The Giver Sameness Essay

    The story in The Giver by Lois Lowry takes place in a community that is not normal. People cannot see color, it is an offense for somebody to touch others, and the community assigns people jobs and children. This unnamed community shown through Jonas’ eye, the main character in this novel, is a perfect society. There is no war, crime, and hunger. Most readers might take it for granted that the community in The Giver differs from the real society. However, there are several affinities between the society in present day and that in this fiction: estrangement of elderly people, suffering of surrogate mothers, and wanting of euthanasia.

The community in The Giver is also not a utopia because without choice you can not have goals and therefore have nothing to strive for, and life can become very boring. In The Giver the people that live in the community have no choices. They cannot choose their own jobs and they cannot see color which limits their choices. Without such choices the

“’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.

However, Document E proves that Jonas’s community is a dystopia. This persuaded me because people don’t get to make their own decisions. “ ‘Yes, I know about Gabriel.’ ‘Well, he’s right at the age where he’s learning so much. He grabs toys when we hold them in front of him — my father says he’s learning small-muscle control. And he’s really cute.’ The Giver nodded ‘But now that I can see colors, at least sometimes, I was just thinking: what if we could hold up things that were bright red, or bright yellow, and he could choose? Instead of the Sameness.’ ‘He might make wrong choices.’ “Oh,’ Jonas was silent for a minute. ‘Oh, I see what you mean. It wouldn’t matter for a new child's toy. But later it does matter, doesn’t it? We don’t dare to let people make choices of their own.’ ‘Not safe?’ The Giver suggested. ‘Definitely not safe,’ Jonas said with certainty. ‘What if they were allowed to choose their own mate? And chose wrong?’ ‘Or what if,’ he went on, almost laughing at the absurdity, ‘they chose their own jobs?’ ‘Frightening, isn’t it?’The Giver said.” In this scene, Jonas argues with the giver and tells him that he doesn’t want to live in a world without color and a world where you don’t get to make any decisions on your own and that is what

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

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.

Imagine living in a world where nothing changed and everyone was the same. In Lois Lowry’s novel, The Giver, the society is all the same. For example the people of the society do not fight and there is no war. Sameness is slowly working its way into our society. It is used as uniforms in some schools, even secluding yourself to a specific friend group because everyone has the same interests could be considered as Sameness. I believe Sameness is a major advantage due to no one suffering, but living where a society is completely the same would not be an interesting life to live. The Giver portrays how sameness in a society could have advantages and disadvantages.

Picture this! Everyone you have ever seen working together for a common goal with no conflict, everyone pulling their weight having a role and fulfilling it to the best of their ability and all people following the rules, seems pretty good, right? Well, all these features are ones that come from a conformist society. A conformist society is when everyone complies with standards, rules and laws, whereas individualistic cultures are oriented around the self, being independent instead of identifying with a group mentality. Conformity unifies a society while individualism weakens it as all people in a conformist society have a common goal rather than everyone obtaining their own goal.

It is often wondered what our civilization will look like in the future. In the novel, The Giver, in a dystopian future, society follows the concept of sameness. After terrible events, the government decided to reshape civilization by enforcing new rules. Everybody is colour blind, and lives in a very structured society. Everybody is born by a birthmother, then adopted into an assigned family.

Sameness is not something a community should have. Furthermore, people should at least got to decide their own decision. For example, Lowry write “If everything the same, then there aren't any choices! I want to wake up in the morning and decide things! A blue tunic, or a red one? He looked down at himself, at the colorless fabric of his clothing...But it's all the same, always” (92). According to the quote above, Jonas society is being control by their own government. No choice of even choosing the way you dress, just wearing a plain colorless clothes. Another example written by Lowry, “But now that I can see colors, at least sometimes I was thinking! What

Living through life has a purpose. Without basic needs and things that make life great would give life meaning. Living without sameness, constant surveillance, and a perfect community like the Giver’s is not worth giving up for a perfect world. Life with sameness would make life completely meaningless and boring. Sameness would mean no color, nature, wildlife, and various other things that make life special and unique.

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