Ideal Interactions

The idealism of human nature in Speaker for the Dead is what catches my eye. Natural reaction would of course have been to get revenge on the piggies after the first murders. I can only hope that we would really learn from the xenocide the way the humans in the book do. In reality, I don't have that much trust in us. As far as I can tell, when someone, even one not associated with our culture, attacks us, we react in the harshest way possible. We are always likely to react in an Ender's Game fashion.

I suppose that's why this novel was written, to show that on a small scale, humans can react correctly, or at least not destroy everything new that frightens them. If they had killed all the piggies, I would have supported it, just as I support not killing them. Either reaction is acceptable in my mind, as the first is a bit too harsh and the second and a bit too weak-minded. A proper course, the most advisable, would have been Ender's from the start, or simply talking to the piggies and understanding them. However, I find it difficult to judge anyone in this situation because it is the most stressful one around. Any reaction that preserves the humans is okay in my book.