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Personal Choice And Freedom In 'The Giver' By Lois Lowry

Decent Essays

President Ronald Reagan once said that,”Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it to our children in our bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected and passed down for them to do the same.” President Reagan would have been miserable living in the world as it is portrayed in “The Giver” by Lois Lowry. In the book there has been a utopian community built for people so that they have no freedom and no individual thoughts. Everyone is exactly the same. Everyone takes a daily pill which eliminates any memories, pain or stress. The protagonist named Jonas is chosen to receive all the worlds memories and figures out that everyone he loves has no feelings or independence. He decides to risk everything …show more content…

He cried all night apparently.”(pg.206) After examining the Utopia in “The Giver”, I do not support eliminating personal choice and freedom for a Utopia. One reason I believe in freedom and choice is I believe individuals should choose their own jobs, unlike in “The Giver” where they cannot. If people chose their own jobs, they are motivated to contribute to society. Some people chose jobs that others may not because they get some personal benefit from it. Steve Jobs said,” Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle.” Another reason I believe in personal freedom and choice is I believe in the family unit and all that family means, unlike in “The Giver” where family is not truly a family. Jonas desires love, but his family does not understand love. In my family my parents show me love everyday in every action that they make. My mom and dad always listen about my day and give advice if I ask for it. They always say,”I love you.” In “The Giver”, they banned those words. One last reason I believe in personal freedom and choice is I do not believe in euthanasia and the government taking lives of older people and disabled as

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