Sarah Baker
English 10
Messer 4
27 September 2010
The Most Important Memory
“All private ceremonies are recorded. They’re in the Hall of Closed Records. Do you want to see this morning’s release?” (Lowry 147). That simple question helped change Jonas’s view on life, his community, and his parents within a few minutes. He found out that the supposedly happy, hidden secrets of his community weren’t as lovely as they seemed.
The release process would have shocked the entire community if they would have known about what really happened after you cross through that door. The system of release was such a secretive, concealed fact of all their lives. Everyone knew that at the end of their life, they would be released into Elsewhere. To them, Elsewhere was a nice, refreshing place after having a successful life. Little did they know, they were approaching death slowly, and the day that they had waited for wasn’t so great. The Committee of Elders had to keep this secret a skeleton in the cupboard. By keeping the process of release a secret, they could save their community from disaster. This is why it’s so important that Jonas received this.
Their community had never felt pain, suffering, or any feelings at all. If they had known these lies that were happening every day, they might come to realization of how wrong it was, and try to change the community. The people in the community have no attatchment to anyone around them, but if they had a job that allowed them feelings (AKA The Giver, The Receiver), they might start revolting. That’s exactly what happened with Jonas and The Giver. The Committee of Elders had good reasons for keeping this from their people, but it should have been known. This entire viewing scared Jonas, and it would have scared the community if they knew. The impact it had on Jonas’s life was gigantic, and I’m sure that it was hard for him to go back, and see his father after his dad had just killed an innocent child.
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