The Color Red In The Giver

Symbol~

In The Giver, the apple symbolises change. The symbol of the apple occurs in the story when Jonas and Asher play catch with an apple. For example, Lois Lowry writes, “But suddenly Jonas had noticed... The apple had changed” (30). By looking at this quotation we can infer that, for the first time, Jonas is beginning to see the color red. Therefore, it indicates that Jonas can undoubtedly see beyond. Jonas doesn’t know what color is yet, but he knows that the apple changed. Just like the apple, the sled in the memory the Giver gave Jonas was red as well. The community in The Giver eliminated memory so there would be no pain, grief, or regret. Without pain, the community is prevented from joining relationships and doing things that might cause them agony.

Imagery~

The author, Jeanne DuPrau, describes it as more than just being lackluster, it’s also the lack of knowledge, dwindling supplies, and the greed of people as the city slowly dies. DuPrau writes, “Lina knew about the generator, of course. In some mysterious way, it turned the running of the river into power for the city.” (67). By looking at this quotation, we can see that the people have lost their understanding of how anything works even their generator. A quote that demonstrates greed is, “It was like hunger, what she felt. It was the same as when her hand sometimes seemed to reach out by itself to grab a piece of food. It was too strong to resist.” (43). Lina knows she’s being greedy, but she can’t help herself. The people of Ember are living in a dark, dystopian world, without even realizing it. The mayor knows that the city is dying, but instead of trying to help his people, he decides to help himself and his chances of survival.

Figurative Language~

In The City of Ember, irony occurs throughout the novel. The author, DuPrau, uses the metaphor, “Somewhere inside her, a black worm of dread stirred.” to give us a picture of what Lina