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Categories: Commentary
Tags: library, orson scott card, politics, sex
Yesterday Chair Entertainment announced that they had secured a deal to develop games based on Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game. Although Chair is best known for XBLA’s Undertow, they’ve previously collaborated with Card on their Empire IP and Card, himself, is no stranger to video games.
This is the second time Ender’s Game has appeared in the news recently. Card was recently awarded the Margaret A. Edwards Award for Ender’s Game and Ender’s Shadow presented by YALSA. The award, “recognizes an author’s work in helping adolescents become aware of themselves and addressing questions about their role and importance in relationships, society, and in the world.” Previous winners include Ursula K. Le Guin, Anne McCaffrey, and Judy Blume. However, what should be a feel-good thing simply resulting in Margaret A. Edwards Award seals being slapped on those two books, has turned into a controversy.
Card is a Mormon and, as a Mormon, he has some very definite views on homosexuality.
Laws against homosexual behavior should remain on the books, not to be indiscriminately enforced against anyone who happens to be caught violating them, but to be used when necessary to send a clear message that those who flagrantly violate society’s regulation of sexual behavior cannot be permitted to remain as acceptable, equal citizens within that society.
“The Hypocrites of Homosexuality” by Orson Scott Card
The librarians are all abuzz, asking “If a well-known author writes and speaks about gays and lesbians in a way that many interpret to be anti-gay, should he be given an award that honors his outstanding lifetime contribution to writing for teens?” With some answering, “If politics trumps literature for a literary award, maybe it’s time to get rid of the award” — AnnoyedLibrarian and others saying “Orson Scott Card is a Big Fat Homophobe” — K.G. Schneider.
So with the announcement of the game, I wondered if I would see this discussion paralleled in the gaming community and so far the answer is no. GayGamer’s reporting didn’t comment on the issue at all and the commenters have mixed opinions. LesbianGamers doesn’t have any news about it — although their outing of Gears of War is hilarious, “Marcus Fenix shows us what the world would be like if men were men and all they did was hang out with other men.. get sweaty together and grunt at one another.”
On January 30th, 2008 at 5:52 pm, Chris wrote:
OMG Mario as Ron Jeremy…
it’s so obvious!