The plot of a story usually revolves around the main conflict, which in The Giver, is man vs society. More specifically, the plot is Jonas vs Sameness.If it weren't for Jonas's community choosing to live this lifestyle, there would not be a need to have a Receiver of Memory. Also, people would have freedom of choice and be able to decide what to do with their lives without interventions by the government. The...
The plot of a story usually revolves around the main conflict, which in The Giver, is man vs society. More specifically, the plot is Jonas vs Sameness. If it weren't for Jonas's community choosing to live this lifestyle, there would not be a need to have a Receiver of Memory. Also, people would have freedom of choice and be able to decide what to do with their lives without interventions by the government. The first time Jonas learns about Sameness is after he receives the first memory about sledding down a snowy hill. When Jonas asks why they don't have snow anymore, the Giver informs him about Sameness.
"Climate Control. Snow made growing food difficult, limited the agricultural periods. And unpredictable weather made transportation almost impossible at times. It wasn't a practical thing, so it became obsolete when we went to Sameness" (83-84).
This is only the first lesson Jonas receives about Sameness. The plot becomes more complicated when Jonas learns that in order to live under Sameness, the community had to sacrifice many joyful feelings, emotions, and experiences, as well as the bad. For example, the community gave up being able to see colors in order to achieve equality without the desire for preferences. The only way to achieve Sameness is if citizens are not tempted to be different from each other. The Giver explains it to Jonas as follows:
"We relinquished color when we relinquished sunshine and did away with differences. . . We gained control of many things. But we had to let go of others" (95).
Jonas is so disappointed by this answer that he becomes emotionally charged. He expresses to the Giver that he would like to wake up in the morning and choose which color of tunic to wear for the day. This event elevates the struggle between Jonas and Sameness and prepares him for the next shocking bit of information that completely changes his mind about participating in the community's way of life.
The final event that completely changes Jonas's mind about the "benefits" of Sameness is when he realizes that "releasing" someone from the community means killing them and not sending them off to live in another place. Unfortunately, Jonas has to witness his father killing a newborn baby with a lethal injection to incite him to rebel completely. After Jonas watches his father place the little body into a box and send it down the garbage chute, he says to himself, "He killed it! He killed it!" (150).
From this point on, Jonas plots with the Giver to end Sameness in his community. By escaping the boundaries of the community, the memories would flow back to the people and they would not be able to go back to living the way they have. The people would be forced to face difficult problems by suffering through them rather than by avoiding them.
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