The Giver

The Giver
by Lois Lowry (1993)

 1994 Newbery Medal winner, 1996 William Allen White Award winner

         The Giver is a magnificently written soft science fiction novel for young adults that incorporates many concepts found in classic dystopian literature for adults, especially Aldous Huxley's Brave New World and the short story "Harrison Bergeron" from Kurt Vonnegot's Welcome to the Monkey House. In Lowry's story the the Committee's decision making process seems straight from Kafka or Orwell's 1984, where they convene in committee about an issue for so long that the population forgets it was ever an issue. The contradictions in the society become apparent as Jonas begins to discover the truth behind the facade of the community, and as he begins to receive memories of societies past. The precision of language that is instilled in all children from an early age becomes laughable when it is realized that the oft-used "release" really means killing members of the community. On top of that is the contradiction of their painless society, the contradiction of talking about emotions when they are not even understood, and the contradiction of the utopian society in itself. This book makes you rethink what freedom and choice really mean. There's no question why this book won the Newbery Medal and continues to be a favorite choice in classrooms.
         I believe that writing of this caliber should be introduced to children in upper elementary school. This book offers a perfect opportunity to explore symbolism and perspective, among other literary elements. Not only can this book be used to show an example of excellent writing for young adults, but it can also be used as a starting point for creative writing assignments. For example, students may choose to try to write a detailed description of an important memory to them -- in a way that the reader might feel they are being "given" the memory. Some adult readers think that parts of the book may be too complex for elementary students -- but I remember reading it in 5th grade and it had a profound impact on me, even though certain parts were not read in depth and connections to other texts were not made. Other adults feel that this book is controversial because of 'graphic' scenes of euthanasia -- but The Giver allows students to think critically about our own society and what freedom truly means.