Ignorance In The Giver By Lois Lowry

“Ignorance is not bliss. Bliss is knowing the full meaning of what you have been given.” said David Levithan. In her dystopian novel, The Giver, Lois Lowry is able to convey the same idea as this quote. In this book, people created the Community in which the members are in a supposedly safe and happy environment. The Elders choose Jonas, the main character, to be the next Receiver of Memory and his training helps him to experience the past and see the deep flaws in the Community. Lois Lowry uses Jonas’ conflicts to develop the theme that ignorance only brings happiness temporarily. Lowry uses Jonas’ internal struggle, dialogue between characters, and Jonas’ training as the Receiver of Memory to highlight and develop this theme.

After feeling love through his training as the Receiver, he asks his parents about their love for him. The conversation between them says, “ Jonas asks, ‘Do you love me?’...Later, his mom responds, ‘Your father means that you used a very generalized word, so meaningless that it’s become almost obsolete’ ” (Lowry 127). The ignorance that they have grown up knowing, does not allow them to fully be happy by experiencing love. Later in the same conversation, “ ‘Do you understand why it’s inappropriate to use a word like ‘love’?’ Mother asked. Jonas nodded, ‘Yes, thank you, I do,’ he replied slowly. It was his first lie to his parents. Jonas has never lied to anyone before. When he lies for the first time, Jonas does it to defend love. Jonas realizes that no one in the Community can be truly happy when they are ignorant to love. The dialogue between characters is very important to the development of the plot, but Lowry additionally uses Jonas’

Throughout his training, the Giver gifts Jonas with many good memories to offset some of the horrific memories. The memory of war in particular is too traumatizing for Jonas to handle, no matter how many good memories the Giver can entrust to him. For example, the passage describes, “From the distance. Jonas could hear the thud if cannons. Overwhelmed by pain, he lay there in the fearsome stench for hours, listened to men and animals die, and learned what warfare meant. Finally, when he knew that he could bear it no longer and would welcome death itself, he opened his eyes and was once again on the bed,” (Lowry 120). Jonas has lived his life in a Community that does not learn about the past memories. Due to this ignorance that the Community instilled in him, it is harder for him to deal with the memory of war. Moreover, the Community uses ignorance as a temporary solution so that the residents feel a false sense of happiness. Jonas can only now see that this is a temporary fix by experiencing the memories through his training. Soon after, the Giver provides Jonas with a joyful memory as an attempt to balance out the memory of war. The story describes, “While Jonas watched, the people began one by one to untie the ribbons on the packages, to unwrap the bright papers, open the boxes and reveal toys and clothing and books. There were cries of delight. They