Ender fought Bonzo in the bathroom and won the fight. He ended up hurting Bonzo badly and felt extremely guilty afterward. The fight reminded him of his fight with Stilson, which he also regretted. One of Ender's biggest fears was becoming Peter, a ruthless killer with no remorse. Ender didn't like the idea of hurting someone, and only did so when he felt that it would prevent the injury of himself or others. This tells us that Ender is a good person who has compassion when he should, but the strength to do what is necessary for the sake of others. I think that he is kinder than Peter, and although he will hurt others, he always regrets it and would avoid doing so if he can. The battle school teachers and leaders clearly see this in him and view it as a strength that will make him a great commander. Ender thinks of it as his biggest problem and the thing that he hates most about himself. I believe that Ender truly wants to help others, like Valentine, and not hurt people, like Peter, but has enough of both of them in him to make Ender a great leader and possibly the world's savior.
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One of the major themes in this book deals with the way adults manipulate children. one example of this in chapter 11 is how the teachers use all of the students to prepare only 2 or 3 for the true purpose of battle school. The teachers want to make Ender great, but they do so at the expense of the happiness of the other students. Ender also feel manipulated, as though the leaders of Battle School use him to save the world, but don't care if he comes out of battle school the same. Ender explained this to Bean when he said, "Because they need us, that's why. Because they need somebody to beat the buggers. That's the only thing they care about." Ender knows that Colonel Graff is pushing him because he needs someone to save the world. Most boys in battle school thought that the game was only important for istelf, but it was really a way for the government to find the children that will be great military commanders, and to weed out the ones who won't.
In real life, people sometimes need to change the way they think and accept new information to be creative and innovative. I think that if you're stuck with one idea in your mind, then making a new great product or sending a different message to people is impossible. Without being open to new things, people can't come up with solutions to problems. For instance, if Steve Jobs never thought of a new product and named it "Apple" the world as we know it today would likely be very different. Sticking to old information and relying on that won't allow free-thinking and the resulting innovation that our world relies on expects.
When I face a problem that I can't understand or fix, I try to look at the whole situation differently. If the problem is too difficult for m e to solve, I always ask for advice from a friend. Sometimes, you just need someone who sees things differently than you to help fix an issue. Looking at a situation differently can show that it wasn't even an issue in the first place. One example of when I used a new perspective to solve a problem is when I needed to do my homework and didn't have my book. I was stressed out about it, but then I realized that if I stopped worrying about it and got to bed on time, then I could wake up early and do it in the morning. It wasn't the biggest problem in the world, but if I kept stressing about it and didn't look at it liek soemthign I could solve, I would have never gotten it done. In chapter nine, the plot revolves mostly around Peter and Valentine, who are both under the age of 14, yet want to be perceived as older. They use their father's citizen pass to access the internet, and use anonymous identities, Locke and Demosthenes, to get their crazy ideas out there. They wanted to be viewed as peers with other adults, as opposed to being looked down upon. Because they are smarter than the average adult and although they are young, they want to get their ideas out there to improve the world.
I think that today teenagers could pass as adults, but they would need more than a "citizen's pass" to do so. Many things online require you to sign up and use an e-mail address and name, and sometimes even a credit card, but if anyone tried hard enough, they could seem older. I think that there are definitely ten and twelve year-old children who are as smart as adults. I'm not sure that there are many that can apply the information that they have and use it to do something for the world, like Valentine and Peter, though. As we grow older, and learn more about how the world works, I think that people my age can make changes that improve our society, because teenagers tend to be more creative and open-minded than adults. Teenagers nowadays are expected to be more mature, and I think throughout high school, as more is expected of students, they develop an older tone to their writing. Some teenagers talk formally as well, but I think that most don't because of the constant use of slang and social media, that even adults use. "She had never seen him speak with such sincerity. With no hint of mockery, no trace of a lie in his voice."
This shows that Peter either really wanted Valentine to believe him, or he was so passionate about his plan, he had no shame of being vulnerable in this time. In my opinion, I think it was both. Peter really wanted to do good for the world, but he was still willing to be manipulative to convince Valentine to be on his side in this. "Only when he coasted on the cloud, skimming over the autumnal colors of the pastoral world, only then did he realize what he hated most about Val's letter. All that it said was about Peter. About how he was not at all like Peter. The words she had said so often as she held him, comforted him as he trembled in fear and rage and loathing after Peter had tortured him, that was all that the letter had said." Ender's frustration increased even more after he read this letter. He not only one that is was only delivered by request of the leadership at Battle School, but it was about Peter. Peter the person that he dislike the most in the world. The person he feared becoming. He knew that by receiving this letter, his biggest fear had been revealed to the people of the highest rank at battle school. He didn't need them to know, and he didn't want them to try to manipulate him more, like Peter had done to him. Chapter nine begins as all of the chapters in Ender's Game do. Colonel Graff talks to another member of the I.F. about Ender's progress as a leader, or lack thereof. This time, the men are worried about the "End of the World" that Ender has encountered in his computer game. The end of the world consists of a room in a tower with no window, but a snake and a mirror. In the mirror, Ender's brother Peter shows as the reflection. Ender cannot seem to get past this room, and because no other student at the battle school has gotten anywhere close to there, the commanders are at a loss. The chapter then goes into earthly life, and we see what is happening with Ender's siblings, Valentine and Peter. The chapter is written mostly in Valentine's view, and how she views events as they happen. At the beginning of the chapter, it seems that her relationship with Peter is the same as it was when Ender left. She is still worried about his manipulative habits and cruel actions. Not long after we learn about her opinion of Peter, he does something that neither Valentine nor any reader would expect. He showed his vulnerable, pleading side. Of course, Valentine was suspicious. Peter never showed any weakness, he just used others' weaknesses for his own muse or personal gain. This time, he was using a mixture of information he'd gathered over time and emotional appeal to try to convince Valentine to help him gain power He wants to long onto the nets with two false identities and say inflammatory, yet cohesive and fact-based statements to build a following and get noticed. His goal is to keep the two separate, like they have no idea who the other was. Since Peter and Valentine are only 12 and 10 respectively, they can't use their student net passes and be taken seriously. Peter wants Valentine to convince their father to allow them to join in on his citizen's pass. Peter and Valentine use this to log onto the nets and create the identities Demosthenes and Locke. These identities quickly become well-known among the news and media world online, and their comments are requested on major media outlets within seven months of Peter's idea formulating. Soon, important political figures are abuzz with praise and hate for the two anonymous figures. Just while the drama of Locke and Demosthenes was at its highest, the I.F. shows up at Valentine's school, asking her about her brother. She immediately thinks of Peter, worried that he was acting out again. Colonel Graff, the member of the I.F. who came to meet her, tells Valentine that he's there because he's worried about Ender. Valentine unintentionally reveals that Ender was always afraid of becoming Peter, and not peter himself, which explains why Ender saw Peter in the reflection in the mirror of the video game. Colonel Graff requests that valentine send Ender a letter to console him, but this frustrates Ender more, because he knows that the I.F. told her to send it. Ender is worried that his peers and even teachers only see him as a leader and amazing soldier, but not as a friend. He wants camaraderie, not respect, after all, he is only nine. Ender is in despair because he feels alone, like he has no freedom of choice and no purpose. He no longer wants to achieve anything in battle school. He goes into the game once again and finally escaped the room by kissing there snake, which turns into Valentine and leads him through the mirror. The irony of Valentine and Peter using Demosthenes and Locke as their anonymous identities is that both Demosthenes and Locke were great political and social thinkers of their times. Valentine and Peter both want to be considered great thinkers of their time, regardless of their age. They want to be remembered as people who came to power through their wise words and well thought out arguments. Both Demosthenes and Locke are well-known today, hundred of years after their time. They made vast and important changes to the society during their time, and some of those changes are visible even today. Peter wants to use these anonymous people to spread his controversial and new ideas around and to develop a loyal following.
Ender used to think that Battle School was in place to help the soldiers and protect the world, but Dink Meeker, Ender's toon leader told him something that planted a seed of doubt in Ender. Dink pointed out how hard the leaders of their school were making life for Ender, and said that he declined the offer to lead an army because he didn't want to become crazy like the other army leaders were. Dink said that Battle School was just a way for the I.F. to stay in power, that the buggers weren't real, and that as long as the common people are in fear of buggers and the I.F. is in power, certain countries can stay in control. Ender didn't draw the same conclusions as Dink, though. He knew the buggers were real, and that the I.F. didn't control the videos and the nets. He believed that America, the place where he grew up was free, but he wasn't sure, and that doubt stayed in his mind. The doubt made him focus more on what people mean as opposed to what they say, and that made him wise.
The quote "The Enemy's Gate is Down" refers to a realization that ender made in the Battle Room. He found it easier to orient himself in the empty space using this motto. If he always assumed that the opposing team's gate was down, he knew which way to head towards. Although Bonzo Madrid, his team's captain, didn't allow Ender to participate in training or battles, this is one of the few and most valuable things to learn. Ender figured out how to navigate and rent himself in the null void of space, and this skill will probably help him throughout his journey in battles and as he move sup the ranks in Battle School.
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