Imagine living in a perfect world, where no tragedies exist and everyone gets along. Such as no war, violence, and poverty. Which The Giver community makes sure of. A perfect place with a perfect government who takes care of its people and maintains order. This is a utopian society. In the giver, there are various chapters that make us believe it is a utopian society. As finishing the novel, The Giver seems as a more dystopian society rather then utopian. A dystopian society is a society that is the opposite of a utopian society. Everything in The Giver has gone wrong in the attempt to create a perfect society. In The Giver they tried many different ways to make the society more “perfect”. Whether it is trying to make the community have proper language or having only one person in the community to hold the pain and suffering of the entire community. Either way, nobody in the community knows any better. Although, as the book progresses Jonas begins to get an insight of the many different attributes that the community tries to hide and not show. He learns that the community has given up their freedoms and individualities to have a more utopian society. The mistake that the community had made was that they had given up what makes people human. Sure, they might have security and stability but, they can’t feel happiness or see color. The Giver is a dystopian society because the community is full of sameness, when they release they kill, and there is no freedom.
In The Giver, they want total control over everyone and everything to make it the same. They feel that it is necessary to keep everyone comfortable, and being comfortable is the most important thing. For instance, Jonas as a four had indicated his hunger by stating “I’m starving”. Then he was punished and reinsured that he is never starved and that he would never be starved. This meaning he had spoken an unintentional lie. Not only that but nobody feels any emotion and nobody handles pain. For example, in chapter five the author states:
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Usually at the morning ritual when the family members told their dreams, Jonas didn't contribute much. He rarely dreamed. Sometimes he woke with a feeling of fragments afloat in his sleep, but he couldn't seem to grasp them and put them together into something worthy of telling at the ritual. (Lowry 43)
This quote shows how everyone is forced to tell what they had dreamed about that night. This is designed to teach children to leave their feelings behind. But without having feelings they can not feel any happiness or any of the good feelings. Emotions in The Giver are vacuumed up like messes on carpets. Even Jonas’s parents can not express their love to Jonas. Not only this but they also can not see color. Color is what we all take for granted, color brings life to things. Not only that but the weak,the old and the disabled are killed to have the sameness controlled. People in the community, give up there choices and differences, give up color and music. They give up all the best human emotions. They give all of this up which would potentially lead to a community of robots. Even The Giver and Jonas understand the cost that the community has paid for it all to be sameness. Even though the community themselves do not see it.
The right to have freedom is what makes us human. Without freedom we would not be able to make our own decisions or to fail, persevere, succeed, feel pain, and feel sorrow. Which is exactly what is happening in The Giver. They lose their rights, and in many cases, they lose themselves as individuals. We make our own decisions, and we make mistakes but we try to learn from them. Without having a freedom of choice. Nobody can suffer from making the wrong choice but nobody can experience the joys of making the right ones. Choice is essential to human happiness. Choice is power. Which Jonas soon realized as he gets some of the memories. When The Giver says “The Committee of Elders sought out my advice” (140). In this page, the community was asking for The Giver’s help in order to make the decision of increasing the rate of births in order to have more Laborers. This is since The Giver has wisdom unlike everyone else in the community. Another time this happened was when the plane had flew over the community, The Giver told them not to shoot it down because he knew it was not dangerous. This is since he used his past memories. When Jonas says “Why can’t we just apply for a change of rules?”(143). This shows how even Jonas has a desire to change, to have more freedom, to have less rules in place.
The final reason that The Giver is a Dystopian society is there method of release. Nobody in the community knows what release is. The people outside that room only thought that the person being released is going to Elsewhere. Little did they know, people inside that room witnessed, or committed, the murder of innocents. They would be released if a twin was three pound lighter than the other one. This is called the release of a new child. Not only children were released though, it can happen to the middle aged too. Release of the elderly which was a time to celebrate there long lived life. There is no third chance either. The rules say that “if there’s a third transgression, he simply has to be released” (pg.11). Although in chapter nineteen, The Giver shows Jonas the morning release tapes from a newchild. At the time Jonas did not know what it means to be released. The author says:
As he continued to watch, the newchild, no longer crying, moved his arms and legs in a jerking motion. Then he went limp. His head fell to the side, his eyes half open. Then he was still. With an odd shocking feeling, Jonas recognized the gestures and posture and expression. (187)
As viewing it he suddenly learns that release meant death. In a perfect world there is no death or suffering. Although they can not help it. They know nothing. This was the life created for them. They may think that they’re sorting out good and bad, but what do they know? If they don’t know anything about love, why should they know suffering and death?
We need to appreciate our world and the differences that come with it. There may be suffering, but there is pride in our accomplishments. We strive to do better than before, to learn from our mistakes and to create things that we never would have imagined. Most importantly there is hope. Unlike in The Giver how everything has gone wrong in the attempt to create a perfect society. The Giver is a dystopian society because the community is full of sameness, when they release they kill, and there is no freedom.
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