Post A #5

Vocab

1. Cretin: A stupid, obtuse, or mentally defective person. n (205).
2. Gamete: A reproductive cell having the haploid number of chromosomes, especially a mature sperm or egg capable of fusing with a gamete of the opposite sex to produce the fertilized egg. n (214).

Figurative Language

1. "'We've always played along with it and act as if we believed it'. 'How very condescending of you'" (226). This is an example of sarcasm because Ender is making fun of how they treat the piggies. The are trying to make the way they treat them seem civil and correct, but Ender is making them look silly and showing them other ways to do things.
   
2. "Of course she has reasons, crazy people always have reasons" (210). This is an example of irony because Ela is also crazy, and so she is just making fun of herself.
3. "Finally there was a straight trunk, nude and majestic; the pale patches where branches once had grown were brightly lit by the afternoon sun" (244).

Quote

1. "Other piggies came forward, drawing shapes on the trunk and singing" (245). This quote is significant because it tells how the piggies magically make items out of wood. This essentially reveals one of their biggest secrets.

Theme

1. The theme at this point in the novel is discovering the piggies' secrets.