A New Beginning

Summary

After a big talk about release with the Giver, Jonas decided to watch the release of a baby

twin, with the help of the Hall of Closed Records, of which his father will proceed the ceremony; it consisted in releasing the one that weighed less between both identical babies to prevent confusions. But, the baby wasn't sent Elsewhere, no it wasn't like that.  The lightest baby got........... KILLED! And guess who killed him? Jonas' father killed a child!!! People that get released get killed with syringes!! Anyways, the Giver later explains that Rosemary (the Giver's........ daughter?), when she asked for release, injected herself in a way to show her bravery and dedication to her choice. And, meanwhile, Jonas kept crying, telling himself that he could NOT go back to a boring life, so the Giver told Jonas to stay the
night with him, to show him a plan! The plan consisted in Jonas ESCAPING from the community, in order to make everyone have memories back, and change their normal way of life! But the sad part is, the Giver will have to stay in the community to help people get through the painful memories, which means that Jonas will have to say goodbye to his family, Gabe and the Giver....... well, everyone but Gabe. Turns out Gabe will be released

the morning before the December ceremony, so Jonas escaped and helped Gabe! But now his plan has changed completely, and he wont be able to receive memories of courage anymore for his trip! As days pass by, Jonas tries an tries to keep himself and Gabe alive, and every day, he sees and experiences new things, such as animals and different landscapes - things he saw in memories, but never actually saw them.  And, with the help of certain memories, the two pale-eyed boys managed to stay alive. For example, Jonas shared cold memories to hide from the heat-seeking planes, and shared the warm memories during cold nights. After many, MANY days, Jonas rides a sleigh down a hill with Gabe and sees a lot of red and yellow lights, along with music, a quality the Giver heard often before becoming the current Receiver. 

Text Responses

These two quotes from the book caught my attention in many different ways:

He killed it! My father killed it! Jonas said to himself, stunned at what he was realizing. (150).

Father killed the baby twin! He didn't send him to Elsewhere, he just killed it! With a syringe he killed the little twin! And worst of all...... he lied to Jonas! But citizens in the community aren't allowed to lie! Maybe, Jonas' father got the same rule as Jonas did: that he

was allowed to lie. Or maybe...... every grown up gets to lie about their work if it has to do with release.  Maybe, the community just tells them to lie about release and tells them to tell their kids about the mysteries of Elsewhere, that they don't even know about. Whatever. But what I am sure about is that Jonas, just as I was, was very confused and I think that the community officially lost Jonas' trust and loyalty, since he knows the truth about release and death and the fact that people don't leave the community alive. And I am also sure that Jonas officially hates what the Elders have done, and not just about life in general, but about death, too. But..... why didn't Jonas say anything to his father? Something like, I know you lied to me, why do you kill children? Or something like that? I mean, he is allowed to ask any questions.......... why didn't he? Somehow I thought Jonas might have said something, though he didn't. 

        Third, he had stolen his father's bicycle. He has hesitated or a moment, standing beside the bikeport in the darkness, not wanting anything of his father's and uncertain, as well, whether he could comfortably ride the larger bike when he was so accustomed to his own.

        But it was necessary because it had the child seat attached to the back.

        And he had taken Gabriel, too.  (166).

Jonas is Gabe's hero! He risked the whole plan and his safety for Gabe's life! I think that Jonas has started to make his own choices and decisions because of the memories, and

now, he is taking the next step. I find it nice how Jonas, unlike anyone else in the community, is actually taking such a big risk, which shows how the memories deeply impacted Jonas.  He broke so many rules, didn't get the chance to receive courage and brave memories, and still manages to keep going. I like it how he follows his guts that lead him to what he thinks is the right path to go into the wilderness - to go Elsewhere - even when he knows that there is no going back. 

Final Thoughts

Wow. I really enjoyed reading this book, it was really good.

As for the final thoughts of this blog post, well, I thought I should share the way the book ends for me, since Lowry didn't decide the right ending. Some people agree that Jonas and Gabe just died, other people think that they got back to their community, just that it was changed because of the memories. My ending is the happy one, my ending is different.

So, Jonas and Gabe were walking and walking, starving and freezing, when they saw a sled at the top of a hill and rode it. When they reach the bottom of the hill, they saw all of these small cabins with red and yellow lights, along with people singing and celebrating together. My supposition is that Jonas and Gabe made it to our world, the world with a normal life, pain and happiness, memories and choices.  And, because I am a person who likes happy endings, Gabe and Jonas lived together as brothers, were never found by the boring community, and lived happily and painfully ever after. They both learned how to work for things, how to use choices wisely and how to live with people and colors and sunshine and snow and animals and sails and lakes and everything Jonas learned in his memories; all of Jonas' hopes to actually experience what was in the memories finally happened. 

THE END

Life With Memories

Summary

Jonas comes another ordinary day to the Annex room and receives the painful memory of war, which the Giver later regretted giving Jonas;  Jonas, though he knows it is his job, didn't want to go back to receive more memories.  The next days, Jonas receives more memories, this time happy ones, like horses (which he realizes he really likes), museums, birthday parties and much more. The Giver then transmits his favorite memory to Jonas, a holiday with a family (new concept to Jonas: grandparents), gifts, warmth and love, a feeling he enjoyed very much. But, since this community doesn't have as many feelings as he does, when he asked his parents if they loved him, they explained to him that that word was obsolete and inappropriate; Jonas wants to change his life without feelings, so the next day, after talking to Gabe about how things could change, he did something rebellious........ he doesn't take his Stirring pill! But the Stirrings will come back! That day, the community had a surprise holiday, and when Jonas went to play a game with Asher and other kids from the community, he remembers the pain of war and tries to explain it to Asher and Fiona, but it was no use. They couldn't receive nor understand memories. 
The next day, the Giver explains to him that the previous Receiver-in-Training, 10 years ago, asked for release when she couldn't handle pain and loss anymore; her name was Rosemary, and even though she only trained for five weeks, the Giver loved her deeply.  The Giver also mentioned to Jonas that, since memories last forever, the people in the community started remembering some of the memories, which was why there was chaos when she got released! While the Giver shares his story, he reminds Jonas over and over and OVER again to stay away from the river, no matter what! The Giver wants to make sure nothing bad happens to Jonas.

Text Responses

During these events, a lot of important and shocking things happened, but mostly, these two scenes in the book are the ones that caught my attention the most.

"Jonas nodded. 'I liked the feeling of love,' he confessed.  He glanced nervously at the speaker in the wall, reassuring himself that no one was listening. 'I wish we still had that,' he whispered." (126).

Luckily for Jonas, he still learns and experiences new feelings! Almost all good memories Jonas receives end with the same comment: "I wish we still had that".  With this, I can infer that maybe, once Jonas becomes the new Receiver, he could change things in his normal community, bring back feelings, colors, and even snow. Just think about it....... Jonas can change their "normal" way of life! He will stop what the Elders have been doing all this time, he will show them the truth.  The community could live with choices, colors, memories, and feelings! 

" 'Asher,' Jonas said. He was trying to speak carefully, and with kindness, to say exactly what he wanted to say. 'You had no way of knowing this. I didnt know it myself until recently. But it's a cruel game. In the past, there have - '

'I said i apologize, Jonas.' " (134-135)

Cruel game you're playing, Asher, cruel game. Jonas felt war while playing, and he really doesn't like that game anymore. But...... why didn't he keep going and try to tell Asher the truth about war? I mean, he's going to have to describe memories to the Committee of Elders soon, so why not practice and give it a try? Jonas knows and feels the need to share memories, just like what he does to Gabe, but, in my opinion, he should try harder to get Asher to understand, not share the memories, just to make sure that he knows something, something true.  This way, when his time comes, he will be prepared to share the truth and make sure the community (the Committee of Elders) makes the right decisions.  

Final Thoughts

As a final thought, these chapters have been the most interesting so far.  What will happen next, is my big question.  What about the Stirrings?!? Why did Rosemary ask for Release?  If the memories Jonas has received so far has changed the way he views life..... will he try and change other people's lives, too? All these chapters and questions have got me thinking like CRAZY! Let's hope these next chapters answer these questions and many more questions in my mind right now.  In the next chapters, I really want to know more dark secrets about the Committee of Elders, and how will Jonas react to them? Will he change these secrets? I would also want to know what will Jonas' next memory be, will it be sad (like the feeling the Giver had when he lost Rosemary) or happy? Will he still view Rosemary in future memories or not? What will Jonas do in the future, with all his knowledge?