Ender's Game
This was my second time through Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game,
and the first since I've learned how bigoted and awful that man is. I
actually didn't expect the book to hold up as well as I remembered it,
and I probably wouldn't have ever read it again if not for a book club
I'm actually enjoying. But I ended up liking it just as much, if not
more, this time through. I guess it just goes to show that you don't
have to be a good person to make good art.
The first time I read it, I remember being struck be an overwhelming sense of despair. Ender is so thoroughly manipulated by the military higher ups (and, ultimately, the buggers) that he seems to have no free will at all. He does exactly what everyone else wants him to do. Even when he looks in the mirror and sees a monster, he can't get off the path he doesn't want to be on.
When I expressed this to a friend, she said that she'd had the opposite reaction. Ender's Game was hugely inspiring for her; a book that made her feel like she could accomplish anything. So I tried to keep an eye open to that this time through.
Although Ender does accomplish some great things, I still think that he was largely manipulated by the system into doing something he didn't want to do. But having read both Speaker for the Dead and Ender's Shadow, I also think that he was particularly susceptible to that manipulation. In the sequel he manages to escape it and live his own life on his own terms. In the companion book, Bean more or less avoids entering situations blindly.
Still, I think the book largely functions as an argument against free will. Unless you can see all of the strings that are pulling on you, like Valentine ultimately does, you'll never break free of the people who want to control you. Or maybe it's just a plea to open your eyes to a corrupt system.
On top of providing the reader with a ton to think about, the book is a just plain fun. The game that all the students play is entertaining. I'm really excited to see how they translate it to the big screen in the upcoming movie. I'm also looking forward to discussing this with my book club. Let's see if anyone agrees with me about the lack of free will thing.
The first time I read it, I remember being struck be an overwhelming sense of despair. Ender is so thoroughly manipulated by the military higher ups (and, ultimately, the buggers) that he seems to have no free will at all. He does exactly what everyone else wants him to do. Even when he looks in the mirror and sees a monster, he can't get off the path he doesn't want to be on.
When I expressed this to a friend, she said that she'd had the opposite reaction. Ender's Game was hugely inspiring for her; a book that made her feel like she could accomplish anything. So I tried to keep an eye open to that this time through.
Although Ender does accomplish some great things, I still think that he was largely manipulated by the system into doing something he didn't want to do. But having read both Speaker for the Dead and Ender's Shadow, I also think that he was particularly susceptible to that manipulation. In the sequel he manages to escape it and live his own life on his own terms. In the companion book, Bean more or less avoids entering situations blindly.
Still, I think the book largely functions as an argument against free will. Unless you can see all of the strings that are pulling on you, like Valentine ultimately does, you'll never break free of the people who want to control you. Or maybe it's just a plea to open your eyes to a corrupt system.
On top of providing the reader with a ton to think about, the book is a just plain fun. The game that all the students play is entertaining. I'm really excited to see how they translate it to the big screen in the upcoming movie. I'm also looking forward to discussing this with my book club. Let's see if anyone agrees with me about the lack of free will thing.
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