Synthesis

The Giver: Chapter 12


Synthesis

After Jonas receives his first memory, he finds that it is not too hard to obey the rules that come with his position. His familyis used to his not dreaming frequently, so they do not question him much at dream-telling time. His friends are so busy describing their own training experiences thathe can just sit still and listen, knowing that he could not even begin to explain what happens in his training. As they bicycle to the House of the Old together, he talkswith his friend Fiona about her training as a Caretaker of the Old and notices her hair change the way the apple changed. At the Annex Jonas tells The Giver aboutthe changes, wondering if that is what the Giver means by seeing beyond. The Giver says that for him, his first experiences with seeing beyond took a different form, onethat Jonas would not understand yet. He asks Jonas to remember the sled from yesterday, and Jonas notices that the sled has the same strange quality as Fiona’s hair and theapple—it does not change as they did, it just has the quality. The Giver tells Jonas that he is beginning to see the color red, explaining that at one time everything inthe world had color as well as shape and size. The reason that the sled is just red, instead of turning red, is that it is a memory from a time when color existed. Jonasremarks that red is beautiful and wonders why his community got rid of it, and the Giver tells him that in order to gain control of certain things, the society had tolet go of others. Jonas says that they should not have done so, and the Giver tells Jonas that he is quickly acquiring wisdom. Then he gives Jonas the memory of a rainbow.