What was chapter 9 about in the book Ender's Game?

Answer 1

Several things are going on in that chapter.

One of them is that Ender is playing the computer game, and it has shown him a picture of his brother, which is a big mental roadblock for him. Graff knows this, and he is mad. He wants to find out how it happened, but the programmer guy says that the game is doing it on its own, and that somehow Ender needed to face that.

So, Graff goes to Earth to talk to Valentine and convince her to write a letter to Ender. She knows it won't fool him, but she gives him the message that Graff wanted to send, because she agrees that it could help.

She realizes also in this chapter that she and Peter are a lot alike... not in pure evilness, but in the ability to manipulate and convince others, and she goes along with Peter because she thinks she can temper him, and because he is working for things that she wants too.

Anyway, Ender reads the letter and knows he is being manipulated, which hurts him, but it also kind of helps him because he is angry enough to go farther in the game, and he realizes that the perfect image he has in his mind of Valentine maybe isn't absolutely accurate--or at least that it shouldn't stay static. He is able to see her in the game instead of Peter next time he goes into it, and together they move on, so he feels like she will be with him going forward, and it isn't just a memory that he has to freeze in time.

It is a win for Ender, but also a win for Graff, because Ender is engaging and moving forward again... motivated to do battle.

Answer 2

In chapter 9 of "Ender's Game," Ender enters Salamander Army under the command of Bonzo Madrid. Bonzo feels threatened by Ender's talent and sets him up for failure, leading to a confrontation between them. This chapter showcases the challenges Ender faces in social dynamics within his army.