The Giver: Week of 9-15-14

Title: The Giver
Author: Lois Lowry
Pages Read: 0-179 (Finish)
Prompt: Foreshadow and Understanding

I finished reading the book a second time and I felt it would be a good book to reflect upon because the first time I read it I was very confused. There is lots of foreshadow in this book that I now understand much better. Of course the biggest foreshadow was the first memory Jonas receives when he goes down the slide is exactly like the last scene of the book when he goes down the slide. I also felt that Gabriel having to live with his family and be an exception was some sort of foreshadow that he would play a large role in the book because otherwise there was no meaning in introducing him. He ends up playing a very large role because he is the reason Jonas survives throughout the harsh winter and miles and miles of bike riding. Another piece that Lois Lowry adds that I really liked was that the failure 10 years ago was the Giver's daughter. I felt that it had importance because it was mentioned a lot in the story. Then you find out it was his daughter and it is that gasp moment. You feel sympathy towards the Giver.

The word "release" I felt was kind of like foreshadow. I kind of knew the whole time it was a bad secret because the word had a negative connotation because unless it was a new child or elder it was shameful to be released. One big line that I felt was a very large foreshadow was when in Jonas's instructions it says that he is allowed to lie. This opens up so many doors because all of a sudden you are wondering if this was in the entire communities instructions. Reading this book a second time helped me so much with the understanding aspect of it.  I began to understand more and more how the community was built and how no one really knew anything. Also I saw more thoroughly how Jonas became so frustrating. After feelings memories of such different emotions and feelings he almost felt his life to be meaningless because no one else felt that or saw it that way except him and the Giver.

I liked how he transmitted different memories to Gabriel throughout the book. In the book I felt like I knew the setting and time of this book. I liked how Lois Lowry described things that happen today the far and distant past from them. Or how Jonas called it "back and back and back." What I still don't understand is that the Giver said that once Jonas left the memories would begin to go back to the community. I never really got how that worked because he never died. He just left and unless there is like a barrier for the community I thought the memories would just stay with him until he died and then they would leave to the community or wherever. I really enjoyed reading this book a second time, because it was different than the type of society and community we live in today. I am going to read the next book in the series called Son. So I am ready to see what happened to Jonas and/or the community.