Technological Advance

Good:
Ender was able to kill all buggers with technology
Explore other planets
Help find the buggers
Make Ender better
Kill people without a feeling
Bad:
Reply on it too much
A kid can take over the world
Easy to bully Bernard
Government becomes too powerful


Do you think that the story presents technological advance as being positive or negative?
I think that in the story, technological advancement is positive because of the effect it gives on the ending and the whole in put of Enders thoughts. The technological advancement has a huge effect on the ending which is a series of events that we would never thought possible. In the ending, Ender is playing a computer game which he has to kill buggers by commanding his soldiers. It turns out that every game he has been playing on the computer, is actually real. The technological advancement has been able to make them go into battle, without going into battle. Also in the book, Ender plays the 'fantasy game' which turns out to be an actual place on the new planet they go to. All this shows than technological advancement is positive because it helps Ender go to places that he never knew were real, it also allows Ender to be ruthless and kill people without the guilt that he would normal hold with killing. Without the technological advancement in this book, the buggers might have won the battle, Ender might not of been as great as he is and the whole human race might have been destroyed. 
What part do humans play in this advancement?

Enders game quiz chapter 1 - 7

1. What person is the narrative told in? The narrative is told in 3rd person
2. What is a 'Third'? A 'third' is the third born child of the family.
3. What game does Peter want to play with Ender? Buggers and Astronauts.
4. What are two reasons why Ender doesn't want to go to battle school?
   The two reasons for why Ender doesn't want to go to battle school are; he doesn't want to leave Valentina and family and the second is because he is scared about what will happen.
5. What type of irony is used when the audience knows more than the characters? Dramatic Irony
6. How does Graff treat Ender when he first gets to battle school? Graff treats Ender with resent.
7. Who is Ender's room leader at battle school? Dap
8. What happens when Ender goes to the games room for the first time? He finds out that he can figure it out really fast
9. Who is Bernard and what is Ender's relationship to him? Bernard is Enders enemy/antagonist, his relationship isn't very good
10. What role is Alai voted in to? What role does he now play for the group? Alai's role in to be Enders friend, he now plays Enders friend and buddy that has a big impact on the book
11. What mistake does Ender make immediately upon joining Salamander Army?
    What happens to Ender in the battle against Condor that gets him recognition? Enders mistake was standing up to Bonzo and not following to his orders, he also talks back to him and makes Bonzo feel like an idiot. In the battle against Condor he dismisses orders and does his own thing, which makes Salamander Army tie instead of lose the battle which keeps Salamanders ranks up.

Characterization first 7 chapters(peter)

1. In groups: Who are the important characters of the first 7 chapters?
   Peter, Ender, Valentine, Graff, Bernard, Graff, Mum + Dad
2. Who are they?
   Peter - Enders brother, He plays the antagonist
   Ender - The main character and has a mixed personality of Valentine and Peter.
   Valentine - Enders sister, She calms Ender down when hes upset and shes a nice gentle girl
   Graff - Head of the battle school, He acts like Enders friend at some times but is mostly quick, direct and harsh
   Bernard - Enders enemy/antagonist when Ender goes to battle school and Peter isn't there.
   Mum + Dad - Enders, Valentines, Peters mum and dad, They have a big effect of Enders thoughts.
1. Give me some important details based on the important characteristics we have discussed at the start of class. 
   PETER;
   Actions - Peters ruthless actions make him seem like a vicious human being that doesn't have any decency or any self moral. He attacks Ender and Valentine and says hes going to kill them. Because of this we know that Peter will effect Enders thoughts for the rest of the book.
   Speech - Peter speaks with a sort of evil, manipulative edge to it, he says things to sound powerful and smart, he tries to over power Ender.
   Thoughts - We don't get any thoughts of Peter inside his head which automatically means he is not our main character.
   Effect on others - Peter has a HUGE effect of Ender and a HUGE effect on Valentine. He allows Ender to push himself further, but it also slows him down because he doesn't want to be like his antagonist Peter. He also effects Valentine by showing that Valentine and Ender are on the same side by him threating her and saying he'll kill her too.
   
   
3. You've got half the class to get to some 'wider conclusions' about the figurative role of these characters.
   

Characterization

What are the important elements of Characterization?
Speech - The way they talk
Thoughts - What they are thinking and what they think of
Effect on others - How other characters are seen with the each other, what type of relationship they have
Actions - How they act shows their behavior
Looks - They way they look and the way they have a physical description.

Why is Characterization important?
Characterization is important because it tells the reader or shows the reader who they are and how that can react to different situations, it allows us to really know whats happening. It makes the story compelling and it tells us why certain events are happening. It creates realism to the story.

Techniques in Enders game

Techniques - Omniscient ( narrator) 
                     - Dramatic Irony
                     - Dialog
                     - Description (sparce)

                     - Action (used to develop characters and Enders thoughts)

1. Name one technique you feel the author successfully utilized in the first 4 chapters. In one sentence say what the technique is and how it is successfully used in the book.
   One technique that i feel the author successfully utilized was dialog. It is effective because all the dialog used gives more meaning and more action than the narrator can describe because the narrator has limited information. 
2. Find at least two examples of this technique in different chapters.
   Chapter 6 - Page 61 - On this page, Ender and Alai are talking about learning how to use the guns in the battle room. From all the dialog on this page, we are told that Alai will be an important character in this book and Ender and Alai would probably become friends.
   Chapter 9 - Page 130 - On this page, Valentine and Peter are talking about "taking over the world" and through the dialog we are told that Valentine and Peter talk realistically and we are told more about them personally. We are also told their problems they are facing straight from the characters instead of the narrator which we could assume might be a sense of dramatic Irony.
3. Discuss how the author is using the technique in the section where you find it and why it is important to the novel. (You can not say 'he uses it to make the section interesting'.)
   Dialog is important to the novel because it gives the novel more depth and more information than the narrator couldn't give.

Chapter 4

Chapter 4  Launch

1. (27) How do the updates from the soldiers at the start of the chapter represent dramatic irony?
   This is dramatic irony because they talk about isolating him and people have to be social to be able to know everyone.
2. (28) How do we know that this society is capitalistic?
   We know that this society is capitalistic because they are fairly free in what they do with their some of their time.
3. (29) Is there censorship? If so, how do you know?
   
   
4. (31) What does Ender do while Graff is speaking to the boys? How does he react to Ender? Why does he react this way?
   Ender laughs while Graff is speaking, Graff reacts by making him the outcast from the other boys, he reacts like this to defend himself. 
5. (35) How does Graff view humans?
   Graff views humans as battle tools used for war and only war.
6. (36) What does Graff say about ‘doing bad things’ as soldiers?
   
7. What role has Ender been given for the survival of the human species?

Chapter 2 and 3

Chapter 2  Peter

1. (9) Who are speaking at the beginning of the chapter again?
   The two men that analyse Ender.
2. From what these voices say what can we speculate the ‘monitor’ allowed these people to do with Ender?
   The 'monitor' allowed the people to see and hear everything Ender can see and hear, and they can test to see how he does through different situations.
3. How do the soldiers react to Ender attacking the bully?
   They are pleased and sort of shocked at how much they beat him up.
4. What effect do the soldiers admit that they had on Ender’s brother Peter?
   ?
5. What voice do we switch into when the soldiers section of the text is through?
   Valentines
6. (10) What is Ender’s sister’s name and what is implied by her name?
   Valentine, he imply that she is a sweet little girl.
7. What are the two sides of Peter?
   The angry, selfless, mean side, and the soft side that rarely comes out.
8. (11) What do we learn about the greater world from the description of the game that Peter forces Ender to play called Buggers vs. Astronauts?
   The game that they play for fun, is actually something in reality that changed their world.
9. (13) What informatioin does Valentine have that she uses to keep Peter under control?
   Valentine uses the future and what Peter wants to achieve in his later life to keep Peter under control.
10. (15) Who tells the Wiggins to have 3 children? What does this tell us about the power of the government?
    The government, this tells us that the government in this instance is the law, what they say goes.
11. What does Ender do at the end of the chapter? What emotional state is he in? Why?
    Ender cried at the end of the chapter, he is in a sad and bad state because he thinks he's an outsider and no one likes him and his life is really complicated.

Chapter 3  Graff

1. (19) What does Ender get chosen for in the end? Why does he get picked?
   Ender gets picked to go up into space to go to battle school, he gets picked because the people at battle school saw how he reacted to the bully and saw everything from the monitor and saw inspiration in him.
2. What reservations does Ender have?
   ?
3. (22) What does the soldier say about religion and large families? So is this a religious or secular society? Why?
   Religion helps keep large families alive and allows people to have more kids, thats why they were able to have Ender. In this book they are a secular society because they are only allowed to have 2 kids.
4. What does ‘Third’ mean? Why is this such a big deal?
   Third means he was the third child, this is a big deal because no one wants to have three kids.
5. (22) What do we learn about the ‘society’ what countries on earth make it up?
   ?
6. What big decision does Ender have to make? What are the reasons against it/for it? What does he decide? Why? What would you decide?
   The big decision Ender had to make is either staying at home or going up to battle school, The reasons for and against it are; FOR - He gets away from peter, it would be a good experience, he would help save the world and hes a good fighter, AGAINST - leave Valentine, his mum and dad and wont be able to come back until he's 18. He decides to go because he believes he was born to do it. If I was in that position I would of gone too.

5 Sci Fi setting in Enders Game and why

Spaceship
They're more common in this book and sound normal.
Space
Ender lives in space for the majority of the book.
Sleeping area
The beds are locked by voice and hand print and have boxes with desks in them.
Battle room
The zero gravity area that can make people float around
Corridor
They lights, light up on the side of the corridor to show you where they have to go
----------------------------------------------------
SPACE
Battle school
Laser Guns, Hand print locks, Gravity control, Sustainable life in space
Command school
COD
EARTH
Home
Futuristic Technology - Monitors, Desk computers
North Carolina - Juxtaposition
School
VIRTUAL
Internet servers
Chat rooms
Fantasy Game
Giants drink
----------------------------------------------------
WHY DOES SETTING MATTER?
Gives info, Shows what genre, Creates story, Mood, Tone

Chapter 1 notes

Chapter 1  Third

·      (pg1) Strange that the first chapter is called ‘Third’
The title "third" is ironic in the way that you expect it to be the first.

·      What can you tell about the story through the use of two different fonts?
The bold is meant to be dialog, because it has speech marks around every sentence. What I can tell about the two fonts are the two perspectives about the story thats going on. 

·      What person is the narrative told in?
Third person.

·      We learn about a ‘special’ family.
The "special" family is enders family because it is made up of specially gifted children that have been brought up to be the best of the best.

·      What is the goal of the speakers at the start of the book?
  To narrate how the teachers think Enders going 

·      What are they watching and what do they decide about their subject? What type of irony is used by the audience having more information than the main character?

They are watching Ender and they decide he is ready to go into battle school, the irony is that we know more than them and we know the right decisions to make.

·      What is interesting about the surname of the title character? What does it say about his role in the story?

·      What perspective is the narration for the other section of the opening chapter (not the starting bit)?

·      “Sometimes lies were more dependable than the truth.” (2) What is a possible central theme of the book?

·      What does the title ‘Monitor’ represent to the other boys?

·      (5) What connotations does Ender being a ‘third’ have ?

·      What does Ender know about his intelligence in regards to the other boys?

·      (7) What does Ender do to the bullies?

·      The narrator is sympathetic to Ender: ‘This would not have a happy ending. So Ender decided that he would not be the unhappiest at the end.’

·      (8) While Ender seems emotionally stable on the exterior how would you describe his emotional state on the inside?

·      How has the perspective of the narration changed in this statement: ‘I am just like Peter. Take my monitor away; and I am just like Peter.’ What does this imply about Peter?

My life turned Sci Fi - Friday cadets

Again, after the long, tiring week, we all line up on the battle ground. Man by man. Line by line. We stand dead as a plank. Heads facing front, arms by our side. We get ready to see what we have to do this week for space training. Our space commander comes out the front, stands on his hovering plat form, presses a button and gets launch 50 feet in the air so he can see us all standing there ready for our orders. “MEN! Today, we will be getting ready for our attack against the Uzmo’s, our enemies for many years now” shouted the commander. “SIR YES SIR” we all replied.

We all start marching down the ground, going through the large door at the end, picking up a laser gun on the way. We were entering the shooting range. Large targets shaped like Uzmo’s. We start practising our aiming and quickness to reload. I look at my laser gun, this heavy, black gun that radiates heat when shot. It can take the head off the targets when shot precisely on target. I’ve always wondered if it would do that in real life, to real Uzmo’s.

After shooting practice, the commander lets us off to go home. I get my stuff and head on home. I walked to the far side of the academy to get my shuttle craft home. On the shuttle home, I over hear some people talking, talking about an attack on the other side of the city from a large group of Uzmo’s. I knew what was coming next time I stepped into the War Academy, they would make us fight those vicious Uzmo’s, make us go to war. I knew this day would come, I just didn’t know when it would come. I always knew that one day, me, the outsider, would become something more, I would be able to make someone of myself. This is my chance, my chance for popularity, my chance to be known. 

Science Fiction Genre Research Assignment

1.    Origins

Trace the development of the sci-fi genre. Explain where the genre came from. What did it grow from? Consider the role of other genres which had a direct or indirect influence on the development of sci-fi? Examples to consider include: westerns, horror, the heroes’ journey, other? (100words)
Science fiction came from a mixture of sub genres and themes, It was created from mythical understandings of the future and other genres put into one. Utopian writing has had a huge effect on the sci fi genre, dating back to 1920. Science Fiction has grown from the social interest in space. Science fiction has been around for many centuries but has only been largely noticed in the past 50 years because of our interest in space. Many science fiction books are based on space or fantasies. Frankenstein helped the science fiction genre come together. Basic novels are in the future or have some sort of technological enhancement. 

2.    

    Categories (500 words)

Science fiction can be broken up into a number of sub-categories. Identify and explain the various sub-categories and the features which make each distinguishable. Give examples of texts you are familiar with which may represent these sub-categories. 
The three sub categories in Science Fiction are hardcore, soft core and story. Hardcore Sci Fi is when the book has a lot of detail and whilst reading you must pay attention to everything. These books are more advanced and harder to read and to remember detail. They use a space or future setting and pay attention to characters. Soft core Sci Fi is the same as hardcore but less intense. It uses the settings and characteristics but not as intense in the detail. Story Sci Fi is Science fiction that has a story but is set in space or the future. This is the most common type that people see and read. Post Apocalypse, apocalypse, Social.

3.  

           Conventions (200 words)

Explain in detail the conventions of the science fiction genre. The conventions should also include those frequently borrowed from other genres ie the heroic journey, horror, etc.
 The conventions of Science fiction would be aliens, lasers, space and futuristic weaponry. In many science fiction books, there are lasers and futuristic weaponry. Other conventions of the science fiction genre would be weird or unheard names. Many people have odd names in science fiction books which gives them a more mysterious and futuristic edge.