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Metaphors
Definition of Mood
The mood of a piece of writing is its general atmosphere or emotional complexion—in short, the array of feelings the work evokes in the reader. Every aspect of a piece of writing... read full definition
The mood of a piece of writing is its general atmosphere or emotional complexion—in short, the array of feelings the work evokes in the reader. Every aspect... read full definition
The mood of a piece of writing is its general atmosphere or emotional complexion—in short, the array of feelings the work evokes... read full definition
Chapter 9
Explanation and Analysis:
The mood of The Giver is deeply questioning. The more Jonas understands about the Community, the more he distrusts everything he has ever known. For example, in Chapter 9, Jonas thinks about what it means that he has been given permission to lie:
Now Jonas had a thought that he had never had before. This new thought was frightening. What if others—adults—had, upon becoming Twelves, received in their instructions the same terrifying sentence?
What if they had all been instructed: You may lie?
His mind reeled. Now, empowered to ask questions of utmost rudeness—and promised answers—he could, conceivably (though it was almost unimaginable), ask someone, some adult, his father perhaps: “Do you lie?”
But he would have no way of knowing if the answer he received were true.
Turning 12 is an inherently lonely event in the Community because Twelves begin pursuing their assigned jobs and stop spending nearly so much time with their childhood friends. Assignments can even cause rifts between longtime friends, such as Jonas and Asher. As the new Receiver, Jonas is thrust into an even lonelier position than most. He must now train to be the sole person to know what the world was like before the Community was established and most pain and difficulty were eradicated. The right to lie is handed to him as though it should make him feel special and mature. Instead, it makes him feel even more alone. Either he is the only one allowed to lie, or adults may have been lying to him his whole life. He can't ask them because they could just lie. The passage is characterized by an understandable mix of paranoia and sadness that the utopian world Jonas once believed in is no more.
There are moments of delight in the novel, such as when Jonas first receives the memory of snow or when he begins to see in color. In these moments, Jonas quickly begins questioning again—why wouldn't the whole Community want access to these memories? Over the course of his year with the Giver, he comes more and more to see that the Community is wrong about the best way to live and wrong to tell its citizens not to question the rules. Although he briefly succumbs to defeatism, the mood of the novel swings back toward brave hope for a better world. He nearly dies (or actually dies, according to some readers' interpretation) during his escape with Gabriel; still, Jonas believes wholeheartedly that he is headed for a better future that does not require him to keep his head down and avoid asking questions.
Related Themes:
