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more than just your average fourteen year old.this blog is solely for my reflections on the award-winning literature book, 'the giver'

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As I have mentioned above, certain laws and ideals have been set in place in Jonas's community so as to help them achieve their objective. I will now expand on a few of them.

Firstly, the giving of Assignements based on apitude, not preference.
In the community, the Elders survey the Twelves extremely carefully, so as to be able to figure out each and every child's strength and weaknesses. They then give Assignments based on these strengths, so as to ensure that the community would bloom and flourish as each job would be done spectacularly well. From this, we can see that the community is a very pragmatic one. It focuses on using each child's strength so that the community would benefit and be able to reach its fullest potential, through the different jobs and roles that the people take on.

The same basis of this ideal can also be seen in our lives. Instead of being an 'aptitude versus preference' situation, the situation that is displayed in our lives would be the ever so common 'passion versus money' or perhaps something more relatable- the 'passion versus studies'situation. Many have been faced with the problem of having to decide which to choose between the two. For adults: Should they pursue a career which they have passion for? Or take a 'safer' route and pursue one where they would definitely receive a stable income? For students like you and me : Should we pursue something that we feel passionate about, like art or dance? Or should we pursue something that would definitely ensure that we get a stable grade, like science subjects?
You see, we are often stuck when faced with tough decisions like this. To take the road less travelled and either excell in it, or fail miserably, or to take the road that has been trodden on, and would lead to a certain amount of success, but look back with regret?
What I am trying to convey can be clearly seen in one of my favourite poems- The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost.

The Road Not Taken
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I marked the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

Sadly, most people have chosen to take the 'safer' route. They decide to take something that is less risky, less dangerous. And the most important reason?
'It is more practical.'
I have witnessed these situations before, and I have to admit, that they are hard choices.
Also, Singaporeans are very pragmatic and with the costs of living stadily increasing in Singapore, people would more often than not, opt for a more practical choice, one where there is a guaranteed outcome.
Thus, the same idea of being pragmatic can be seen in our lives, and The Giver.

Next, precision of language.
Precision of language is widely seen in The Giver. The people have all been trained to use specifics and never to be vague when asking a question. An instance where this is clearly displayed would be the scene of Jonas asking his parents if they loved him.

"Do you love me?"
There was an awkward silence for a moment. Then Father gave a little chuckle. "Jonas. You of all people. Precision of language, please!"
"What do you mean?" Jonas asked. Amusement was not at all what he had anticipated.
"Your father means that you used a very generalized word, so meaningless that it's become almost obsolete," his mother explained carefully.
Jonas stared at them. Meaningless? He has never before felt anything as meaningful as the memory.
"And of course our community can't function smoothly if people don't use precise language. You could ask, 'Do you enjoy me?' The answer is 'Yes,'" his mother said.
"Or," his father suggested," 'Do you take pride in my accomplishments?' And the answer is wholeheartedly 'Yes.'"
"Do you understand why it's inappropriate to use a word like 'love'?" Mother asked.
Jonas nodded. "Yes, thank you, I do," he replied slowly.
It was his first lie to his parents.

In this extract, it can be seen that the community places great emphasis on precision of language. Although this may seem as a good thing, ideas of love and emotions have been made so specific such that the idea of love no longer exists in the community.
Similarly, in today's society, there is some emphasis on being specific( although not to such an extent, as seen in The Giver), and the idea of love has certainly been lost through all the hustle and bustle of our lives. We may not have lost the idea through being so specific like in the novel, but we have lost it through being preoccupied with what we have on our plate, as well as the improvement of science and technological know-hows, that leave us with less time to spend with our familys, since most of it are spent on the internet, latest gadgets and so on. Also, with the advancement in technology, texting is more convenient and hence many of us text our friends and family members instead of visiting them, or even calling them.

Lastly, Sameness. Sameness is shown very obviously in the novel, as well as in our lives. Perhaps we do not have a standard apology phrase, or have the implementations of a fixed family unit, but we do have the idea of Sameness, the idea of uniformity. A very relatable example would be that of school(:
In school, everyone has to meet certain discipline standards and also has to don the same school uniform. By wearing the same attire, it ensures that there is uniformity in our appearance, something similar to Sameness.

Due to trying to make things perfect, or to simply be perfect, we have neglected certain things and even overlooked certain elements that are crucial in one's development- family, love and so on. The community has also neglected and overlooked elements like this, and due to not having certain things like choices, emotions, memories... It has resulted in the people of Jonas's community becoming robotic, one dimensional characters(as mentioned in earlier post). They therefore have lacking qualities, or lack of experience or knowlege in certain areas.

All in all, I feel that the strive for perfection in The Giver is evidently shown in our lives, and is hence very relatable and real. Thus, I would like to conclude by asking you- a reader, to reflect on how much time you have spent with your family and friends, or perhaps just simply away from constantly trying to meet standards you have set for yourself.
Maybe it is time to take a break, and step out of that small space you have confined yourself to- your working area. Go out, and appreciate the finer things in life!
(:

love,
sarah(: back to top? 0 comments