He knocks Bonzo to the ground and kicks him in the crotch, but Bonzo is motionless, and does not even respond. "The brother tested out impossible. We beat them and they're gone." Ender accepts and thanks her; she will be his friend. In Chapter 8, we learn for the first time that the humans are going to be invading the bugger homeworlds, instead of the other way around. What difference does it make that when the little serpents killed me in the game, I agreed with them, and was glad"--this is a terrifying question for a seven-year-old. Ender really is at the "End of the World" in that the future of humankind seems to rest on him. GradeSaver, 13 February 2007 Web. What actions can you Petra offers to teach Ender things that he should know as a soldier, in the battleroom during free time. Rose de Nose is Jewish, and due to a superstition that Jewish generals never lose wars, Rose has an attitude. Ender asks Bonzo not to hurt him in order to provoke an attack, and Bonzo jumps at him. The two voices are discussing a child they may treat horribly because they need him to save the world. "Same with the sister. Human beings commonly use insulting or even racist terms to describe the opposing side in battle, but at this point it is unclear who the enemy truly is. The monitor was attached to his body so that the officials of the International Fleet, specifically Colonel Graff, could effectively "be inside Ender's mind. This allows him to share information Ender would not know and give the reader a broader sense of this world. How is Ender isolated? Although much of the book tells the story through Ender's eyes, Card starts each chapter with a discussion between adults. In the battle, he is shot, and he instinctively pulls his legs up to ensure that only his legs get frozen. This is another example that supports Ender's belief that the teachers are the enemy; they never tell the children the whole story. Ender talks with Dink one day, and Dink notes his own realization that the teachers are the enemy. The third rule is implied: winning each game is the most important thing. Or at least as close as we're going to get." He quickly discovers that the most obvious and useful orientation in the null gravity is to consider the enemy's gate as "down," and he maintains this orientation throughout the rest of the novel. Caesar and Brutus.". Course Hero, "Ender's Game Study Guide," November 29, 2017, accessed October 24, 2020, https://www.coursehero.com/lit/Enders-Game/. He is upset to be promoted, now that he has a true friend. military police. It made him wise." Peter's reference to playing "buggers and astronauts" suggests the buggers are aliens. This part of the game is solely Ender's game, and the symbols in the game directly reflect Ender's life and mind. Card introduces Ender as he is having a monitor device removed from his body. Ender watches Salamander battle ineptly with Condor, although the game is fairly even. This relationship will be extremely important later in the novel as the teachers build Ender's team for commanding their fleet. Ender, on the other hand, thinks that Dink should become commander in order to change the way things are done. Ender is startled and tries to move or break the mirror. Two adult voices, Graff and General Levy, discuss Ender once again. Ender feels terrible about how he hurt Bonzo, and begins to cry. The teachers should be worried about his being suicidal, like Pinual, as they were when he kept returning to the Giant's Drink. The advanced technology is evidently not new, as the characters are not impressed by it. However, the unidentified voices say both Ender's brother and sister "tested out impossible" for reasons other than their abilities. Thus, Dink not only becomes Ender's friend and mentor, but also he becomes one of Ender's followers. Ender knows he is being manipulated to develop a part of himself that he hates, and he would prefer to live a peaceful life or even to die in obscurity rather than kill mercilessly. Dink not only lets Ender participate in the battles, but also uses Ender's ideas and tactics when teaching his toon new strategies. Not affiliated with Harvard College. The boys in the other armies pay tribute to him but Ender only wants to go back to his room. The threat was real." These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of Ender's Game. Ender, a child of six, has been monitored carefully to see if he qualifies for Battle School. He has injured Bonzo and knows he might be able to walk away, but he does not want to have to fight the battle again. Dink also shows that he has been thinking more broadly, telling Ender, "Listen, Ender, if the buggers were coming back to get us, they'd be here. Dap has filed a report regarding the possible conspiracy to harm Ender among some of the students at the school. Card uses words like dangerous and mad to describe Peter's behavior, and when Ender has beaten Stilson in a dramatically violent manner, he associates such behavior with Peter. This leads him to a door to the "End of the World." The opening conversation is between Major Anderson and Graff. The remaining Launchies in training are confronted by the older boys, which starts a fight in the battleroom. Card says people interpret his work in their own ways and he accepts it, calling the true story "the one ... audience members create in their minds, guided and shaped by my text.". He suggests that the only reason the IF are claiming that there is still going to be a bugger war is to remain in power--this is a classic manipulation of the population by means of fear--but Ender does not agree. Find summaries for every chapter, including a Ender's Game Chapter Summary Chart to help you understand the book. Graff refuses to back down, and Pace can only threaten action if Graff's plans do not work. Ender is cynical about adults; when someone tells him removing the monitor won't hurt, he knows it's a lie, "But since adults always said it when it was going to hurt," he uses the lie "as an accurate prediction." They are discussing Graff's future, unsure whether he was arrested or promoted, since Ender succeeded brilliantly, but a student died under Graff's command. Ender tells Petra that they can no longer practice together, leaves, and signs up for a self-defense class, just in case Bonzo or someone else tries to beat him up. Ender's biggest fear is that he is a killer, and he considers that what makes the teachers and the generals like him so much is that in addition to his skills, they need a killer for the bugger wars. Also, families are forbidden to have more than two children without government permission, which suggests a strictly controlled society. Although he knows he shouldn't hit someone who's on the ground, Ender decides to do it anyway so the group will leave him alone in the future. We have tutors online 24/7 who can help you get unstuck. At this point, Ender's screen tells him that he is late for Salamander Army. "Children aren't in armies, they aren't commanders, they don't rule over forty other kids, it's more than anybody can take and not get crazy." He will "listen more carefully to what people meant, instead of what they said. Ender's Game | Chapter 1 : Third | Summary Share. Each chapter opens with dialogue from the adults overlooking Ender. Accessed October 24, 2020. https://www.coursehero.com/lit/Enders-Game/. Wallace, Hannah. We now see that Ender needs to be developed into an aggressive, attacking commander rather than merely a defensive one. He is able to use Bonzo's honor to convince his enemy to face him alone, and Bonzo strips to face Ender on equal terms. The door opens onto a cliff, and Ender notices the beauty around him. Once he considers the ramifications of his behavior and deliberately beats Stilson into unconsciousness, he crosses into uncharted territory. In this society parents need government permission to have three children, and Ender is his family's third child. Copyright © 1999 - 2020 GradeSaver LLC. It is revealed that Ender killed Bonzo when they fought. Ender continues practicing with Petra and observes two more battles. Rose encourages him by ordering him not to practice with his Launchie group or use his desk until he has frozen two enemy soldiers in the same battle. He insists to himself that the "game tells filthy lies. Rose is surprised to learn that Ender's high individual standings are due to Bonzo's restrictions, which kept Ender unfrozen but out of the fighting. Some type of "monitor" can be attached to a child to allow a viewer to observe through the child's own senses, and desktop "screens" allow for three-dimensional presentations of information. Meanwhile Ender trains his men, working on some new techniques that Bean has come up with. They aren't invading again. He tells Ender, "You're not only short and incompetent, you're insubordinate, too." Ender's ruthless strategizing makes him unique. Ender thinks that Alai's whisper of the word "Salaam," and his kiss on Ender's cheek, might be a part of some forbidden or repressed religion. resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel. Ender dreams about the mind game and is disturbed that the computer knows so much about him. "That's what you said about the brother." SparkNotes is brought to you by Barnes & Noble. He hugs Alai "almost as if he were Valentine," and Alai whispers "Salaam" and kisses him on the cheek. Both harass him for being a "Third." I don't have murder in my heart." I am not Peter. Again, Ender's reputation has preceded him; Dink Meeker chose him for Dink's toon in Rose's army. Ender figures out a brilliant way to win the game, but he does not even care about it. He teaches them techniques from the armies and practices his new skills. Share. Ender is only able to sleep when he thinks that surely the teachers will keep him safe outside of the battleroom. The realization that the teachers lie about some things brings Ender to the conclusion that the other armies and the other children are not the real enemy; the teachers are. (2017, November 29). The computer makes him kill them somewhat gruesomely in order to proceed, and Ender complies rather than give up the game. He beats Stilson repeatedly, then walks away and begins to cry, thinking, "I am just like Peter.". For other reasons. The reader may wonder what happened in this family to produce two violent children. Graff points out, however, that if it is not Ender, there will be no adequate commander when their fleet arrives at the bugger homeworlds. What difference does it make that when the little serpents killed me in the game, I agreed with them, and was glad"--this is a terrifying question for a seven-year-old. The word "Salaam" literally means "peace," but in this book it is used in a special context, suggesting tenderness between two best friends. Dink notes that no one there ever cries or talks about home. How have you felt isolated like Ender? He also considers the formation of the toons, the subgroups of soldiers in the army (generally in groups of ten with one leader): the toons are too formal, too rehearsed, while more fluidity would give them an advantage.