The Giver Contradiction Theme

Conflict is a struggle between two opposing forces. In literature, there are three types of conflict: internal, external, and interpersonal. Throughout the novel, The Giver by Lois Lowry, all three types of conflict are shown. The Giver tells the story of Jonas, a twelve-year-old boy who is selected to become Receiver or Memories. Once Jonas has knowledge of the past, he realizes that the government controls every aspect of his and his family’s lives. With the help of an elder, he attempts to escape the restrictive life he had been forced to live. Readers are left rooting for Jonas despite his struggles, as he is a strong character to which many young people relate. Three examples of conflict in

1.) People are not allowed to go outside after the specified curfew, this can help prevent someone getting injured, kidnapped, and just ensure a higher level of security for the residents in the society.

“’Memories are forever”’ (Lowry). People make new memories every day without even realizing it. Some good some bad, that’s just the way of life, but in The Giver nobody knows what happened before them. People barley remember what their childhood was like, they don’t understand the importance of memory and that memories are forever. Aspects of life, rules, and prosperities between our world and Jonas’ world are very different yet have some similarities. Things that are crucial to the characters in The Giver are not as meaningful to the people in our world.

Jonas’ community appears to be a utopia, but, in reality, it is a dystopia. The people seem perfectly content to live in an isolated wreck—in a government run by a select few—in which a group of Elders enforces the rules. In Jonas’ community, there is no poverty, starvation, unemployment, lack of housing, or discrimination; everything is perfectly planned to eliminate any problems. However, as the book progresses and Jonas gains insight into what the people have willingly given up—their freedoms and individualities—for the so-called common good of the community, it becomes more and more obvious that the community is a horrible place in which to live. You as a reader can relate to the disbelief and horror that Jonas feels when he realizes

     This book is about a boy names Jonas. Jonas lives in a futuristic society where there is no pain, fear, war, and hatred. There is also no prejudice, since everyone looks and acts basically the same, there is very little competition. They have also eliminated choice.

In “The Giver”, written by Lois Lowry, one of the major theme’s is “sameness”, which effects very deeply the life of citizens in the community based on perfection.Sameness in somewhere just as this community, can either cause disadvantages or advantages at the same time, also including the loss of diversity.

The Giver describes a society in search of perfection, which is a recurring theme in literature. Somebody in Jonas’s society decided that eliminating or limiting choices and feeling, among other things, would ultimately create a perfect place in which to live. By eliminating and/or limiting choices and feelings, the creators were able to implement Sameness, which would then provide a conflict-less environment in which to exist.

The relevant theme shared by both text were sameness and equality. The both community were under the control of Chief or elder. In The Giver the reason Lois Lowry uses the word “sameness rather than “equality” because equality implies that people have certain basic human rights, which in the community in The Giver they didn’t. For example, they didn’t have the freedom to make choices as to who they marry or what job they do. However, since all their experiences throughout their early lives were controlled, they were all besides Jonas and The Giver. “So there will be a whole part of your life which you won’t be able to share with your family. It’s hard Jonas. It was for me.” said by the Giver because he had to sacrifice his life to become the Giver and he knew how hard it felt. In Harrison Bergeron, the government enforces their idea of equality by physically and mentally handicapping citizens. The beautiful must wear hideous masks or disfigure themselves, the graceful and strong must wear weight around their necks at all hours of the day and the intelligent must listen to earsplitting noises that impede their ability to think. “Nobody was smarter than anybody else. Nobody was better looking than anybody else. Nobody was stronger or quicker than anybody else.” In both texts the protagonist try to solve a problem but they had created another problem by sharing it to the other members in the community. Also because they went against the rules and regulation the community were disrupted.

The novel, The Giver, by Lois Lowry, is an everlasting story that shows the importance of individuality. This novel is about a young boy named Jonas who was elected as the Receiver of Memories, a person who is given the memories from the world that existed before their current society, Sameness. In this society there is no individualism. People can not choose who to marry, or what they want to do for a living. Over time Jonas becomes more and more wise, and realizes that the supposedly perfect community actually has some very dark and negative aspects. The author, Lois Lowry is a 76-year-old writer who focuses her writing on helping struggling teenagers become individuals. Lowry had a very tragic childhood. After both of her parents were

Individuality is one of the key components of reaching the utopian standard. However, in The Giver, the community rejects the idea of individuality and instead focuses on developing Sameness, therefore initiating a form of control by allowing them to not express their own personality to shine, and alternately forcing them to contort into these soft putty-shaped beings with zero individuality at all. Conversations between Jonas and The Giver that occur throughout the novel informs the audience that the community lacks a sense of uniqueness and results in an absence of options to choose from.

In Lois Lowry’s The Giver, the Giver and Jonas use the two following quotes to justify their community’s idea of “Sameness”, where everyone is the same but has no choice. The Giver tells Jonas, “Life here is so orderly so predictable—so painless.” In response, Jonas says, “We really have to protect people from wrong choices.” Eventually, both Jonas and the Giver realize that sameness is wrong and that it is better to be equal, to have the same rights, but able to choose to be different.

Everyone in the community can not have there own personalities because they have to be the same. There is a limit of two kids per family unit. There is nothing private in the community because they have to be the same. Sameness is bad because the receiver has to keep the pain a secret. The receiver is a person that keeps all of the memories. ¨but now you will be able to go farther back¨(Lois lowry 116) The Giver tells Jonas “being the receiver makes family life hard”(Lois Lowry 132). Sameness is bad because they have to take away color. Color is taken away because some people can not see color and then they are not the same. Why did colors disappear’ is what Jonas asked the Giver when he found out that everyone can not see color. (Lois Lowry 120)The government pick spouses and the child which results in no love. “Do you love me” asked Jonas.(Lois Lowry 159)It is clear that sameness is bad because there is no love in the community.

In the novel, The Giver, by Lois Lowry, the topic of life occurs throughout the story. Jonas lives in a community based on conformity and sameness. Jonas is chosen as the receiver of memory. As he is trained he learns that change is needed in the community. At the end of the book, Jonas tries to go elsewhere to return the memories back to the community. In The Giver, the author uses the characters, plot, and conflict to develop the theme that life can not be taken for granted.

Lois Lowry’s novel, The Giver, offers a thought provoking, well written story, because it changes the perspective of anyone who dares to read it to. Lowry places her novel, at some point in the future when mankind has gone away with changes and choices in life. She forces readers appreciate, or at least re-think the world they live in today. Her novel presents a fully human created environment where people have successfully blocked out conflict, grief, and individuality. Each person follows the same routine every day. Failure comply with standards, to be different, means death. Jonas, the main character, finds himself trapped in this world.

Jonas society is a utopian society because everything and everyone is the same. How are people suppose to see the differences in life if they can't see no color. On the other hand if you wanted to pick a color to wear they could not because no one can see color(Lowry 120).we relinquished color when we relinquished sunshine and did away with differences.Jonas replied ¨we shouldn't have!¨he