Jonas lives in a lovely community where the Elders have everything under control including the weather. There is no war and everyone knows their place in the community.
Jonas is a bright young student who is chosen to be the new "Receiver." At the age of 12 he begins his work by reporting to the Giver. The Giver passes on the memories of past generations to Jonas so they will not be forgotten. Only one person at a time is allowed to hold all the memories. As Jonas receives the memories, something stirs inside him. Something is gravely wrong with the world around him.
The Elders of the community where Jonas lives decided that "sameness" is best for the community. Replace "sameness" with any other word and you realize that this book has been done many times over. Even though I enjoyed the book, I can't recommend it because I am sure everyone has read a similiar story which is probably better than this one. Oh, and did I mention this book is for young adults ? I'm a young adult, really......
Anyway, there is a description in the book of an infant being euthanized which I think would be disturbing for some young adults.
If you would like a similiar story which is deeper, gets the point across, and doesn't include descriptions of infants being euthanized, I would suggest "Anthem" by Ayn Rand. "Sameness" is replaced with "collectivism" but the underlying theme is the same - the importance of holding individualism in highest regard.
This book had the greatest impact on my thinking since the New Jersey school system. Wow, that sounds strange but its true. The educational system where I live has had a virtual monopoly on my source of knowledge since the age of 5 ! Sure, sense experience has shaped my thoughts along my life time, but they have never been fully processed and organized. They are more like references in a dictionary. I may know alot of words and can read the whole dictionary but without organization they are just a whole lot of words piled up in a book.
I only know one other person who is familiar with Ayn Rand and he turned out to be a devout objectivist. I will try my best to highlight the most important points in each chapter. I realize most people are not interested in philosophy BUT in the very least, this will help me to understand it better, and hopefully interest someone out there, someone who is seeking.............................
I am sure some readers will challenge the ideas presented in the book, but I will not explain them in my review. A library of books can be written on each topic. Therefore if you have any questions, ideas, arguments, or would like to discuss this book please feel free to email me. I am a beginner but I weclome open discussion and debate.
Chapter 1 - Reality
Man is a conceptual being. The concepts man forms are integrated into principles. Philosophy integrates these principles. All philosophic principles are interrelated. You can not randomly apply them piece-meal.
There are five branches of philosophy, each one will be considered, and in order of importance.
Metaphysics The first axiom in Objectivism is existence exists. Or as Parmenides stated, what is, is. By simply being able to read this first axiom, the second axiom is implied, that you exist possessing consciousness. Consciousness is the faculty of perceiving that which exists. ( the first two axioms are similiar to Descartes "cogito ergo sum" - the very fact that you can question existence, enforces the proof of existence )
note: to someone who is unfamiliar with the topic of metaphysics, this argument may seem silly, but the seemingly simple statements above have been debated throughout human existence !
As I stated earlier, each point can be discussed or argued for eons, so I promise this is the first and last note I will write.
