Kevin
Rating: 4.0/5
Although apparently intended for young teens, The Giver is a short story that tackles some incredibly heavy subject matter. It gives off strong Animal Farm vibes by wrapping a potent political message in an idyllic setting that eventually reveals itself to be a dystopia. The population appears happy, but only because they lack the frame of reference to know what true happiness actually is. This emotional detachment becomes chillingly clear in the clinical scenes of "releasing" the elderly, the disobedient, or the very young when they no longer fit the community's rigid design.
My only real criticism is the ending. It concludes with very little resolved, leaving the author’s true intent up to interpretation. While I believe Lowry wanted readers to finish the narrative in their own minds, I personally wish we had been given a concrete, definitive conclusion.
Rating: 4.0/5
Although apparently intended for young teens, The Giver is a short story that tackles some incredibly heavy subject matter. It gives off strong Animal Farm vibes by wrapping a potent political message in an idyllic setting that eventually reveals itself to be a dystopia. The population appears happy, but only because they lack the frame of reference to know what true happiness actually is. This emotional detachment becomes chillingly clear in the clinical scenes of "releasing" the elderly, the disobedient, or the very young when they no longer fit the community's rigid design.
My only real criticism is the ending. It concludes with very little resolved, leaving the author’s true intent up to interpretation. While I believe Lowry wanted readers to finish the narrative in their own minds, I personally wish we had been given a concrete, definitive conclusion.