Moral Dilemmas In Ender's Game
What Will Ender Do?
Ender faces a serious dilemma in the book, Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card. He is staying at the new bugger planet and is searching the planet; during his search he encounters a familiar structure, only to realize that it is the structure from his fantasy game. Upon further examination, he finds a cocoon and realizes it can bring back the buggers. Ender must decide whether he wants to help bring back the bugger race, or whether he wants to end their existence forever, thus posing a moral dilemma for him about his respect.
Ender chooses to help bring back the bugger race, which is the correct decision. The buggers tell Ender, “We did not mean to murder, and when we understood, we never came again” (321). The buggers …show more content…
He realizes that bringing back the buggers can threaten mankind’s existence; “There flashed through his mind a dozen images of human beings being killed by buggers” (320) Ender sees that if he nurtures the buggers back to health, there is a possibility that they might strike again, and humanity will be at risk. Ender may feel a sense of betrayal to the years of work in the I.F and the people of earth, for bringing the buggers back will put all the years of work that the citizens of earth have contributed in vain. This would prove that he has a respect for other species, but values his own safety and the safety of his race over the welfare of other species. After finally defeating the buggers, Mazer says to Ender that “They’ll never attack us again. You did it. You” (297). Ender goes through years of hard work and training with a goal of defeating the buggers. If Ender helps the buggers, all years of work that he and other workers of the I.F have gone through to eliminate the buggers will have been for nothing. If Ender chooses this alternative, he will learn that he can trust others, and that he respects other species. But Ender will also learn that he builds trust too easily, and he is easily deceived. Because Ender was able to hear the buggers’ side of the story, he was able to see that he could trust them, thus proving to himself that he is able to trust
Ender faces a serious dilemma in the book, Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card. He is staying at the new bugger planet and is searching the planet; during his search he encounters a familiar structure, only to realize that it is the structure from his fantasy game. Upon further examination, he finds a cocoon and realizes it can bring back the buggers. Ender must decide whether he wants to help bring back the bugger race, or whether he wants to end their existence forever, thus posing a moral dilemma for him about his respect.
Ender chooses to help bring back the bugger race, which is the correct decision. The buggers tell Ender, “We did not mean to murder, and when we understood, we never came again” (321). The buggers …show more content…
He realizes that bringing back the buggers can threaten mankind’s existence; “There flashed through his mind a dozen images of human beings being killed by buggers” (320) Ender sees that if he nurtures the buggers back to health, there is a possibility that they might strike again, and humanity will be at risk. Ender may feel a sense of betrayal to the years of work in the I.F and the people of earth, for bringing the buggers back will put all the years of work that the citizens of earth have contributed in vain. This would prove that he has a respect for other species, but values his own safety and the safety of his race over the welfare of other species. After finally defeating the buggers, Mazer says to Ender that “They’ll never attack us again. You did it. You” (297). Ender goes through years of hard work and training with a goal of defeating the buggers. If Ender helps the buggers, all years of work that he and other workers of the I.F have gone through to eliminate the buggers will have been for nothing. If Ender chooses this alternative, he will learn that he can trust others, and that he respects other species. But Ender will also learn that he builds trust too easily, and he is easily deceived. Because Ender was able to hear the buggers’ side of the story, he was able to see that he could trust them, thus proving to himself that he is able to trust