Ender’s Father is a gentle, kind-hearted man who nonetheless can’t connect with his youngest child on an emotional level. He and his wife are given the chance to have a legal third child because the government suspects, correctly, that the child would be an outstanding military leader. While Father, a Catholic, is overjoyed to have more children, he secretly hates himself for breaking the rules of his faith by not having more children. As a result, he finds it hard to be open and loving with Ender, and after Ender is shipped to Battle School, he seems to forget about his third child.
Mr. Wiggin / Father Quotes in Ender’s Game
The Ender’s Game quotes below are all either spoken by Mr. Wiggin / Father or refer to Mr. Wiggin / Father. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Note: all page numbers and citation info for the quotes below refer to the Tor edition of Ender’s Game published in 2008.
Chapter 2
Quotes
Dad pointed out that the war wouldn’t go away just because you hid Bugger masks and wouldn’t let your kids play with make-believe laser guns. Better to play the war games, and have a better chance of surviving when the Buggers came again.
Related Characters:
Andrew “Ender” Wiggin, Peter Wiggin, Mr. Wiggin / Father
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 3
Quotes
“They look at you and see you as a badge of pride, because they were able to circumvent the law and have a Third. But you’re also a badge of cowardice, because they dare not go further and practice the noncompliance they still feel is right.”
Related Characters:
Colonel Hyrum Graff (speaker), Andrew “Ender” Wiggin, Mr. Wiggin / Father, Mrs. Wiggin / Mother
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Ender’s Game LitChart as a printable PDF.
Mr. Wiggin / Father Character Timeline in Ender’s Game
The timeline below shows where the character Mr. Wiggin / Father appears in Ender’s Game. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 2: Peter
...Ender’s mother, whom he simply calls Mother, tells Ender that she’s sorry about his pain. Father points out that it was an honor that the government allowed their family to have...
(full context)
Chapter 3: Graff
...Peter enters the room and teases Ender for being “slimy.” As Peter, Ender, Mother, and Father bicker, there is a ring at their front door. Father answers the door and finds...
(full context)
Father calls Ender to talk to the military man. Mother and Father tell Ender what the...
(full context)
...that Ender has the choice to attend the school or not—a statement that Mother and Father find absurd. Undeterred, Graff tells Ender that he’ll be a great soldier at Battle School,...
(full context)
...well—in other words, he knows that Ender will miss Valentine, but won’t miss Mother and Father. Graff explains that Father was born Catholic, and had eight siblings—something that Ender finds appalling....
(full context)
...back into the house and says a quick goodbye to his family. He hugs his Father and Mother (who cries), and shakes hands with Peter. Valentine cries and kisses Ender. With...
(full context)
Chapter 9: Locke and Demosthenes
As they walk through the woods, Peter asks Valentine to ask Father to give his children his “citizen’s access,” which will enable Peter and Valentine to write...
(full context)
In the coming weeks, Valentine succeeds in convincing Father to give his children internet access. Peter and Valentine begin writing articles and posting them...
(full context)
Chapter 13: Valentine
...for the rest of his family. As a result, he’ll only visit with her, not Father, Mother, or Peter. Valentine agrees to come with Graff. In the car, Graff tells Valentine...
(full context)