Saturday, September 12, 2009

What is the plan Jonas and the Giver come up with in Lois Lowry's The Giver?

The plan created by Jonas and the Giver happens in chapter 20 after Jonas witnesses a "release" in chapter 19. Jonas sees his father administer a lethal injection into the head of a newborn twin who just happened to weigh a little less than his brother. Jonas refuses to go home after that, so he stays with the Giver that night. They stay up and come up with a way to end the community's life under Sameness. Jonas has to take all of the memories that he has acquired for the past year and cross over to "Elsewhere". Once he does that, all of the memories he has will flood back into the citizens of the community and Sameness will end. 


Unfortunately, Jonas will have to go alone to Elsewhere because the Giver must stay behind to help the citizens of the community bear the overwhelming weight and burden that the the memories will give them. The Giver explains as follows:



"If I go with you, and together we take away all their protection from the memories, Jonas, the community will be left with no one to help them. They'll be thrown into chaos. They'll destroy themselves I can't go" (156).



Therefore, Jonas must go to Elsewhere alone and he can never come back. He must sacrifice himself in order to end Sameness so that everyone can enjoy colors and feel love, and possibly create families again. Unfortunately, Jonas will never know what life could be like with everyone in his community bearing the burden of the memories together. 

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