The Giver

The power found within the individuals in the story is taken away from them due to their orderly behavior and conduct. Because they want to be safe, they end up losing something that we all have- uniqueness. They lose their individualism and become more like machines. They know not of the meaning of love and create a baby like a machine creates goods. The black and white world without any color is seen as sameness. In a way, while reading the Giver, two thoughts came into my head. One, it is very much like th emovie Pleasantville and two, it is like Ayn Rand's Anthem. Pleasantville could be compared to this because the people in that town live in a perfect community with no color but that begins to change when a little color begins to enter their eyes. To me, color is happiness. When you think of color, it represents joy and happiness, which is why many bold colors are used in cartoons. Like Anthem, the individual in the Giver knows that the way they live is wrong. Jonas, who becomes the receiver knows that at some point in life everyone should be able to feel pain as well as pleasure.In Anthem, the community is much like the community in the Giver where the government chooses the jobs they will place upon you and everyone is given a number. This way takes away their identity. To be able to have feelings of all sorts is a gift that should not be taken away and even though at times it may hurt, we must feel it in order to know the experience.