Sibling Relationships in Film and Literature Essay Example

From Katniss and Primrose Everdeen to Pietro and Wanda Maximoff, siblings form some of the most iconic relationships in both film and literature. Without Primm, Katniss never would have volunteered to participate in the Hunger Games, and a revolution never would have happened. Without Pietro’s death, Wanda never would have joined the Avengers. Similarly, without Peter and Valentine, Ender Wiggin would most likely not have been the great commander that everyone hoped him to be. In Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card, Ender’s relationship with his siblings is crucial to his character development. 

Valentine Wiggin is a shining example of what an older sister should be. She’s kind, gentle, and selfless when it comes to her little brother Ender. When Colonel Graff comes to tell Ender that he has been invited to Battle School, Ender is fine with leaving the rest of his family, but dreads leaving Valentine. Graff describes Valentine as loving Ender “with all her heart.” She is “completely, unstintingly…devoted to [Ender],” and Ender “adores” her (Card 23). Throughout the novel, the readers can see how much Ender’s relationship with his older sister impacts the way he thinks and acts. Everything he does, he does to save Valentine back on Earth. He dreams about her all the time, and writes to her constantly. Ender is fearful of turning out like Peter, but hopes to embody Valentine’s kindness and empathy towards others. He looks up to her arguably more than any other character in the novel. 

On the other hand, Peter Wiggin is exactly who Ender does his best to avoid being like. Peter is a cruel child, to the point that Ender is afraid of him. Valentine tells Colonel Graff “[Peter] threatens to kill people a lot. He doesn't mean it. But when we were little, Ender and I were both afraid of him. He told us he'd kill us. Actually, he told us he'd kill Ender” (Card 146). Throughout the novel, Ender’s fear of turning out like Peter can be seen in his dreams and even in the mind game that he plays in Battle School. During one session of the video game, “he found a mirror. And in the mirror he saw a face that he easily recognized. It was Peter, with blood dripping down his chin and a snake's tail protruding from a corner of his mouth” (Card 117). Every time Ender injures others, he cries for fear that he has developed Peter’s malice. At some points in the story, he doesn’t even want to fight the Buggers, as he doesn’t want to be a killer like Peter. 

It is expected that Ender’s siblings will influence him, as they appear in the book and his life more often than his parents. In fact, relationships with older siblings in general tend to have a greater influence on younger siblings than relationships with parents. Dr. Shawn Sidhu explains that “healthy sibling relationships can be an incredible source of support” (Sidhu 2019). Ender relies on his relationship with Valentine for emotional support, and cries himself to sleep when he thinks that he has lost that connection with her. On the other hand, “unhealthy and toxic sibling relationships may be equally devastating and destabilizing” (Sidhu 2019). The way Peter treats Ender in his younger years affects choices that Ender makes years later, and those choices certainly seem cruel and Peter-like. According to Sidhu, this is because “a sibling who is engaging in unhealthy behavior could model this behavior to other, typically younger, siblings who follow suit” (Sidhu 2019). 

Just like so many other sibling relationships in film and literature, Ender’s relationship with Peter and Valentine Wiggin majorly affects the trajectory of his life. He is the perfect mix of them, with Valentine’s thoughtfulness and Peter’s aggressive tendencies, making him the perfect commander. Valentine and Peter’s treatment of Ender form the way he thinks and acts later on in the novel, and he makes decisions to either embody or avoid being like them. Ender’s psychological battle between his fear of becoming Peter and his devotion to Valentine control every aspect of his life, from the treatment of his peers to the treatment of the Buggers.