1. The Giver
By Lois Lowry

2. Welcome to Utopia
Utopia is a perfect place where people can lead perfect lives. The Giver takes place in such an ideal community.

3. Here are other utopias that people have described or written about through the ages.
The Golden Age
The Garden of Eden
Atlantis

4. A Greek Term
The word utopia was derived from the Greek ou topos, which means “no place.”
Some synonyms for utopia are paradise, arcadia, and Zion.

5. Who invented rules?
No one knows for sure when the first “rule” was invented.

6. There have been formal rules for people to follow since ancient times.
Golden Rule- “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
Bushido- unwritten code that guided the samurai
Gravitas- a traditional rule of dignity that Roman citizens were expected to live by

7. CONNOTATION
The connotations of a word are the suggestions and associations that go along with the word, stretching beyond its dictionary meaning.
Notice the first sentence of the novel “It was almost December and Jonas was beginning to be frightened.”
The word December is rich in connotations: cold, darkness, the death that comes to plants in winter.

8. Euphemism
A euphemism is a word or term that has mild or vague connotations and that serves to mask the offensiveness or harshness of the actual word or term. What euphemisms are used in our society?

9. Watching Your Words
Early in the novel, we learn that the citizens of Jonas’ world are taught to use precise language.
Not only are rules and apologies recited in unison at school, but students carefully choose the right adjectives to describe certain situations or what they are thinking or feeling.

10. Irony
Irony is the difference between the way things seem and the way they really are.

11. Foreshadowing
Giving hints or clues about events that are going to happen later in the plot is called foreshadowing.

12. Conflict
Conflict is a problem or struggle between two characters, a character and society, a character and nature, or a problem within a character.
In The Giver, the main conflict is between Jonas as an individual and the society in which he lives.

13. Setting
The setting of the novel is the time and place in which the action occurs.
The Giver takes place in some unspecified time in the future in a place very much like Earth that can be described as a utopian community.

14. Creating a Perfect World
How would you describe the perfect society?