There are four book in the series, the first book being titled The Giver and the following three are called Gathering Blue, Messenger and Son. All of these stories take place in the same world although not all in the same community. Part of the beauty of the books is that although the stories are connected, and Lowry pulls all those strings together in her final book, it is not immediately obvious how they are connected. When one reads The Giver and then picks up the next book in the series, Gathering Blue, they automatically feel the deep contrast between the environments of the main character in the first book (Jonas) and the main character in the second book (Kira).
Despite the fact the settings are different, and even the cultural behaviors are strikingly different in each community featured in the series, there are certain themes in common which run through all of the stories. One of the clearest themes in these books is the need to value human life. The first two communities you get acquainted with in the series are in stark contrast to one another in some notable ways. The first community, where Jonas is from, is sterile, orderly, peaceful and technologically advanced. The second community, where Kira is from, is dirty, chaotic, violent and technologically stunted. Despite the stark differences, however, one becomes painfully aware that the ultimate problems are the same, namely, human life is not considered sacred or inherently valuable. People are means to an end and if they are able to fit the communities' standards, or be a helpful worker, then they should be put to death.
This serves as a powerful reminder that advancement in technology, or being higher in social position, do not equal ethical superiority. People can be brutal and evil in advanced societies just as much (if not sometimes more so) than in primitive ones. We often mistake other kinds of forward motion as synonymous with moral improvement; but this is a mistake.
The two communities you meet in The Giver and Gathering Blue are in juxtaposition to the two communities you meet in the latter books Messenger and Son. In Messenger you are introduced to a community known simply as 'Village', that was formed by those who have fled from numerous other communities because of the brutality they experienced. Most of those who have fled have some kind of 'imperfection' whether it be blindness, birthmarks, missing limbs, etc. All things that should never be seen as taking away from the value of a human person but which, where were from, was considered unacceptable, unprofitable and punishable by death.
One cannot help but think of elective abortion here. Parents today to often choose to terminate the life of their unborn child for any whim they might have. They wanted a boy, not a girl. The baby would have a deformity of some sort. The baby might be a carrier of a genetic disease, etc. As technology advances the threat of Eugenics begins to take new life. Soon parents will be able to design a baby to their specifications and discard any imperfection. But it's not just the unborn, it is the advanced in age or those who become crippled that societies have sometimes seen as a drain on the more able bodied. If the cost/benefit analysis doesn't work in your favor you may be in trouble in many societies and our own country is increasingly adopting this attitude.
Back to the review, the Village, made up of these refugees, is a return to civilization in its truest sense. The people there recognize the value of others simply for the fact that they are human beings. They willingly take care of one another and bear each others burdens, they welcome new comers escaping terrible situations. They are a picture of what we can be when we recognize that people matter and we treat them as we want to be treated (seems like that idea has been stated by a great teacher at some point). The fourth community, introduced in the fourth book, Son, is perhaps not as together as 'Village' is but there is still a much greater respect for life found there. Here you see a picture of families and children, and people coming together to meet needs, to support one another, and they welcome and care for the stranger that comes unexpectedly into their midst from the sea. These communities in contrast to the other two show us a picture of a humanity that has been lost in many other places in their world.
It should be pointed out that there are several other important themes in the book. One is the concept of love. Love for fellow man in general, the valuing human life, is of course already in view but these books also address more personal kinds of love towards specific individuals. In the Giver the very word 'love' is considered antiquated and without meaning in the Community. It is too ambiguous and lacks "precision of language" according to Jonas' parents. Throughout the series of books the concept of love is rediscovered by the main characters who have grown up in communities where the word carries little meaning or, at least, is not practiced by very many. Through the adventure of our main characters we see love well up within them in a variety of ways, normal human ways. Where marriage and marital intimacy was abandoned it is found. Where the natural connection between a mother and her baby has been cut off, it is reconnected. Where an orphan is discarded to the street, they are given a home. Love, these books teach us, is not an irrelevant concept after all.
Another important idea addressed is freedom and especially freedom of information and education. Information is power and in the first two books you see how information is carefully guarded by those in power. In our two negative communities the common person is not allowed to know things freely. In The Giver only the community rule book is allowed for reading and nothing else. In Gathering Blue only males are allowed to learn to read, but many of them do not appear to be interested in that prerogative anyway because intellectualism is not valued so much as hunting. Wherever information is controlled, either by force or social convention, people suffer. Education, the ability to read good literature and study ideas, is crucial for a community to thrive and become truly human.
One final theme I detected was the value of gender roles. This is, of course, a wildly unpopular notion in our society today. But Lowry points out the sacredness of both manhood and womanhood. The idea that men ought to be protectors, providers and self sacrificing is present and praised in the books. Also Lowry highlights motherhood, giving birth and raising children, and elevates it as a blessing that should be cherished. The idea of marriage and fidelity and how important they are to a healthy society is also pictured in these books. The failure of the family to be what it is meant to be may be the most critical problem our first two communities have. These themes could be easily overlooked but I hope the reader will see them there.
For certain there are also many spiritual overtones in the book. The main character in Messenger, (Matty) is something of a Christ figure by the time the story wraps up. There is a sinister character named Trademaster who grants people their wishes but only at the cost of trading part of their identity away. The Trademaster breaks down the humanity of individuals who give themselves away for things hardly worth so much adn in turn it breaks down the wholesome society of 'Village'. While the stories are not overtly Christian, and I would say that certain spiritual themes could be seen as bordering on new age, Christians can certainly see redeemable qualities and discussion points all throughout the series.
There is much to be enjoyed about The Giver series and I heartily recommend the books to you. There is adventure, wonder, battles between good and evil, heroes who persevere over unimaginable challenges and there is a sense of longing for what civilization is meant to be. That longing is not only experienced by the characters in the books but also by the reader who recognizes the fallen nature of our own culture. We long for a society where people are valued and respected and where our need to love and be loved is met. We long to know the truth and to be free. We long for forgiveness and a chance to start over.
The biggest downside to the series, in my opinion, is that while it grabs hold of so many important themes and recognizes some major problem in our own society (and personifies them in the communities) it does not sufficiently provide an answer to the problems. While one could say that it does, it answers it by saying "we must love our fellow man and value the family as it is intended to be" the problem is that a person could easily ask "and why is that?" The book provides no grounds other than an emotional appeal, a strong and good one, but just emotion. What is the objective reason for valuing life, for loving our neighbor?
As Christians we know that it is only in Christ, only by affirming the imago dei (image of God) in man, that there is any hope to see a restored humanity. No other worldview offers a foundation, a sufficient reason, for why we ought to love one another and treat people with respect. God is the necessary factor that needs to be explicitly pointed to for us to be able to take the concepts in The Giver quartet and be able to actually consistently apply them. If there is no God then there is no meaning, no purpose, no objective moral values and people are only a means and not an end. The gospel is the only path forward to creating a true humane society where these values are upheld. In the end it will be only when the Lord Jesus comes again that all of those desires we have will be perfectly fulfilled. Even then it is only so for those of us who have come to know the Savior.
