The Gift of The Giver

Every human being knows innately that there is something wrong with the world. We should not suffer, or hurt, or die--but we do. Our world is twisted and wrong.

Within the established society of Lois Lowry's The Giver, the wrongness of the world is simply failed humanity that must be corrected. The way in which they choose to perfect their society, however, is immensely disturbing.

The reader learns right along with Jonas, the 12-year-old protagonist, just how twisted his society has become. It begins with little, suspicious things: they teach "precision of language" in school, but do not have words like "home," "marriage," "baby" or "love." It is quickly apparent that his community is ruled with an iron fist, in a way that prevents any type of diversity or individuality so as to eliminate the possibility of conflict. The teenagers and adults take emotion suppressants that dull anything but surface emotions, effectively eliminating any emotional desire.

Parents are also not allowed to procreate. Adults may apply for a spouse, and after they are matched with another by the governing body of the community, they may apply--after a period of three years--for a child. They are assigned an infant to care for, and they are only allowed one boy and one girl. The birth mothers are artificially inseminated and not allowed to see their children. It is exceedingly important to the rulers of the community that any kind of deep, lasting, emotional attachments are not allowed to form, especially regarding children. For example, when Jonas' father--who cares for newchildren--brings one home to aid its development, "Each family member...had been required to sign a pledge that they would not become attached to this little temporary guest, and that they would relinquish him without protest or appeal when he was assigned to his own family unit" (Lowry 42).

When Jonas becomes the Receiver of Memory, he begins to experience--through memories from The Giver--free will. His first memories are of snow and sun, things he has never experienced in his climate-controlled world. In fact, when he begins to discover color, he and The Giver have a very important exchange: "'It isn't fair that nothing has color!' 'Not fair?' The Giver looked at Jonas curiously...'If everything's the same, there aren't any choices! I want to wake up in the morning and decide things!...I know it's not important, what you wear. It doesn't matter. But--' 'It's the choosing that's important, isn't it?' The Giver asked him" (Lowry 98).

Perhaps most importantly, Jonas learns what it means when the elderly or underdeveloped newchildren are 'released.' This knowledge is so overwhelmingly disgusting to Jonas that he can no longer sit idly by and let it continue. It has been made clear to Jonas that the community exists because, in the distant past, there was an event of apocalyptic proportions, and it could never be allowed to happen again. The solution, Jonas realizes, was to 'fix' humanity by taking away free will.

Jonas is unique in his community because, as the Receiver of Memory, he is the only individual with any experience of free will. Thus, he takes it upon himself to restore free will to at least one person. He is able to do this because The Giver gave him more than just memory--he also gave Jonas the ability to feel deeply. Through The Giver, Jonas has experienced joy, pain, wonder, and injustice. With his experience of these emotions, he is able to develop a conscience and determine the difference between right and wrong.

With the gift he received from The Giver, Jonas is able to save a pure, innocent life and possibly change his community forever.

Lowry, Lois. The Giver.  Bantam Doubleday, 1993.