Entry #6, The Giver

Why do we always seem to protect ourselves from reality?  It is like, we try to either ignore what’s happening, or we try and shield the youth by simply keeping them uninformed of what actually happens.  Parents and guardians say it is to protect the youth, but isn’t knowledge a better protection?  If we go into the world like a bright-eyed deer, we will have to learn about life the hard way.  How is this protecting?

In The Giver, their system of life is called ‘sameness’, which is when there are no colors, music, emotions, or hardships.  Everyone’s life is planned out, to when kids get their bikes, who people get married to, how many kids each couple will have, and what profession they will have for the rest of their life.  Also, their life has been built so that no-one experiences pain, sadness, or confusion except for the receiver.  The elders do this to ‘protect’ the people from everything wrong with the world, but when a few memories of hardship do escape, the world goes into panic. 

Is that how we want to live our life?  When the smallest mention of the past of hardships gets out, we all go crazy?  How is that protecting you?  I think in life we have to roll with the punches, and accept what will eventually come, not try and only live in the moment.  Yet, many people say that ‘living life in the moment‘ and not worrying about what is to come is the best way to live life, because you get the most experiences out of it.  My dad, for instance, never plans anything and just does things when he wants to, even when he knows nothing about something and embarrasses me by asking the stupidest questions.  I feel though, that if I was warned for instance how stressful middle school can be, I would get a little nervous maybe but in time that pays off because then I would know what to expect from middle school and how to prepare for the stress that may come.   

In The Giver, one of the first things that the elder told Jonas about his job as receiver is that it would hurt.  It would hurt a lot.  Jonas, like me, adapted to the warning and learned that though it will hurt at times, it can be so amazing other times.  I feel like we all have different styles of living our life, and I guess I can’t truly say which one is wrong or right because it all depends on the person.  But I will say that when parents say they are ‘protecting‘ their kids, they are usually just hurting kids the more they keep them uninformed.  No-one wants to be a clueless person in life, with no map, so though you may get nervous, I know many people that would rather be nervous then stupid.