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Ender’s Game Study Guide
Science Fiction Fun
Do you enjoy reading science fiction, fantasy novels that occur in future worlds dependent on
technology? Do you like Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica, or Star Wars? If so, you will probably
enjoy Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game, a book in which young Ender Wiggin trains to become
the commander of a fleet of spaceships so he can destroy the enemy and save future Earth.
Be a Better Reader
As you work through the study guide for Ender’s Game, you will also practice these skills, which will help
you when you read novels in the future, for school assignments or just for fun.
1. Describe the development of the main character.
2. Discuss how the plot develops throughout the novel.
3. Describe themes in the novel and trace their development throughout the text.
4. Cite textual evidence to support discussion of the novel.
5. Describe and analyze the role of setting in the novel.
Behind the Scenes
When Orson Scott Card started writing Ender’s Game, little did he know that he was creating
one of the most beloved and highly regarded science fiction series of all time. The series, often
referred to as the Enderverse or Ender’s saga, consists of 12 novels, 12 short stories, and 47
comic issues. The first two novels in the series, Ender’s Game and Speaker for the Dead have
both won Hugo and Nebula Awards, achievements given to prominent works of science fiction.
Get This!
1. Ender and his brother, Peter, switch personality roles during the time of the novel. Look for
reasons why this role-change occurs and how it affects the remainder of the novel.
2. Throughout the novel, it is difficult for Ender to discern who is a friend and who is an enemy.
See if you can find a pattern to help distinguish between the two.
3. Each chapter begins with a conversation between two adults. Look for how these
foreshadow the events of the chapter.
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Ender’s Game Study Guide
The Plot
When Ender Wiggin is chosen by the government to begin training as a leader, he must forsake
his previous life for one of danger and adventure. As you read Ender’s Game, fill in the boxes for
each element of the novel’s plot.
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Ender’s Game Study Guide
The Characters
On his journey, Ender meets a variety of characters, forming a close bond with some and
making enemies with others. Draw a picture of each character listed. Then describe the
importance of each character’s role in the box beneath each picture.
Ender Wiggin Peter Wiggin Valentine Wiggin
Bonzo Madrid Colonel Graff Mazer Rackham
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Ender’s Game Study Guide
The Setting
Orson Scott Card utilizes the settings of Ender’s Game to create an otherworldly atmosphere.
For each of the three locations, provide a specific passage from the novel, then explain what
the author is trying to convey through the setting.
Location Quote Describing the What the Author is Trying to
Location Convey
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1. Battle School
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2. Game Room at the Battle
School
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3. Planet Eros
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4. Command School
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5. Bugger planet
Select one of the above locations to describe in more detail:
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Ender’s Game Study Guide
Tracking Themes
What message is Orson Scott Card trying to communicate in Ender’s Game? The main themes in
novel involve loneliness and isolation, friends and enemies, and games. See if you can identify
and analyze those themes.
Step 1: What parts of the plot seem related to a possible theme in the novel? (Think about the
main conflict and how it get resolved or worked out.)
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Step 2: Which characters seem related to a possible theme? Which characters change, and
what do those changes suggest about loneliness and isolation, friends and enemies, and
games?
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Step 3: How does the author use symbols to hint at the novel’s themes? What objects, people,
or places stand for something “bigger” in the story?
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Step 4: What does the novel’s title suggest about the novel’s theme?
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Step 5: Write one or two of the novel’s main themes in your own words.
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Ender’s Game Study Guide
Talk About It
What do you think about Ender’s Game? Did you notice how Ender and Peter switch roles
during the course of the novel? Do you observe a contrast between how adults and children are
portrayed in the novel? In the space below each question, write an answer based on your own
experiences and your own understanding of the novel. Include some textual evidence or
examples that helped you arrive at your answer.
1. At the beginning of the novel, Peter acts violently toward Ender and Valentine, while Ender
does not display these qualities as much. By the end of the novel, Ender loses much of his
innocent, and Peter plays the role of a diplomatic politician. What to think causes these
changes in Ender and Peter?
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Textual Evidence or Examples:
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2. Colonel Graff and Mazer Rackham display contrasting attitudes and actions toward Ender
from the beginning to the end of the novel. How do their actions change and what motivates
this change?
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Textual Evidence or Examples:
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Ender’s Game Study Guide
Represent!
Show what you know about Ender’s Game and its relevance to life in the 21st century. Choose
one of these projects to complete and share with your teacher, classmates, and others.
Choice 1: Science Fiction Literature
Ender’s Game is classified as a science fiction novel, a novel whose setting features a futuristic
world dependent on technology.
Think of other films, plays, short stories, or novels that fall under the science fiction genre.
Create an art project that illustrates some of these films and literature—and their settings,
plots, and characters. In your visual display, include representations and objects that illustrate
each work. Be prepared to explain why you selected each science fiction work, as well as what
characteristics of it make it science fiction. Also compare and contrast each work’s setting to
that of Ender’s Game.
Choice 2: Ender Wiggin Himself
The novel centers on Ender Wiggin’s challenges while attending Battle and Command Schools.
While the novel shares a lot with the reader, perhaps it does not share everything Ender is
thinking.
Create and perform a monologue as Ender Wiggin to try to gain more insight into Ender as a
character. Be sure to write your monologue in the form of a play.
