Freedom of choice – it’s something that many of us take for granted in our everyday lives, and it is also something that not everyone in the world has.  Lowry brings her readers into a world where freedom of choice does not exist.  The novel shows how important it is for a society to have choices, and what can happen when they do not.  In the novel, freedom of choice is stripped away from each individual and from the society as a whole. For the most part, individuals seem to be happy with the jobs that they are given, but, that decision is still taken away from them. While the committee has watched them and studied each individual at great lengths, they do not do this in their best interest, but rather to keep the community running how they want it to.  

 Instead of taking pain and suffering away as the community hopes to do, they have hidden it.  The Giver had no choice in becoming the receiver, and neither does Jonas.  Instead of ending pain and suffering, they are instead placing all the pain and suffering on one individual.  It is obvious that The Giver has led a life that has been hard, and not of his choosing.  While freedom of choice can be a scary thing in the world, it is what makes each individual unique in their own way.  The society that they are forced to live in strips away their individuality and identity.  Although they are encouraged to feel and Jonas and his family members do tell one another about the dreams they have, it feels very much like a formality or something that is done only because it is required. 

 Making choices is something that defines a person, and for the most part the individuals in the novel are not allowed to make their own choices.  In a world such as the one in The Giver, it would be hard for individuals to create their own set of morals, and individuality and identity becomes something hazy and unimportant.  

 A question that I would leave readers with is, what are some advantages or are there any advantages to a society such as the one depicted in The Giver?