The Giver Sameness

Your Choice is No Choice. You Decide

Everyone has the right to choose so, what if that right was taken away? Would anyone be happy? What if everyone was the same, that wouldn’t be fun. Those two sentences described Jonas’ community. In the novel, The Giver, Lois Lowry suggests that sameness and conformity have a negative affect on societies.

We take freedom of choice for granted but, what if that was taken away? Most people would be bummed but not those in Jonas’ community because they had never been able to choose. “ ‘We don’t dare don’t dare to let the people make choices of their own.’ ‘Not safe?’ The Giver suggested. ‘Definitely not safe,’ Jonas said with certainty.” (93) To maintain their utopian community the people in it have decided to rule out choosing because it can cause some problems like doing something wrong. In our world we need choices because we learn when we make wrong ones.

No choices means that we can’t really express who we are it is similar to sameness. In our world everybody is different; nobody and nothing are the same. In Jonas’ community as he is gaining more memory from being the Receiver he is learning about color and choosing.

“But I want them!” Jonas said angrily. “It isn’t fair that nothing has color!” “Not fair?” The Giver looked at Jonas curiously. “Explain what you mean.” “Well…” Jonas had to stop and think it through. “If everything’s the same, then there aren’t any choices! I want to wake in the morning and decide things! A blue tunic, or a red one?” He looked down at himself, at the colorless fabric of his clothing. “But it’s all the same, always.”

This quote shows Jonas’ frustration of having sameness. It would probably be the same reaction of all other people if we were in his position. Lowry shows that sameness in communities is not right through her characters emotions.

Her characters act sad and mad like I would be if I lived in that community. If sameness was in our communities there would be no diversity. Difference is important because it makes you feel special. It also shows who one is. Sameness though is good is some ways because there is no racism because there isn’t any color. Also kids can’t get in trouble for wearing something wrong or be bullied for what they are wearing. Most importantly they can’t be judged by how they look. Sometimes choices and sameness are related. In public schools some say uniforms cut out kids freedom to choose and uniforms