The Archetypal Hero In Lois Lowrys The Giver - 1012 Words

Imagine a world with no feelings, no color, no choice; a world where individuality and freedom are exchanged for security and sameness. This type of world is a reality for Jonas, the protagonist in Lois Lowry’s The Giver. After being assigned the next Receiver of Memories in the community, where he has the capacity to see beyond. As he begins his works, he gains wisdom and through that wisdom, learned that protecting the community from the memories, their lives lacked understanding and feelings. Jonas goes on an archetypal hero’s journey and chooses to risk everything to restore memories and wisdom to everyone in the community. Throughout this novel, Jonas is represented as a hero considering he demonstrates integrity despite living in a†¦show more content†¦So he decides that he is not letting it continue to just allow it to keep happening, besides it would be the easiest thing to do. Integrity is only one characteristic, there is much more to a hero. One of the genuine common traits of a true hero is their selfless nature. They give more importance to the well-being of others over their personal self. If it were not for this trait, heroes would not have the desire to help others in need. This quality is portrayed by Jonas to Gabe: â€Å"†¦ he forced the memory of warmth into the thin, shivering body in his arms† (Lowry 221). Jonas gives the memories of warmth to Gabe near the end of the book as they were climbing up the hill. He gave the memories to Gabe in order to keep him warm and not let him freeze in the cold weather; he helps Gabe so he doesn’t have to suffer the pain. Jonas proves his selflessness by being more concerned about the well-being of Gabe rather himself. Jonas’s selfless nature also was shown when he volunteers his time to working with the elderly that need help bathing themselves (Lowry 38). Jonas could have volunteered in other areas of the community that are not as uncomfortable as bathing elderly adults, yet he didn’t because it’s not about the appearance of others, it’s about their well-being and needs. If heroes didn’t acquire this trait they would not be able