A threat to humanity portending the end of our species lurks in the cold recesses of space. Our only hope is an eleven-year-old boy.
Celebrating the long-awaited release of the movie adaptation of Orson Scott Card’s novel about highly trained child geniuses fighting a race of invading aliens, this collection of original essays probes key philosophical questions raised in the narrative, including the ethics of child soldiers, politics on the internet, and the morality of war and genocide.
- Original essays dissect the diverse philosophical questions raised in Card’s best-selling sci-fi classic, winner of the Nebula and Hugo Awards and which has been translated in 29 languages
- Publication coincides with planned release of major motion picture adaptation of Ender’s Game starring Asa Butterfield and Harrison Ford
- Treats a wealth of core contemporary issues in morality and ethics, including child soldiers, the best kind of education and the use and misuse of global communications for political purposes
- A stand-out addition to the Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture series
| Introduction: What Is Ender's Game? |
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1 | (6) |
| Part One Third: The Making of an Impossible Child |
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7 | (46) |
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1 "The Teachers Got Me Into This": Educational Skirmishes...with a Pinch of Freedom |
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9 | (12) |
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2 Illusions of Freedom, Tragedies of Fate: The Moral Development of Ender Wiggin |
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21 | (11) |
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3 Xenocide's Paradox: The Virtue of Being Ender |
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32 | (9) |
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4 Teaching to the Test: Constructing the Identity of a Space Commander |
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41 | (12) |
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| Part Two Game: Cooperation or Confrontation? |
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53 | (46) |
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5 The Enemy's Gate Is Down: Perspective, Empathy, and Game Theory |
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55 | (11) |
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6 War Games as Child's Play |
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66 | (12) |
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7 Forming the Formless: Sunzi and the Military Logic of Ender Wiggin |
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78 | (11) |
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8 Do Good Games Make Good People? |
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89 | (10) |
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| Part Three Hive-Queen: All Together Now |
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99 | (38) |
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9 Bugger All!: The Clash of Cultures in Ender's Game |
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101 | (11) |
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10 Why Ender Can't Go Home: Philotic Connections and Moral Responsibility |
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112 | (12) |
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11 Of Gods and Buggers: Friendship in Ender's Game |
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124 | (13) |
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| Part Four War: Kill or Be Killed |
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137 | (50) |
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12 "I Destroy Them": Ender, Good Intentions, and Moral Responsibility |
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139 | (12) |
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13 Ender's Beginning and the Just War |
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151 | (12) |
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14 "You Had to Be a Weapon, Ender...We Aimed You": Moral Responsibility in Ender's Game |
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163 | (12) |
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15 The Unspoken Rules of Manly Warfare: Just War Theory in Ender's Game |
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175 | (12) |
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| Part Five Hegemon: The Terrible Things Are Only About to Begin |
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187 | (37) |
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16 Locke and Demosthenes: Virtually Dominating the World |
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189 | (13) |
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17 Ender's Dilemma: Realism, Neoliberalism, and the Politics of Power |
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202 | (10) |
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212 | (12) |
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| Convening Authorities of the Court Martial of Colonel Hyrum Graff |
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224 | (6) |
| The Ansible Index |
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230 | |
Kevin S. Decker is Associate Professor of Philosophy and Associate Dean of the College of Arts, Letters, and Education at Eastern Washington University, USA. He specializes in researching American pragmatism, Continental philosophy, ethics, philosophy in popular culture, and social theory. Professor Decker has co-edited a string of books on the links between philosophy and popular culture, including Star Wars and Philosophy (2005, with Jason T. Eberl), Star Trek and Philosophy (2008, also with Jason T. Eberl), and, with Richard Brown, Terminator and Philosophy (Wiley-Blackwell 2009).
William Irwin is Professor of Philosophy at Kings College in Pennsylvania. He originated the philosophy and popular culture genre of books as coeditor of the bestselling The Simpsons and Philosophy and has overseen recent titles including Superman and Philosophy, Black Sabbath and Philosophy, and Spider-Man and Philosophy.