What Does Release Mean in The Giver? Key Terms Explained
A gentle-sounding word with the darkest meaning in the book
In The Giver, release means being put to death. The community presents it as a peaceful departure to Elsewhere, and most people believe that is all it is. Jonas learns the truth when he watches a recording of his father releasing a newborn twin with an injection.
Release is used for the very old, for babies who do not thrive or are the smaller of identical twins, for people who break the rules repeatedly, and for those who ask for it.
Who gets released, and why?
Release removes anyone who does not fit. The old are released after a celebration of their lives, and everyone believes it is a gentle ending. A pilot who made a dangerous mistake is released for it. When identical twins are born, the smaller one is released, because the community wants no confusion. People can also ask to be released, as Rosemary did. Children are told that released people go Elsewhere, and their names may be given to a new baby.
Jonas learns the truth when the Giver shows him a recording of his father, a kind and gentle man, quietly ending a newborn's life. The scene is short and not graphic, but it is the moment the novel turns, and it is why Jonas decides to leave.
↑ Back to the topWhat is Sameness?
Long ago, the community chose to make everything the same in order to remove conflict and pain. Weather is controlled, so there is no snow or sun. Hills were flattened, colors removed, and strong emotions dulled. Even people's appearance is made as alike as possible. Sameness ended hunger and war, but it also ended music, love and the ability to choose.
↑ Back to the topThe Ceremonies and Assignments
Every December the whole community gathers for the Ceremony, where each age group moves up. Sevens get jackets with front buttons, Nines receive bicycles, and at Twelve each child is given an Assignment, the work they will do for life. The Elders choose it after years of quiet observation. Jonas is skipped at first, then named Receiver, the highest honour of all.
↑ Back to the topWhat are the Stirrings?
Stirrings are the first feelings of attraction that come with growing up. When Jonas dreams about Fiona, his mother explains that he must now take a small pill every morning, as every adult does, to stop them. Giving up the pill is one of Jonas's first acts of independence, and it is one of the reasons some parents have challenged the book.
↑ Back to the topPrecision of language
Children are corrected whenever they use a word loosely. Asher is famously disciplined for saying distraught when he meant distracted. The rule sounds harmless, but it also removes words that carry strong feeling. When Jonas asks his parents if they love him, they gently tell him that love is a meaningless word. Control of language is one of the ways the community controls thought.
↑ Back to the topThe Giver glossary
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Release | Being put to death, described as going Elsewhere |
| Elsewhere | Supposedly the place released people go; really just outside the community |
| Sameness | The system that removed color, weather, hills and strong feelings |
| Ceremony of Twelve | The yearly ceremony where twelve-year-olds receive their Assignments |
| Assignment | The job chosen for you by the Elders |
| Receiver of Memory | The one person who holds all memories of the past |
| Stirrings | The first feelings of attraction, stopped with a daily pill |
| Family unit | Two matched adults with one boy and one girl |
| Birthmother | A woman assigned to bear three babies, then do labour |
| Precision of language | The rule that words must be exact |
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