Adolescents are constantly influenced by other people and factors within their environment. These other factors affect the way they think, act and behave, as shown in books and research articles. Ender’s Game, a book written by Orson Scott Card, revolves around students in a competitive atmosphere that constantly make choices based off their emotions, which can only be rivaled by the desire to fit in amongst a larger group. The discussion of social influence“The Invisible Influence: How Our Decisions Are Rarely Our Own” proves how the people we interact with daily can impact every choice we make. Comparing the book and article side by side offers insight on how other forces influence the many decisions of an adolescent. In both texts, the reasons
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Once Ender became commander of the Dragon Army, he won every game that he played. In return, his fellow commanders developed a grudge against him. While some expressed their jealousy in the form of quiet resentment, others used it to drive their determination in order to become a better team. When the “other armies were beginning to imitate Ender”their feelings of jealousy against Ender actually motivated them to become better soldiers(Card 118). Additionally, fear played a massive role in influencing the students’ choices throughout the book, such as when Ender used to practice with his friends. Once the upperclassmen caught whiff of the events unfolding, they reacted by threatening their younger classmates with the possibility of never being in a good team. In fact, the word spread that “any launchy who comes to your [Ender] practice sessions won't ever amount to anything in anybody's army” (Card 112). Almost immediately, the number of students who practiced with Ender decreased, proving that they let their fear interfere with their desire to practice. By letting fear influence them, they made a different choice. This choice was affected by their emotions. Fear became a persisting notion that they could not ignore, forcing them to think differently about going to …show more content…
Rather than one being a stronger aid in being a part of conscience, both social and internal factors go hand in hand in helping teenagers make everyday decisions. Card and Berger used their writing to explain that this influence constantly plays a role in multiple decisions whether or not it is obvious. As a result, the authors chose to highlight the events where influential factors played a role in helping them make decisions, proving that the characters did not know that the choices they made were not their own. Therefore, these influential factors can be compared to inconspicuous forces, and by recognizing where they can affect our lives, it will become easy to understand why those choices are
Once Ender became commander of the Dragon Army, he won every game that he played. In return, his fellow commanders developed a grudge against him. While some expressed their jealousy in the form of quiet resentment, others used it to drive their determination in order to become a better team. When the “other armies were beginning to imitate Ender”their feelings of jealousy against Ender actually motivated them to become better soldiers(Card 118). Additionally, fear played a massive role in influencing the students’ choices throughout the book, such as when Ender used to practice with his friends. Once the upperclassmen caught whiff of the events unfolding, they reacted by threatening their younger classmates with the possibility of never being in a good team. In fact, the word spread that “any launchy who comes to your [Ender] practice sessions won't ever amount to anything in anybody's army” (Card 112). Almost immediately, the number of students who practiced with Ender decreased, proving that they let their fear interfere with their desire to practice. By letting fear influence them, they made a different choice. This choice was affected by their emotions. Fear became a persisting notion that they could not ignore, forcing them to think differently about going to …show more content…
Rather than one being a stronger aid in being a part of conscience, both social and internal factors go hand in hand in helping teenagers make everyday decisions. Card and Berger used their writing to explain that this influence constantly plays a role in multiple decisions whether or not it is obvious. As a result, the authors chose to highlight the events where influential factors played a role in helping them make decisions, proving that the characters did not know that the choices they made were not their own. Therefore, these influential factors can be compared to inconspicuous forces, and by recognizing where they can affect our lives, it will become easy to understand why those choices are