The livelihood of the inhabitants of The Giver is rather eccentric compared to ours. The background of why they have families, population control, and the ways in which the stereotypical family structure is altered in this book are all pieces of a large puzzle. A mystery that requires a lot of analysis to understand the purpose of the book. The domestic structure of The Giver is exceptionally superficial. Because, although it seems like a typical family, so two parents and two children, the fact that these people were brought together by a council reveals just how synthetic their so-called families are. The fact that a council makes decisions for these people demonstrates their desire to be controlled and to eliminate pain from their lives. This particular society wants to place all the burdens of life and responsibility on a relatively tiny and select group of people. The council is a rather dark aspect of this story. Although they also don't want full responsibility and redistribute that burden to the Receiver of Memory who happens to be the main character Jonas. Referring back to my previous point about family, one must ruminate that Jonas' family is a spitting image of this superficial existence. After Jonas begins to experience both pain and pleasure, including memories of the warmth that family can bring, he realizes his family's underlying dysfunction. This is an epochal epiphany for Jonas. In my opinion, one of the most crucial points of the story is when Jonas asks his parents if they love him, and they reject that particular word. This event demonstrates that their bond with each other is considerably weak as well as unperse...... middle of paper...... of the control I object to most is the mandatory medication to prevent agitation. As humans, we are meant to have sex and choose our partners to procreate with. By removing these elements we lose an essential part of the human being. In this society, gender would become irrelevant, except for birth mothers. Sexuality is such a vital aspect of our lives and I think people who give it up are a little crazy. The Giver is a dystopian book that should be required reading in high school. It shows that people are sometimes willing to make great sacrifices to have a sense of direction and normalcy which can lead to negative consequences depending on your point of view. In this case Jonas and the donor are the only people alive in this society who are enlightened about how boring their lives are and realize that pleasure and pain are worth fighting for..