Discussion Topic

Jonas's Sensitivity and Actions in The Giver

Summary:

In The Giver, Jonas is portrayed as sensitive and law-abiding, initially accepting his society's norms without question. His feelings evolve from apprehension about the Ceremony of Twelve to confusion and fear after being chosen as the Receiver of Memory. As he experiences new emotions and memories of color, love, and pain, Jonas grows frustrated with his community's lack of depth. His sensitivity deepens, particularly towards Gabriel and the Giver, motivating him to escape the community to seek freedom and change.

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In The Giver, what are Jonas's feelings and actions?

In the beginning of The Giver, Jonas blindly and naively accepts what his society has taught him. The depths of this aren't realized until many chapters later, but he lacks the knowledge of color, love, and extended family. He is incredibly law-abiding, even in minor rules, and recalls with a smile the error of a former pilot who was released for his mistake. He is precise with language, struggling to utilize just the right word to ensure his meaning is conveyed exactly. His most pressing worry relates to his upcoming Assignment.

When Jonas begins his training as Receiver of Memory, everything begins to change. Suddenly, he realizes that there is a quality called color in the world around him:

"I'm right, then," The Giver said. "You're beginning to see the color red."

"The what?"

The Giver sighed. "How to explain this? Once, back in the time of the memories, everything had a shape and size, the way things still do, but they also had a quality called color.

"There were a lot of colors, and one of them was called red. That's the one you are starting to see."

When Jonas begins to realize all that has been taken away from members of his society in order to achieve Sameness, his feelings begin to shift:

He found that he was often angry, now: irrationally angry at his groupmates, that they were satisfied with their lives which had none of the vibrance his own was taking on. And he was angry at himself, that he could not change that for them.

And as he begins to see that a superficial satisfaction with life is not actually the best way to live, he begins to want more for all of them.

As Jonas spends more time with the Giver, he grows to love him. They share many reflective moments together as Jonas tries to make sense of all the memories he receives, and the Giver "happily" gives Jonas his very favorite memory—of Christmas, with an entire family from young children to grandparents.

Jonas also begins to really love Gabriel and wants him to escape the Release he seems destined for, so he boldly devises a plan with the Giver in an effort to save him and hopefully provide for a better life for the entire community.

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When is Jonas portrayed as sensitive in "The Giver"?

Jonas is not like the others in his community.  From the beginning, he seems to show a unique sensitivity and understanding of the world around him.  In fact, Jonas is so sensitive that the book opens with an example of his sensitivity.  Other examples include his caring for Gabriel, his empathy for The Giver, and his reaction to the release of the newborn.

As the book opens, Jonas is trying to come up with the right words to describe how he feels.  He is worried about the Ceremony of Twelve, and finally decides that he is apprehensive.  He is worried about what assignment he will get.

Another example of Jonas’s sensitivity is his friendship with Asher.  Jonas looks out for Asher, and although he laughs at him, there is an underlying pain.  Jonas helps him, such as tossing a ball with him to help him develop better coordination.  He is hurt when Asher complains that Jonas is interfering in his war game, because Asher addresses him with obligatory respect.

In his mind, Jonas saw again the face of the boy who had lain dying on a field and had begged him for water. He had a sudden choking feeling, as if it were difficult to breathe. (P. 134)

The Capacity to See Beyond is a special sensitivity. Jonas realizes that he has it during the ceremony.

"I think it's true," he told the Chief Elder and the community.  "I don't understand it yet. I don't know what it is. But sometimes I see something. And maybe it's beyond." (p. 64)

When Jonas begins his training, his sensitivity only increases.  He looks after Gabriel, effectively making him the next Receiver by giving him memories to calm him down. He shows a special interest in The Giver, and is willing to take pain from him.

Once more, toward dawn, the newchild woke and cried out. Again Jonas went to him. This time he quite deliberately placed his hand firmly on Gabriel's back, and released the rest of the calming day on the lake. Again Gabriel slept. (p. 116-117)

When Jonas sees the release of the newborn twin, everything changes.

Jonas felt a ripping sensation inside himself, the feeling of terrible pain clawing its way forward to emerge in a cry. (p. 151)

His sensitivity makes it impossible for him to look past the experience, and he sees the community in a completely different light.  This is why he decides to leave, and take Gabe with him.  He wants to free the community from the prison sentence they don’t know they have.

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In The Giver, what are Jonas's feelings when he enters his house?

I take it that you are referring to the first chapter of this excellent dystopian novel, when a strange aircraft flies over the community that Jonas is not used to. Jonas and other citizens await an explanation and they are told to go into the nearest building, leaving their bicycles on the ground. We are told that Jonas "instantly, obediently" left his bicycle on the ground and went into his home. His parents were both and their work and his sister was at her Childcare Centre, so he was by himself. As Jonas wonders what has happened, he looks out through the windows of his house, and is shocked to see nobody else outside, only abandoned bikes. This makes him very frightened:

He had been frightened then. The sense of his own community silent, waiting, had made his stomach churn. He had trembled.

Clearly he is not used to such silence and emptiness in his community, where things like this do not happen. This is part of why he is frightened and scared.

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