic character, however, because he both recognizes and fears his own potential for evil. After his first confrontation with older boys ends in violence, he sees Peter's face in his computer game. He tells himself that he is not like Peter, that he does not enjoy the power of violence as Peter does, but he still doubts: "Then a worse fear, that he was a killer, only better at it than Peter ever was; that it was this very trait that pleased the teachers."

Punishment

The blurred lines between good and evil also make judgments of guilt and innocence very difficult to make. As a result, punishment is often with-held for acts that might otherwise require some penalty. In Ender's Game, adults do not hold Ender responsible for his actions, hoping to create the perfect military leader. While they do not protect Ender from his enemies, they do protect him from the negative consequences of his battles against them. When Ender fights Stilson, and unknowingly kills him, the adults in charge do nothing — in fact, they keep the knowledge of his crime from him.

This happens to Ender on three other occasions: during the flight to the Battle School when he breaks Bernard's arm; when a group of older boys attempt to break up his Launchy training sessions; and finally when he kills Bonzo. Graff feels he is justified in suspending punishment, for a military leader cannot think about the human cost of his victories. (The public seems to agree, for Graff is acquitted when he is prosecuted for criminal negligence for his role in the deaths.) Nevertheless, Ender himself feels guilty for what he has done: "I'm your tool, and what difference does it make if I hate the part of me that you most need? What difference does it make that when the little serpents killed me in the game, I agreed with them, and was glad."

Intelligence

The value of intelligence is thoroughly examined in Ender's Game. The children whom the International Fleet selects to attend Battle School have high IQs and rank the highest in their classes and schools. Yet, intellectual ability does not always ensure a child's success in Battle School. Children must also possess an ability to adapt quickly to new situations; empathy, or the ability to understand and care for others, is also a valuable character trait. Peter, for example, has the intellect the I.F. requires, and understands people well enough to control them by exploiting their fears. But he condemns those who think differently from him, and his lack of compassion for others prevents him from being selected for the prestigious Battle School. The children who succeed in Battle School, who become the commanders, possess the knowledge, flexibility, and people skills necessary to lead. Ender not only conquers all of the games he plays, he also quickly adjusts to changes in battle schedules and appreciates other students' skills and abilities. By understanding how others think and interact, he becomes a better strategist and a better motivator.

Ethics

Besides the obvious questions related to murder without punishment, moral and ethical questions related to the manipulation of children and the significance of compassion arise throughout Ender's Game. Even though Ender commits murder and receives no punishment, he does feel remorse. It is Ender's ability to empathize, however, that targets him for the role of a mass murderer. The Battle School leaders know that if Ender can feel compassion for the buggers, he will better understand how they exist and operate. Thus, he will be better able to take advantage of their weaknesses and thus destroy them. As a child, Ender does not fully understand how the adults are using him for their own purposes. As Graff tells him, "We might both do despicable things, Ender, but if humankind survives, then we were good tools." Ender senses this is a half-truth, but Graff adds that "you can worry about the other half after we win this war." The adults' seemingly cold manipulation of Ender and his feelings and their apparent lack of concern for its effects on him comprise controversial themes. Card's attention to these themes separates the novel from many other science fiction offerings.

Heritage and Ancestry

While Ender and his schoolmates are members of an "International Fleet," the heritage of individual characters is still an important factor for many of them. Cooperation between people of different backgrounds is essential for Earth to fight the buggers, and racial strife seems to be a thing of the past, as Alai and Ender exchange slurs as a joke. Ironically, however, in this age of cooperation people still make a point to separate themselves by ancestry. Bernard, for instance, is from a French separatist group who "insisted that the teaching of Standard not begin until the age of four, when the French language patterns were already set. His accent made him exotic and interesting." Rose the Nose makes sure that everyone knows of his Jewish ancestry in an attempt to place himself within a long tradition of successful generals. Similarly, Bonzo Madrid insists on exaggerating his Spanish heritage by following a "macho" code that isolates his one female soldier and permits no shows of weakness. Ender turns this against him when Bonzo brings a gang to confront him in the shower, using Bonzo's pride to make him face him alone.

While others are not so public about their backgrounds, they still play an important role in their lives. Dink Meeker, for instance, is from the Netherlands, a country which has been under Russian control for several generations. As a result, he worries over a potential civil war involving the I.F., which is largely run by American allies. When Ender is promoted from the Launchies, his friend Alai shares a kiss and a whispered "Salaam." Ender senses these are part of a "suppressed religion," and thus the gesture becomes "a gift so sacred that even Ender could not be allowed to understand what it meant." Even Ender's own background plays a factor in the novel, as Graff uses it to convince him to come to Battle School. Ender's father was a Polish Catholic and his mother was a Mormon; they both had to renounce their religion in order to comply with the Population laws. They are secretly proud of having a Third, but are still ashamed of not being able to follow their beliefs more openly. All these details form an ironic commentary on race, religion, and other differences in background, suggesting that no matter how great the need to co-operate together, humanity will still find differences to separate themselves from each other.

Topics For Further Study

• In her review of Ender's Game in Fantasy Review, Elaine Radford criticizes Card, claiming that he fashioned Ender's character after Adolf Hitler's persona. Card refutes Radford's analysis in a response published in the same issue of the magazine. Read both articles. Then write an essay agreeing with either Radford or Card. Your defense should provide solid evidence from the reviews and from the novel itself.
• Research project: Read the book, The Psychopathic God: Adolf Hitler, by Robert G. L. Waite, to which Elaine Radford refers in her review of Ender's Game in Fantasy Review. Locate information related to the psychology of mass murderers. How does Ender Wiggin compare to Hitler and other mass murderers identified in history? Include a chart or other visual presentation describing the results of your research.
• You are a news broadcaster living in the time after Ender's victorious battle (assuming that news broadcasters would exist); choose a partner to play Ender. You will role play an interview with him. Prior to the interview, prepare your questions and let your partner know the kinds of questions you will ask without giving him the specific details. Your partner should also prepare for the interview so that he can play a credible Ender. Videotape your interview and share it with the class.
• Ender's Game creates an image of gifted children as being social outcasts. Research the term "gifted" and write a paper that answers the following questions. Who are gifted children? What are their characteristics? Are gifted children outcasts? Why or why not? What are gifted children like as adults? Does the Ender character give a true picture of a gifted child? Why or why not? Give examples from your novel and from your research.
• What does a "bugger" look like? Consider the description in the novel, as well as research on insect anatomy. Draw or create a model of your vision of a bugger.
• Are you familiar with a video game that seems to compare to the "game" Ender was playing when he destroyed the buggers? Do one of the following: (1) write a comparison of Ender's game and the game with which you are familiar, or (2) demonstrate the game and draw the comparison through your demonstration.