In February, Alyssa Rosenberg wrote an excellent and nuanced examination of the paradox of Ender’s Game, and the tricky negotiation of consuming valuable works by reprehensible artists. In the 1930s and 1940s, George Orwell produced article after article trying to navigate the treacherous intersections of literature with the personal and political. But even now, there’s no map. It is unconscionable to keep supporting Card, to buy his books, to afford him any further platform. But if we all walk away and keep walking, someday a kid is going to reach for the touchstone that I clung to — and come up empty.
Once, early in our correspondence, Card and I talked about villains. I don’t remember the exact words, but Card’s advice stuck with me: to find something worth loving in every antagonist. It’s the lesson that made Speaker for the Dead my partner’s favorite book in the Ender series: that no one is all good or all bad; that most of us live the lives we think we have to.
via Orson Scott Card: Mentor, Friend, Bigot | Underwire | Wired.com.
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