Summary
This story
focuses on the life of Jonas, an eleven year old boy living in what seems to be
a utopian society called the “Community.” All aspects of life in the Community
are strictly controlled. Each “family unit,” including Jonas’s family, consists
of one mother, one father, one son, and one daughter. Jonas’ mother has a
prestigious job working for the Department of Justice and Jonas’ father is a
“Nurturer,” or one who takes care of the newborns. The families live their
lives day in and day out in a prescribed manner – the parents go to work and
the children go to school. During the breakfast meal at home, the family takes
time to discuss their dreams; in fact, it is a rule that each member must
describe his dreams in vivid detail. During the evening meal at home, the
family has a ritual of the telling of feelings, although negative feelings are
generally discouraged and often redirected to more positive ones. In the
Community, the children are identified by their age and referred to as such:
the Sevens, the Nines, the Tens, etc. Birthmothers give birth to the children
and then the community places the children into the homes they deem
appropriate. After a child reaches year eight, he is required to spend time
volunteering in various aspects of the community and is observed by a Committee
of Elders, who will then place each child into his lifelong profession at what
they call the yearly “Ceremony of Twelve.” Jonas is nervous about his upcoming
appointment at the Ceremony; while he can make an educated guess where his
friends will be placed, he cannot imagine where the leaders will place him. The
day of the ceremony arrives and, much to Jonas’ dismay, his number is
overlooked by the Committee. After an agonizing time of waiting for the
Committee to appoint the rest of the “Twelves,” Jonas is surprised when the
Committee announces that they have decided to name him the “Receiver of
Memory,” the highest honor in the community. When the community decided to go
to what they called “Sameness,” the illusion that everyone and everything was
the same, they created this prestigious office to transmit their negative
memories to the Receiver of Memory to hold for them. Jonas begins his training
with the “Giver,” as he calls him, and slowly begins to take the memories from
the aging man. As he does so, Jonas begins to experience firsthand exactly what
his community is missing. Their lack of pain or sorrow may seem on the surface
to be a good thing, but it really does not allow them to experience true joy
and happiness. Over the course of time, the Giver encourages Jonas’ contention
that the community should return to life as it was before Sameness. The two
begin to plan for Jonas to escape the community, which would cause all of the
community’s memories to be returned to them; the Giver then plans to help the
community cope with their new thoughts and feelings while encouraging them to
return to their former way of life. After the passing of time, Jonas asks the
Giver to grant him the memory of what happens when a baby or an elderly person
is “released” from the community; to his horror, Jonas discovers that “release”
is not something that should be celebrated, as he has always been taught, but
it is instead a type of euthanasia or infanticide. During this time, Jonas’
family has been given charge to take care of a young newborn that has not been
progressing as the community would have him. When Jonas’ father nonchalantly
announces that little Gabriel will be released, Jonas decides to take matters
into his own hands. Stealing his father’s bike and a supply of food, Jonas
kidnaps baby Gabriel and escapes the community in search of “Elsewhere.” Jonas
and Gabriel travel in the uncharted territory for days, suffering from hunger
and almost freezing to death. In delirium, Jonas and Gabriel arrive at the top
of a hill where they find a sled similar to the sled that he rode on during his
first imparted memory from the Giver. The two hop onto the sled and slide down
to the town below that seems to be twinkling with lights and echoing music from
a holiday celebration.
Interest
Because of the
heavy themes of societal wrongs, forced conformity, value of individuality, and
sacrificial love, this book would be most suitable for the student in the late
adolescent stage. The Giver is
unusual in that it probably would appeal to both sexes equally. Its male
protagonist and use of suspense would appeal to males, while its focus on
Jonas’ inner thoughts, feelings, and reactions would appeal to females.
Developing Well-Adjusted Readers
Progressive Independence and Separation
from Parents: One
premise of the book is that Jonas is essentially entering adulthood – once he
turns twelve, he is no longer considered a child, but a functioning member of
the community. It is not surprising that Jonas is nervous about this. He is not
confident in any ability, and he worries about his placement. During training
for his new appointment, the Giver shares with Jonas that he is not to divulge
any imparted information to anyone in the community. This instantly creates a
divide between Jonas and his family. He finds that he can longer be honest, and
he must carry the weight of his new memory and new position in society alone.
Although this independence is forced onto Jonas by the community, he does come
to the full realization that he must make decisions independent of his parents
for the sake of preserving life. Adolescents will be able to identify with
Jonas’ struggles to become independent and will applaud his choice to make the
harder choices apart from his parents’ influence.
Changed Relationship with Peers: Because Jonas
lives in a society that forces conformity, his relationship to his peers is
rather prescribed. He does have friends, but their lives are so strictly
monitored that he is not permitted to invest in those friendships as he would
in a normal society.
Finding a Significant Role Model: Jonas finds a
significant role model in the Giver. The two spend most of their time together,
and the giving over of the memories to Jonas is a process that knits their
hearts together. The memories that the Giver passes over to Jonas are
representative of all emotions – happy, sad, and everything in between. Jonas
notices right away in his relationship with the Giver that the old man carries
a heavy burden. The Giver eventually divulges to Jonas that the previous
Receiver of Memory was his own daughter. She could not bear the magnitude of
the memories given her, so she requested her early release. Together, Jonas and
the old man create a plan that will force the community to go back to how
everything was before they instituted “sameness.” With the encouragement of the
Giver behind him, Jonas valiantly seeks to stand up to the system that has
engulfed his blinded community. By following Jonas’ example, adolescents will
be encouraged to seek out a significant role model that will help them to make
appropriate choices even in dire circumstances.
Coming to Terms with the Body: The community is
committed to “Sameness,” and every child is required to wear the same clothes,
the same haircuts for boys, and ribbons in the hair for girls. Because of this,
Jonas does not struggle with insecurity in his view of his body. He is like
everyone (except for his light eyes) – the idea of “sameness” dismisses any
idea of physical insecurity.
Relating to the Opposite Sex: Because the
community has forced “sameness,” it does not permit thoughts or actions in
regard to sexuality. Only birthmothers are permitted to procreate. To enforce
this, the community pushes the morning ritual of the telling of dreams. It is
during this time that Jonas candidly explains to his parents a dream that he
had about Fiona – he could not get over the sensation of just “wanting” her to
get in a tub with him. Once this is revealed, his parents immediately require
Jonas to take the prescribed community pill, which is meant to suppress all of
the “Stirrings,” as the community calls them. Although Jonas cannot deny the
fact that he enjoyed the feeling of his first “Stirrings,” he is proud to have
crossed the threshold of adulthood and initially takes the pills without
argument, but rebels once he begins to understand the true meaning of love
during his training sessions. Because Jonas’ society holds a different view of
sexuality, Jonas is forced to make a decision regarding his own values when he
receives the all of the knowledge regarding it. His choice to make a stand and
go against the current of his society could be a learning tool for adolescents
who hold different values about sex in our current society.
Achieving a Sense of Status: The book begins
with Jonas’ angst over his not having any specific skill set like his closest
peers. Jonas’ appointment as the Receiver of Memory, however, sets him apart
from the entire community, including his family. He is now the most honored
member of the society – and his life is forever altered because of it.
Achieving an Integrated System of
Values: For
his entire life, Jonas has been taught a prescribed set of values, and he has
no reason to believe anything different. After Jonas begins receiving the
long-forgotten memories of the community, however, he begins to discover
inconsistencies and flaws in what he has always been taught. With the help of
the Giver, Jonas begins to understand that his community is not the utopia he
has always thought it was; instead, he realizes that the community is covering
up their horrific acts with semantics – things are not really as they seem to
be. Jonas must then decide how he will respond to his new knowledge – will he
continue with the status quo, or will he choose to take a stand for what he
knows to be right? Adolescents will certainly be able to relate to Jonas’
conundrum and will be encouraged themselves to act consistently upon their
personal beliefs and values.
Work Experience: Jonas’
appointment as the Receiver of Memory is his first real job, although he has
volunteered in other various positions throughout his childhood. The more that
Jonas connects with his new job, the more he distances himself from his friends
and family. He is now an independent member of society and is closer to
becoming completely independent of his parents both physically and socially.
Making a Vocational Choice: The community elders
choose what they deem appropriate vocations for its members by observing the
children over the course of a couple of years to determine where they would
best fit into society. The vocation is not chosen on the basis of what is best
for the individual, but rather on the basis of what is best for the society as
a whole. Jonas’ act of rebellion in leaving the community validates the idea
that individual choice of vocation is important for the ultimate success and
happiness of one’s life.
Issues
The Christian
school teacher will want to address the issue of the “Stirrings” found in
Chapter 5. I would not encourage the teacher to spend an inordinate amount of
time on this issue – I would highlight the issue, ask my students to approach
the issue with a mature mindset, and move on. Another issue that the Christian
school teacher would be wise to address is the presence of euthanasia and
infanticide in the story. Asking questions of students to determine the stance
of the author on these issues could generate a healthy discussion on these
matters.
Recommendations
This book is the 1994 Newbery
winner. Because this is number one in a three-book series, I would probably
recommend the reading of the entire series, although I have not yet personally
done so. I would wholeheartedly recommend this book for reading, especially to
those students who are in the upper high school grades. The approach that the
author takes to tackle some very heavy themes and issues causes the reader to
have to think through his own values rather than being spoon-fed a prescribed
school of thought. While most of the characters in the story are static, Jonas
is constantly changing and developing for the better. The plot is intriguing
and believable. Jonas’ inward struggles with adhering to the status quo or following
what he knows to be right are certain to speak to adolescents who are facing
very similar situations. I would recommend this book for its strong literary
value. It is a book that could be read over and over again!
