The Giver Novel Introduction Lesson

What is a novel?

Clipart Book Image A novel is a long prose narrative that usually describes fictional characters and events in the form of a sequential story. The genre has historical roots in the fields of medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter, an Italian word used to describe short stories, supplied the present generic English term in the 18th century.

Who is Lois Lowry?

Lois Lowry (born Lois Ann Hammersberg on March 20, 1937) is an American author of children's literature. She began her career as a photographer and a freelance journalist during the early 1970s. Her work as a journalist drew the attention of Houghton Mifflin and they encouraged her to write her first children's book, A Summer to Die, which was published in 1977 when she was forty years old. She has since written more than thirty books for children and published an autobiography. Two of her works have been awarded the prestigious Newbery Medal: Number the Stars in 1989, and The Giver in 1993.

As an author, Lowry is known for writing about difficult subject matters within her works for children. She has explored such complex issues as racism, terminal illness, murder, and the Holocaust among other challenging topics. She has also explored very controversial issues of questioning authority such as in The Giver quartet. Her writing on such matters has brought her both praise and criticism.

What are we reading?

The Giver is a dystopian children's novel by Lois Lowry. It is set in a society which is at first presented as a utopian society and gradually appears more and more dystopian. The novel follows a boy named Jonas through the twelfth year of his life. The society has eliminated pain and strife by converting to "Sameness," a plan that has also eradicated emotional depth from their lives.

Boy Image Jonas is selected to inherit the position of "Receiver of Memory," the person who stores all the past memories of the time before text annotation indicator Sameness, in case they are ever needed to aid in decisions that others lack the experience to make. When Jonas meets the previous receiver—The "Giver"—he is confused in many ways. The Giver is also able to break some rules, such as turning off the speaker and lying to people of the community. As Jonas receives the memories text annotation indicator from the Giver, he discovers the power of knowledge. The people in his community are happy because they do not know of a better life, but the knowledge of what they are missing out on could create major chaos. Jonas faces a dilemma: Should he stay with the community, his family living a shallow life without love, color, choices, and knowledge, or should he run away to where he can live a full life?

The Characters

Let's take a look at the characters in The Giver.

Having a good understanding of the characters will help you read more productively.

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