Book #2 ----- Post #5

What is the mood of this novel?

Ender's life throughout the book was surrounded by pain and sorrows. He was isolated and felt alone over and over again. He was unable to find out what true joy was and how it really felt like in his heart. He's been pretty much alone his whole life, unable to find anyone, who could help him in anyway possible. He had felt this way throughout his whole life from when he was born as he was tormented by his brother, Peter to days in the army, when so many people were plotting against him to find out how to take him out. The whole book was just something that nobody should ever see or live through. Whether it be yourself or your friend, this kind of life is unbearable to feel or see. It is just a nightmare that you wake up from sweating all over. He keeps having to overcome so many challenges just to live through his life, which was actually not worth living. His life was almost worth nothing in the eyes of some, and in the eyes of himself. He realizes that his days are just repeating over and over again, unchanging of mind or heart anywhere.

This mood of the story makes me sad, because it sort of relates to my own life. To tell the truth, for a few months or weeks now, I wasn't sure what I was truly living for. It almost seemed like my life was worthless, like Ender's in the book. I couldn't find anything to comfort me or make me truly happy anymore. I just wanted to be happy once more in my life. My life was surrounded sorrows and joy. It was almost like a roller coaster of emotions, success, and failure. My life was covered with problems concerning family, friends, relationships, and much more. I actually just wanted to give up on life itself, just to live in peace. As I thought about this, some of my friends being a strong christian and all, told me about the tests that God will put us through to see if we are worthy to enter his kingdom of Heaven. I could see this kind of ting happening right now, and realized that I needed to wait for that one sign or gift that God will send me in gratitude of what I've been putting up with. I will never give up again on life or anything, and go for every chance I get towards true happiness in my life.

Book #2 ----- Post #4

What is the climax of this novel?

How do the events make you feel?

I believe that the climax was when Ender realized how he was tricked by the whole military and realizes that he has done wrong to the Buggers. This part of the story is the climax, because this was when Ender finally snapped back to reality, and found out what he was doing to these poor Buggers that really did nothing to them. If he didn't find this out in his mind, he would've become whatever the military leaders wanted him to be, a non-stop killing machine. No human being should ever be like that ever in their life, where they are bloody thirsty, because of the way they were risen up. He finally gets over the way he was trained to become, and his humanity comes back to him and heals him of all this terror and scorch in his life. He was finally set free by his own mind that was created by the military on their terms by the innocent child still left in him. It showed that no matter what he was told and what he was made to believe, he could still keep his inner child and innocence deep inside him somewhere.

I was pretty moved and effected by this, because this is what I've been searching to do my whole life. In the story when this happens to Ender, he realizes himself that he has changed from before. He has definitely matured, but he had almost become a young adult. It was his whole transformation from a child to an adult that I was jealous of. I really did not want to go through the things he went through, but I wanted to become a mature adult as well. He had almost surpassed the people that tried to make him that way. The military heads and leaders tried to turn him in to what they wanted, but he has overpowered and surpassed them to believe what he knew was right.

I feel almost bad for Ender, because he had been twisted and tricked to do something he did not want. He was somehow made to kill other beings, whether it be Buggers or humans. He did kill the Stiltson boy and many Buggers, so he felt so bad as he was realizing what he had really done.

Book #2 ----- Post #3

Who are the main characters and do you like them?

How are they special in revealing truths about the universal human experience?

I believe that there are 4 main characters and many sub characters that were important in the success and process the main characters went through.

Ender- He was the main character of this whole story. He is the younger brother of Valentine and Peter. He is considered a Third in his society, which makes him automatically unwanted and not liked by others. He has to overcome all these hardships in almost every aspect, including all the isolation he had to deal with. He ends up going to Battle School, and living his life just like before, until he gets promoted over and over again, until he grows powerful enough to destroy the Buggers. He had been chosen by the human military to be the one they needed in order to defeat the buggers. They monitored him for years in the beginning of Ender's life. they finally realize later that he is ready to begin his reign over the armies in order to save humanity itself. he shows that you can not think that winning is everything, the theme of the story.

Peter - He is the older brother of Valentine and Ender. He is the one that started to call him a Third and to abuse him throughout Ender's whole life. Peter felt that he was no good enough, and that was why his parents had another son. I do like Peter, because if I look at him in one way, he looks as if he really hates Ender, but in another way, it looks like he loves Ender the most. Peter even said words of love to Ender in the end of Chapter 2. Peter whispered in Ender's ear, " Ender, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I know how it feels, I'm sorry, I'm your brother, I love you." In saying this, it proves that Peter knows that he is hurting Ender, and it almost seems that he is doing it on purpose. It seems like Peter is trying to show Ender how it might become, when Ender is enrolled in the army. It shows that Peter does truly care, and he wants to show that there is no gain without any pain.

Valentine - He is the older sister of Ender, who tries to protect Ender from their abusive brother, Peter. She says that she truly loves Ender and she means it very much. She even sends Ender a letter, while he is in the army to get him under control from his insane way of handling things. She symbolizes the true love anybody can have for anybody in the story. She loves him from the beginning all the way to the end. She shows that the only true kind of love is an unconditional love that never fails no matter what.

Graff - He is a military Colonel. He is the one that comes to get Ender as he was living his normal life to take him to Battle School. Ender first sees him as a truly friendly man, but later realizes the truth. Even though he does care about Ender in his own special way, he doesn't really show it much. He shows that tough love is a kind of love towards each other to show compassion and caring thoughts.

There were not BIG main characters, but there were groups of people that were important in the story like...

Ender's friends like Shen and Petra - This group of people seem to become friends of Ender's in the story. Most of these people end up being in Ender's army in the end to help him by his side to defeat the buggers. This group of people show that you can't always do everything by yourself, but will need help from others from time to time.

Ender's enemies like Bernerd and Bonzo Madrid - This group of people seem to become Ender's enemy in the story. They either try to mess him up or even hurt him to stop his progress in the Battle School. They show that there are some barriers and barricades in life that you must obstacle through in life.