For all of you that don't know, we're reading "The Giver" in Rogate class. The following is an analysis of Chapter 16, a journal entry from Jonas' perspective, that we were instructed to do today.
Dear Journal,
The job of being the Receiver of Memory has become a rather overwhelming experience for me in the past few days. I began today with a rather unusual memory about certain people that are called grandparents. It was strange enough to think of the snowy day, with the grandparents deliberately giving packages to young children. What made it even stranger is the fact that I have grandparents, as the Giver told me. A grandparent is the mother or father of a parent. I had never thought of the idea before, but when it comes to mind, the whole thing actually makes sense in my mind.
I was then told of a certain thing called "love." In fact, that was the certain thing that I felt in the room, the strong feeling. I had never seen anything like the light and the warmth that it brought. I felt that it would be a dangerous way to live, but a better way to live then we do now.
I came home after seeing grandparents and love and asked my parents a question: "Do you love me?" What I received in response was neither a yes or a no. Laughter. They merely laughed at me without a care in the world. Father told me to "use language more precisely." They told me that they "enjoy" me and "take pride in my achievements" but a true answer was nowhere to be found.
After the events of the day, I feel like questioning the way that we live. I feel as if my life has bee one huge lie this entire time, that what they told me was not true. What they told me was the "right way to live" was simply a way to make things more organized, not beneficial. Is there another world out there that lives unlike we do? Do we live in a world of lies? Was this how we once lived our lives?
With Great Sincerity,
Jonas
