Pessimistic Novel 'The Giver'

The Newberry award winning novel The Giver is placed in a very messed up future where love, feelings, colors, and much more have been removed. Jonas a 12 year old boy is given the job Receiver to pursue in his community. In this job your are meant to hold all the memory's of the past, which puts a lot of stress and pressure on you. The Receiver is chosen every couple years, in order to keep the community in sameness. While working Jonas learns and experiences many things, which ends up giving him great knowledge. Eventually Jonas gains enough knowledge and thinks of a plan which he thinks will better the community. When he finally puts his plan to work he must go through many obstacles to achieve what he wants to find. The Giver is a pessimistic novel due to release being a terrible punishment, the Receiver holds all of the world's memories, and the Elders have removed many positive things such as love and colors. The Giver is a pessimistic novel because in the novel release is a terrible punishment. Being released in this book is just a nicer way to say murder. In chapter 18 Jonas and The Giver had fallen into the category of release , Jonas had referred to the morning release of …show more content…
In chapter 10 The Giver starts to describe a sled, hill, and runners and in the conversation The Giver says "Of course you didn't. You don't know what snow is, do you?" Jonas shook his head. " Or a sled? Runners? " no sir," Jonas said. This proves the fact that Jonas had not experienced things that we experience often. After experiencing his first sled ride, Jonas gets a grip of what's to come and what happiness and excitement truly is. All the things he feels he will not get from his life in the community. The elders have converted to sameness which has limited the feeling Jonas felt while going downhill. Small things such as weather showed Jonas what he was