The Giver
| The Giver | |
|---|---|
| Author | Lois Lowry |
| Published | 1993 |
| Read by subject | Age 12 |
| Attributed effect | Political views; perspective on society |
| Operative element | Chemical suppression of feeling |
| Books named since | None |
This article concerns the novel's influence on Robert Vasquez. For the novel itself, consult a different encyclopedia.
The Giver is a 1993 novel by Lois Lowry, set in a society that has removed pain and conflict from life by also removing memory, colour, choice and desire. Within RobPedia it is significant as the work Robert Vasquez credits with shaping his political views and his perspective on society.[1] He read it at twelve and has not named a second book.
[edit]What registered
Asked which part of the novel actually affected him, Vasquez did not cite the plot, the ending, or the protagonist. He cited the machinery: that there is no intercourse; that the population takes drugs; that the suppression is delivered through the food and through injections that numb them.[1]
This is a narrower reading than the one usually taught. The standard classroom framing of The Giver is about memory and freedom. His is about sedation — a society that runs smoothly because feeling has been chemically removed from the people inside it.
[edit]Consequences
Read against that, three otherwise unrelated positions in his record resolve into one position.
| Stated position | Corresponding element of the novel |
|---|---|
| “On a 1-on-1 level: feel something. Tension. Passion.” | The suppression of feeling |
| The most important question is “why,” and he cannot stop asking it | A society that functions because nobody asks |
| He is not on social media and despises it | A comfortable medium that narrows range |
Roughly twelve years separate reading the book from articulating the aim. Neither the subject nor this encyclopedia claims the connection was deliberate.[1]
On a 1-on-1 level: feel something. Tension. Passion.
Vasquez, 2026 — the sentence this entire article is about[1][edit]Reception among his friends
Mixed. At least one associate has indicated the topic arrives earlier in an evening than strictly necessary.[2] No associate has disputed that he means it.
[edit]See also
- Super network § Relation to the one-to-one aim
- Early life of Robert Vasquez § Reading
[edit]References
| Robert Vasquez[hide] | |
| Life | Robert Vasquez · Early life · Travels · The Giver · Spartacus |
|---|---|
| Physical | Bench press · Golf career |
| Theory | Super network · Vasquez Compatibility Test |
| Meta | Critical reception · Talk page · Revision history · Main Page |