Why High Schoolers Should Read The Giver
The Giver isn’t just one of those books on the assigned reading list that students end up skimming through and hope for the best. I went to a small private school with less than 800 students 6th-12th grade and was required to read The Giver in my freshman year English class. The Giver is a fictional utopian young adult novel written by Lois Lowry in the early 90’s. The Giver is one of the few books I can say I thoroughly read and genuinely enjoyed. It is important for high schoolers to read material that provides meaningful themes, prompts significant discussion, is age appropriate, and provokes critical thinking, Though the Giver may seem like an extracurricular read, it belongs in the classroom because it tells the story of utopian society providing themes such as memory, emotion, and isolation, stimulates conversation regarding community, social norms, and choice, involves a storyline that is suitable for high schoolers, and leaves readers to critically think about freedom and emotion.
The Giver follows the story of a young boy, Jonas in a futuristic world lacking color, pain, conflict, aversion, and fear. All the communities’ memories are transmitted and stored to the receiver of memories. If you are sick, elderly, or fail to cooperate you are “released” from the community. Everything is regulated- marriage, children, and even careers. At age 12, professions are assigned and Jonas becomes the receiver of memory and begins his training with the Giver (the previous receiver of memories). Jonas and the Giver work together to release the community’s memories and escape to “elsewhere”.
Assigned reading must provide significant themes that explore the fundamental and universal ideas throughout the book. This is important for high schoolers because it requires students to dig deeper and look at the bigger picture for concepts that are not explicitly stated in the text. Young adult, utopian, fictional books like The Giver get students captivated and actually reading, comprehending, and recognizing themes. The Giver is an excellent model of a book with many noteworthy underlying messages. A few of these messages being the significance of memory, utopian governance, and societal isolation.
Throughout the book, the receiver of memory collects the memories, so that the utopian society remains “perfect”. Jonas states “The worst part of holding the memories is not the pain. It's the loneliness of it. Memories need to be shared” (Lowry 154). When memory is removed from this community there is no pain, but also no joy. The fear of pain shouldn’t keep the society away from the other amazing emotions life has to offer. Memory is one of the many themes The Giver provides. The story illustrates the importance of memory and how it is imperative to human life. After reading this book, students take a closer look and cogitate one of the meanings underneath the text.
Reading assignments on the school’s list should not only provide themes, but also fuel valuable and effective in-class communication and discussion. Students don’t feel like they are dragging along trying to get through a dreary book when they are reading The Giver. It attracts many students because of its young adult genre and recent production into a movie. This gets students engaged and conversing with peers. Communication is a tool that should be utilized when reinforcing and teaching literature. It is also very important to have in-class discussion when assigning books to high school students as it rouses class participation and provides wide ranging perspectives.
Towards the end of the book, the Giver and Jonas’ plan is successful and Jonas makes the escape to “elsewhere”. Jonas describes his old life as “The life where nothing was ever unexpected. Or inconvenient. Or unusual. The life without colour, pain or past.” (Lowry 165). This quote along with many others throughout the book may spark lively discussion in regard to this utopian lifestyle. The Giver encourages students to communicate and discuss the significance of governance, freedom, and individuality. I remember spending a whole class period talking about the pros and cons of futuristic society and how it compares to our world. That discussion not only gave me a better understanding of the book, but also pushed me to think and process what I was reading.
Another standard that should be considered when assigning reading is the age of the students. High school students need to be reading material that is mature enough while also being suitable for their reading level. The Giver is a book that appeals to most ages middle school and up but does include some content that isn’t the best for younger readers. The content is appealing, adventurous, and exciting all while being fitting for high school students. The Giver does include some material concerning euthanasia and minor sexual situations.
Although there is some sensitive content it’s nothing a high-school student can’t handle. Common Sense Media says "The novel has a disturbing scene in which Jonas witnesses his father euthanizing a baby by injecting it with a needle in the head. There are also mild sexual references. But the overall story is riveting — and the book is one of the most thought-provoking novels for children ever written” (Berman). Even though some material in the book may seem slightly vulgar, it is ideas and concerts that all student will have to learn about and face during their high school years. Despite the few mature ideas addressed, The Giver is still extremely valuable and worth assigning to high school students.
In addition to meaningful themes, effective discussion, and appropriateness, critical thinking is also extremely substantial. Thinking critically means genuinely analyzing and thoroughly evaluating the material. When students think analytically they are left questioning and considering what they read, why it is important, and how it relates to them. Evaluating books gives students better understanding of the context and purpose. This is essential to any required reading because it compels students to read more thoroughly and logically.
After Jonas escapes his utopian community and sleds down the snowy hill into “elsewhere”, the book ends. “Behind him, across vast distances of space and time, from the place he had left, he thought he heard music too. But perhaps it was only an echo” (Lowry 180). These last few lines wrap up the book with some room for interpretation which could encourage students to think more critically. Perhaps this ending is a symbol of hope and a fresh start in a new world of unleashed sensory and emotion. Students may also think and assess characters such as Jonas and observe his motivation, courage, and determination or the overall pursuit of societal perfection and executive power.
In conclusion, high school students are extremely busy and should only be taking the time to read books that will truly teach them something valuable. Books that are assigned should provide meaningful themes, prompts discussion, and provoke critical thinking. I believe that The Giver should be taught in schools because it tells a story while also providing themes such as the relationship between memory and emotion, stimulating discussion regarding utopian societies and how it compares to our world, is suitable and beneficial for all ages, and leaves reader to critically think about emotion, sensory, and freedom. The Giver is not just a boring old book on the reading list that you fall asleep reading and eventually merely skim. The Giver should remain on the school’s reading list because it engages, encourages, enlightens, and ultimately enriches their education.