Ender’s Shadow

Work Title: Ender's Shadow
Medium: Novel
Episode Title:
Year: 1999
Writer(s): Orson Scott Card
"Original" Writer: Yes Own work?: No
Summary:

from wikipedia.org. This story takes the reader through Bean's experiences in Battle School and shows how Bean, though apparently peripheral in Ender's Game, is much more important to the fate of Earth than he originally seemed. In addition, the book depicts the first of Bean's encounters with Achilles, a prominent antagonist in the following books. At the very end of the story, Ender leaves on a colonization ship and never returns to Earth. Bean, however, finally meets his loving parents.

Era/Year of Portrayal: distant_future
Distinctive characteristics of the world in portrayal:

The year is somewhere around 2170. Space travel is fairly common, Earth is united against a common alien enemy. In Rotterdam, unwanted gangs of children roam the street.

Technology

  • Name of portrayed presence-evoking technology: simulator
  • Description of the technology: The simulators are ostensibly games where each child has command over a group of space ships, fighting the enemy Buggers. In truth, the child in the simulator is communicating and directing a groups of fighter ships. This is possible due to the ansible, a device that allows instaneous communication, no matter distance between people. The simulators are lined up next to each, so each child can speak with the child next to him/her. It resembles a video game console, with a joystick to direct each ship, and buttons to joggle which ship the child is directly controlling. There is a microphone to communicate and a screen to watch the battle.
  • Nature of task or activity: Fighting space battles against Buggers.
  • Performance of the Technology: very well.
  • Description of creator(s): unknown, but the alien buggers created the ansible.
  • Major goal(s) of creator(s): to enable smart, qualified children to control battles physically far away, but not realize - think they are playing a game so they don't worry about killing soldiers in the ships.
  • Description of users of technology: 2 groups: soldiers in the ships and the children actaully using the simulators. The children are mostly male, and ranging in age from 7 to teenagers around 16. They are genuises, trained in military thinking.
  • Type(s) of presence experience in the portrayal: both
  • Description of presence experience: It is nerve wracking; even though the children think its a game and do not realize the fate of humanity rests on their shoulders, the stress is intense. They are expected to win. A couple experience nervous breakdowns.
  • User awareness of technology during experience: One child knows; the others do not know until after the war is won.
  • Valence of experience: At first it is fun, but the stress becomes almost unbearable.
  • Specific responses: improved task performance and skill training, involvement, more intense parasocial relationships
Long-term consequences:

The children succeed - humanity is saved, at the expense of the soldiers in space.

Other:

The simulators place the children in space, commanding a real fleet of ships.

Coder name: Amanda Scheiner
Coder email: amandags@temple.edu
Coder affiliation: Temple University