CHAPTER SUMMARY WITH NOTES

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Summary

Jonas and the Giver continue their conversation. Jonas tells the Giver that his father released a twin this morning. When the Giver says that he wishes they would not do that, Jonas laughs at the idea of having two identical people to confuse the community.

Jonas wishes aloud that he could have watched the release. Watching releases is forbidden to children. The Giver reminds Jonas of the special rules for his position. For him watching a release is allowed. And, since it was recorded, they can watch a recording of it. The Giver calls in a request and soon it is available on the video screen.

As the video begins, Father walks into a room followed by a woman. Each is holding a baby boy. Father weighs each one. He gives the larger one to the woman who takes him to the Nurturing Center. He opens a cupboard and takes out a syringe and a little bottle. He fills the syringe from the bottle. He inserts the needle into a vein in the newchild’s scalp. The newchild wiggles and cries softly. He moved his arms and legs and then he stops moving. Jonas is slow to realize what has happened. But, then he does. He tells himself that his father killed the newchild. He is shocked. His father puts the body into a carton and sends it down a chute. Then he says “Bye bye.” Then, the video ends.

The Giver tells Jonas about the release of the prior Receiver-to-be, Rosemary. The Giver has seen a tape of it also. In the tape, Rosemary was in a room waiting to be released. When a syringe was brought in, she requested to be allowed to inject herself. The Giver tells Jonas that he did not watch as she injected herself. Rosemary was brave and he was horror-struck.

Afterward, the Giver and Jonas are both very upset.

Notes

JonasÂ’s search for answers takes a giant leap forward today. And, the new information received is definitely not pleasant. He was suffering before this, but now it is worse.

One unbelievable piece of information that he receives through the video is that his father lied to him. The fear that was already in the back of his mind that others could be lying to him is actually accurate. This is a difficult piece of information for him to accept.

In his own way, Father was still the gentle Nurthurer with the released twin. He would have preferred that there was another way to handle the situation, but to Father there did not seem to be another way.

Finding out that the community has been less than honest about release can cause Jonas to be alert to other misnomers.

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