Module 4: The Giver

a.      The Giver is set in a place where everyone is content and happy to follow the structure and way of life that they all know. Procedure and rules are strictly followed and no one wants to break them. Jonas is the main character and has a few slip-ups that cause him to wonder why. He is has learned over time that it is more important to accept than to question and shame his family. It is a peculiar world to live in where his family unit is like most. Two children born to compatible parents at the right time. His father decides to bring home a child to foster and help to stabilize since he is a fussy baby. With so much time together, Jonas seems to take a liking to him. His city is very efficient and normally does away with anyone with difficulties like fussy babies, twins or the elderly. Everyone has goals or limits set by age and profession. Jonas explains a couple of ways that he has been punished for actions that seem harmless or trivial. Jonas is then named the Chosen One and will learn from the Giver. It is very secretive and he cannot share his experiences with his family. While everyone else is learning their new careers, Jonas is talking to the Giver. He finally begins to receive real training which are the memories. The Giver has this magic or a supernatural ability to share memories through touch. Jonas is also starting to question the procedures that his society follows like giving up a child or an aging person. He is shown the true nature of the Ceremony of Release which breaks his heart. He wants to unleash his feelings on to his father but the Giver does not allow this. They form a plan to escape the city to Elsewhere, a place they have only heard of. After making careful preparations, Jonas escapes with some provisions as well as Gabriel. Gabriel probably would have been released if left behind and Jonas couldn’t allow that. After avoiding capture, they start to experience the rougher side of life such as inclement weather, hunger and fatigue. Jonas manages to use his memories to help them through this tough time. Just when you think he is about to arrive to his destination, the book is over.

b.      Lowry, L. (1993). The giver. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

c.       I cannot say that I hated the book, but I definitely did not like it. I understood the weird world they lived in and how creepy it was to have everything controlled and monitored. The creativity in handling uncomfortable situations like release or multiple births was interesting but cruel. To imagine that grandparents are simply sent to a ceremony is odd. When I finally learn what exactly happens to the young and elderly, I feel equally shocked and outraged as Jonas. I must say that I was very disappointed with the conclusion of this book. It was completely underwhelming after all of the anticipation to reach Elsewhere, the place where Jonas would find a place with feelings and hopefully a less controlled and cruel environment. Unfortunately, the reader is unable to see this place because the author cuts it off right then and there. I honestly felt cheated when the book ended this way. After trying so hard to survive and keep Gabriel alive, I was really curious to see where this book was headed but alas, this was not to be. Lowry did not deliver this much anticipated Elsewhere.

d.      Flowers, A. A. (1993). The giver. Horn Book Magazine, 69(4), 458.

The Giver

(*) Lois Lowry

180. Houghton 4/93 ISBN 0-395-64566-2 13.95

(*) indicates a book that the majority of reviewers believe to be an outstanding example of its genre, of books of this particular publishing season, or of the author's body of work.

In a departure from her well-known and favorably regarded realistic works, Lois Lowry has written a fascinating, thoughtful science-fiction novel. The story takes place in a nameless community, at an unidentified future time. The life is utopian: there is no hunger, no disease, no pollution, no fear; old age is tenderly cared for; every child has concerned and attentive parents. Each aspect of life has a prescribed rule: one-year-olds — "Ones" — are Named and given to their chosen family; "Nines" get their first bicycles; Birthmothers give birth to three children and then become Laborers, "family units" get two children, one male, one female. In Jonas's family, his father is a Nurturer, one who cares for the "new children" before they go to a family unit; his mother is in the Department of Justice, and he has a younger sister, Lily. But although their life seems perfect, the reader somehow becomes uneasily aware that all is not well. Young Jonas is eagerly waiting his Ceremony of Twelve, the time when all the twelve-year-olds in the community receive their Assignments for their lifelong professions. He can guess that his playful, jolly friend Asher will work in Recreation and that gentle Fiona will be Caretaker of the Old but he is astonished to be selected to be trained to be the new Receiver of Memories, the most respected of the Elders. As he begins his training by the old Receiver, whom he calls the Giver, he discovers that the community is spared all memories of pain and grief, which are lodged in the mind of the Giver, and now transmitted to Jonas. He learns about war, starvation, neglect, misery, and despair. He learns, to his horror, the truth about the happy release given to old people and new children who do not thrive. But he Teams also about joys that the community never experiences: they do not see color, or hear music, or know love. In a cliffhanger ending which can be construed as allegory or reality, he asserts his new wisdom and knowledge. The story is skillfully written; the air of disquiet is delicately insinuated. And the theme of balancing the values of freedom and security is beautifully presented.

e.       Given that this book has been turned into a movie, I would like to create a jeopardy game comparing the book to the movie. After allowing sufficient time to read the book and show the movie, students would be separated into groups and then compete to win the most points.