Response to short extract from The Giver

     There was no answer to Jonas’s whisper. Gabriel was sound asleep.

     “Things could change, Gabe,” Jonas went on. “Things could be different. I don’t know how, but there must be some way for things to be different. There could be colors.
     "And grandparents," he added, staring through the dimness toward the ceiling of his sleepingroom. "And everybody would have the memories.
     "You know about memories," he whispered, turning toward the crib.
     Gabriel's breathing was even and deep. Jonas liked having him there, though he felt guilty about the secret. Each night he gave memories to Gabriel: memories of boat rides and picnics in the sun; memories of soft rainfall against windowpanes; memories of dancing barefoot on a damp lawn.
     "Gabe?"
     The newchild stirred slightly in his sleep. Jonas looked over at him.

     "There could be love," Jonas whispered.

     The next morning, for the first time, Jonas did not take his pill. Something within him, something that had grown there through the memories, told him to throw the pill away.



This is the scene where Jonas relays his feelings to Gabriel after his parents tell him that they feel that love is a vague and obsolete word. He is shocked and understands truly how emotionless and robotic his parents are. He realizes that nobody in the community, other than the Giver and himself, understands emotions, and that there is no use trying to explain to his parents the meaning of love. Also, he had tried to transmit memories to Asher and Lily earlier in the book, and it had been in vain. However, when he tries it on Gabriel, it works. Since Gabriel has pale eyes, he has the power of perception as well, and thus can receive the memories transmitted by Jonas. Thus, he is the only person other than the Giver, whom Jonas can identify with him. He serves as a sort of company to him when he is not with the Giver, as he is the only one to whom Jonas can reveal his thoughts openly. When Jonas is in immense loneliness, Gabe is of great comfort to him. Jonas likes having him around and feels love towards him. After speaking to him, he is rejuvenated with hope and confidence, and this is what urges him to cease taking the pills and instills the belief that love could be possible, in him.


This scene in the book was very touching. The way Jonas attained hope and confidence after talking with the baby made me feel irrationally happy. Babies frequently figure as symbols of hope and regeneration in literature, and in The Giver, Gabriel had a somewhat similar role. I felt that there was a very brotherly relationship between Jonas and Gabriel. Jonas even called him his brother once before correcting himself. I feel that they may have been brothers after all, because they both had pale eyes and could have had the same Birthmother, as Lily suggested in an earlier phase of the book.