chap 17: Deadline

• Colonel Graff talks about how the Battle School uses the computer to analyze the students' minds: "The computer makes connections we would never think of, and gets responses we weren't looking for" (309). What do you think about this? Would you want a computer analyzing your personality/ thoughts? Is that even possible?

• Colonel Graff wants to make sure Ender and Bean do not have any self doubt that will hurt them later in battle: "Self doubts was the one thing that neither candidate could afford to have ...They had to know that when failure would be fatal, they would not fail. They had to pass the test and know they passed it" (315). What do you think about Colonel Graff and the way he pushed Ender and Bean extra hard to "test" them? Is it too much? Or does it make them better?

• Bean stands up to Colonel Graff when Graff won't ™t give him access to the station supplies. What do you think about this? Even though he got what he wanted, is it a good idea to stand up to your commanding officer like that? Do you think Colonel Graff will make him pay for that later?

• Ender and Bonzo finally fight, and Ender kills Bonzo: "Ender din't just win his fight. Didn't just protect himself and walk away. Ender killed him" (334). What do you think this? Was it self defense? Is Battle School pushing him too hard?

chap 18: Friend

• Do you think Colonel Graff anticipated Ender's s killing of Bonzo? Did he set him up for it? Why did he want to see how Ender reacted to that situation?

• What do you think about Colonel Graff's decision to force Ender to battle two armies just after the Bonzo killing? Is he pushing Ender too far? Has Ender reached his break point?

• Bean has his own army now. Do you think he's ready?

• Bean has a very emotional reaction to Ender's leaving: "He bit on his lip, trying to let the pain force the emotion away. It didn't help. Ender was gone" (357). Why does he take it so hard?

chap 19: Rebel

• What do you think about Colonel Graff's decision to put Achilles in Bean's army? Is he testing Bean's character? Is this a good or a bad thing?

• Bean tells the others that the teachers use the standings board to get the boys to "turn against each other" (362). Do you think Bean's claim is true? Is competition a good or a bad thing?

• Bean proposes that they tell the teachers they don't want the standings board anymore. He says, "We don't have to play their game. We can take charge of our own education and get ready to fight the real enemy" (364). What do you think of Bean's plan?

• When Bean first addresses his new army, he uses flattery to make the transition easier by "letting them know w they had already earned his respect, he dissipated much of the tension" (366). Was this a a good way to start his command? Why or why not?

• According to Bean, Achilles uses flattery to "set t Achilles up as Bean's™superior" (369). 9). Bean tells him to stop and immediately assumes authority over him knowing that this may anger Achilles: "Bean had to insist on complete obedience and respect from his soldiers, even if it meant putting Achilles down, even if it meant increasing his personal danger" (370). ). Is this a good idea? What are the possible positives and negatives of this plan?

chap 20: Trial and Error

• Now that Achilles is back, we get a more disturbing picture of his psyche. Sister Carlotta tells Col. Graff that Achilles kills “anyone who has seen him helpless, crippled, beaten—he can’t bear the shame” (372). Achilles himself says he kills to “set things right” (375) and that “nothing could interrupt his rise until he held all the power there was” (376). What do you think about these new insights into Achilles’ character?
• What do you think about the way Bean trapped Achilles and forced him to confess? Was this a good way to handle the situation?
• Bean tells Achilles after he traps him: We don’t give a shit about fairness here. We’re soldiers. Soldiers do not give the other guy a sporting chance. Soldiers shoot in the back, lay traps and ambushes, lie to the enemy and outnumber the bastard every chance they get (381). What do you think about Bean's claims here? Are they true in general? Are they true at Battle School?
• Achilles tells Bean: “You just don’t understand power. If it bothers you, you aren’t fit to have power” (383). Can the reader believe what Achilles has to say about Bean's character or motivations?

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