Can you imagine a world where everything is under control, there is no war, pain, or fear but nobody has a right to choose yet it is perfect? Well, Lois Lowry did. She created a world where everyone were supposed to be happy in her futuristic novel, the Giver. Jonas, the protagonist of the story, was selected to be the new Receiver of Memory. It turns out Jonas was singled out with all the differences he had since he started to feel unlike his friends. Not many people were like Jonas; Gabriel, the baby who almost got released, was like him but what was waiting for him in the future? Jonas, who actually aims to be an obedient citizen of his community, ends up realizing the control of the system over people throughout his training to be a thoughtful, compassionate, and brave Receiver.
Jonas is thoughtful. For example, he wonders and questions. That is he does not just settle for everything around him easily. Likewise, he tries to tell the truths of the community to his family and friends just to make them realize. In other words, Jonas did no longer want to be alone with his inner thoughts, awareness, and memories so that he wanted to share them but couldn’t. Jonas had always been obedient but receiving the memories made him ask why’s, and try to make someone understand the community is not perfect as everyone thought to be.
Along with the memories, Jonas gains the bravery as well. For instance, he wanted to feel the pain while receiving the memories. He was being brave and accepted the pain he has to receive. Moreover, he decides to leave the community to go Elsewhere and never come back. Jonas ran away from the truth he couldn’t share, thanks to his bravery. Jonas had hesitated about being different at first but then he fled so that the people would know the things he knows, feel the way he feels.
Jonas has been a compassionate guy. For example, he was worried about the Giver’s burden of memories that caused him pain. He considered the Giver’s pain more than his and was willing to have some of the pain to lighten the Giver. Furthermore, he gave some of his new memories of happiness and calmness to Gabriel. He was worried about Gabriel and tried to smoothen him by giving him these memories because otherwise, his father was going to release Gabe just because he slept soundly. Jonas has learned many things from the memories, of course, but his way of thinking for others was probably the most precious thing he had gained through the training.
The Giver is just the perfect book to understand how a utopic community can turn out to be dystopian for a young boy who is receiving the past, the truth, and the facts of the community. People never knew, maybe they never will, but a world can never be perfect while it includes the human factor, a system of flows, in it. The fabric of life was to make people feel the way he felt for Jonas so that he went to Elsewhere, someplace where the lies of the community were buried underneath. Jonas wanted the freedom he deserved after all, he wanted to choose so he chose to go away with Gabriel, as being a role model for the ones who has been the slaves of the systems in the real world.
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