Chapter 10 · The Giver

Copywork

The fabrics on the upholstered chairs and sofa were slightly thicker and more luxurious; the table legs were not straight like those at home, but slender and curved, with a small carved decoration at the foot. The bed, in an alcove at the far end of the room, was draped with a splendid cloth embroidered over its entire surface with intricate designs.

But this room's walls were completely covered by bookcases, filled, which reached to the ceiling. There must have been hundreds—perhaps thousands—of books, their titles embossed in shiny letters. Jonas stared at them. He couldn't imagine what the thousands of pages contained.

The chairs and tables are only a little different from those at Jonas's home, but the books are a big change. Why might the writer show the small changes first?

For the educator Two passages: the furniture in the old man's room, and the walls of books. In the first passage, the first sentence joins two complete thoughts with a semicolon. The second thought turns on “not straight like those at home, but slender and curved,” a contrast built on “not ... but.” That sentence holds the vocabulary word “luxurious”. The second sentence sets a place apart with commas, “in an alcove at the far end of the room,” so the reader waits for the verb. It holds the vocabulary word “intricate”. The second passage opens with “But,” which turns from the three books Jonas knows to the walls of this room. Its second sentence sets “perhaps thousands” off with a dash on each side, as if Jonas corrects his guess while he looks. It holds the vocabulary word “embossed”. Then come two short sentences, and the second has an apostrophe that stands for a missing letter in “couldn't.” The student copies each sentence with its own capital and end mark, and makes the dashes long, with no spaces. The talk prompt asks why the writer shows the small changes before the big one. A student may say the small changes build toward the books, so the reader's surprise grows with Jonas's. Another may say that in a town where furniture is “standard,” even a curved table leg is a break, so the small changes matter on their own. Either answer can stand if the student points to the words.

Discussion

Narration Tell back the chapter in order. Start where Jonas and Fiona reach the House of the Old. Stop where the old man puts his hands on Jonas's back.

The Attendant stands up when Jonas walks in, and no one has ever done that for him before. What is he turning down when he says, “Call me Jonas”? Character
The book says, “No doors in the community were locked, ever.” Then it adds, “None that Jonas knew of, anyway.” What does that second line add? Author's choice
The man says his job has “enormous honor.” In the same breath, he says he once tried to train the next Receiver and failed. Why would he tell Jonas that before they even begin? Character
The man is telling Jonas about a sled ride, and he stops in the middle, at “and—.” Why does he stop there? Character
Jonas only stares at the walls of books. Why does one switch on the speaker make him almost gasp? Inference

Make a Connection Think of a story, or a time in your own life, when someone was the only one who knew something important. What was it like for them to be the only one?

Vocabulary

luxurious: The fabrics on the upholstered chairs and sofa were slightly thicker and more luxurious Rich, soft and costly-looking, finer than anything in an ordinary dwelling.
intricate: The bed, in an alcove at the far end of the room, was draped with a splendid cloth embroidered over its entire surface with intricate designs. Full of many small parts and fine details woven together.
embossed: There must have been hundreds—perhaps thousands—of books, their titles embossed in shiny letters. Raised up from a surface so you could feel it, like the shiny letters on the book spines.
sympathy: It was a look that combined interest, curiosity, concern, and perhaps a little sympathy as well. A feeling of sorrow for someone who has something hard ahead of them.
diminish: The failure of the previous selection was ten years ago, and my energy is starting to diminish. Grow smaller or weaker little by little, as the old man's strength is doing.
concept: He tried, in his mind, to grasp the concept. An idea of what something is, like the idea of a whole world beyond the community.
deftly: This one had a switch, which the man deftly snapped to the end that said OFF. Quickly and skillfully, with no fumbling.
transmit: "I am going to transmit the memory of snow," the old man said, and placed his hands on Jonas's bare back. Send or pass something from one person to another.

Critical thinking

Jonas says he is sorry, and the man waves it away: “No apologies in this room. We haven't time.” Is time his only reason?
Jonas says, “I thought there was only us. I thought there was only now.” Which is the bigger shock for him: more places, or more past?
The old man keeps “the memories of the whole world,” and he says he is “so weighted with them.” Is being the one who keeps them a job worth wanting?