The Giver 11

Study Guide Questions for Chapter Eleven

If you are looking for the beginning of the study for The Giver then you can go HERE for a brief introduction. At the bottom of the introduction you will find the links to each section of the study guide as it becomes available. If you would like to see the growing list of available book studies available for free on this site you can go HERE. Enjoy!

Virtues/Vices/Great Ideas: (Find them in the Text)

Beauty, Education, Compassion

Grammar Questions: (The Information of the Text)

1. What had changed “during the night?”

2. What did the female attendant do “to his surprise” when Jonah first entered The Annex?

3. What did Jonas notice “to his discomfort” about The Receiver’s door?

4. What differences did Jonas notice about the furniture in The Receiver’s dwelling?

5. What was “the most conspicuous difference” that Jonas noted about The Receiver’s dwelling?

6. What did The Receiver not do when Jonas apologized for something?

7. What did The Receiver encourage Jonas to do if he did not understand something?

8. What was The Receiver supposed to “transmit” to Jonas?

9. What analogy did The Receiver attempt to use to convey his feelings of being “weighted with” memories?

10. What were some words which Jonas had no understanding of at all?

11. What was “an astonishing thing” to Jonas?

Logic Questions: (Interpreting, Comparing/Contrasting, Reasoning)

1. Why was it notable (and meaningful) for Jonas that the attendant at the Annex stood when he entered?

2. What should be inferred from the fact that “No doors in the community were locked, ever,” but The Receiver’s was?

3. Why are the differences between the typical furniture in the community and those found in The Receiver’s dwelling probably going to be important to this story?

4. Given the kind of books Jonas is said to be familiar with, what kind of books does he seem to have no knowledge of at all?

5. Why might it be important that The Receiver “did not give the standard accepting-of-apology response?”

6. Why might the role of being The Receiver of Memory be one that makes people so tired?

7. Jonas, in his confusion about what The Receiver is saying to him about memories, said, “I thought there was only now.” What did he mean by this? What are the implications of this statement?

8. What does it mean to be “weighted with” memories? How can memories be rightfully described as heavy or weighty?

9. What is significant about the fact that Jonas is so unfamiliar with many of the words mentioned by The Receiver?

10. What symbolism may be drawn from the action of The Receiver turning off the speaker in his room?

Rhetoric Questions: (The Analysis of Ideas in the Text)

1. Aesthetics is the philosophical study of “Beauty.” When considering the construction and arrangement of a home (or office building, or school, etc.) and its contents we may discuss the concepts of “form” and “function.” Form is about the appearance of something (its attractiveness or lack thereof) and function is about its usefulness and practicality (whether it meets the user’s needs). Often it has been said that “Form follows function,” meaning that usefulness and practicality are of first importance and aesthetics of secondary importance. In light of what you have read in this chapter, what are your thoughts as to how important both form and function are in society? Is one more important than the other or are they equally important? Explain your reasoning carefully.

2. The Receiver told Jonas, “Please ask any questions that will help you.” How important is it to be able to ask questions when it comes to gaining understanding? Why is question asking essential to the process of learning? Is it possible to learn just as well as another person who asks questions without ever asking any yourself? Why or why not?

3. The Receiver speaks of the role of experience and memories in the acquisition of wisdom. Why are both of these things critical to gaining wisdom? How important is it to gain the experiences and memories of other people besides ourselves in order to attain wisdom? What are some different ways in which we might seek after the experiences and memories of others in order to learn all that we need to become wise people?

Theological Analysis: (Sola Scriptura)

1. Read Joshua 4. What role does experience and memory in this passage play for the people of Israel? Why is the remembrance of these things important for them as a people?

2. Read Proverbs 1:20-33. In light of this passage of Scripture, why should we seek after wisdom?