While reading this novel, I couldn’t help but compare how similar the environments of both this one and The Giver were.
What makes this novel a distinctive piece is the focus of language, imagining how language can be warped in extreme social circumstances, resulting in the use of s certain use of language to be more accurate. For example, on page 118:
“Excuse me is what you say when you want to apologize for something. A long time ago it was also used to express gratitude, but you mustn’t apologize when you haven’t done anything wrong.”
“But we’re putting them to a lot of trouble.”
“We don’t talk about putting people to a lot of trouble anymore—that expression is dead. A long time ago, when civilization hadn’t progressed to where it is now, there used to be a distinction between useful and useless people.
This can be compared to the language restriction seen in The Giver, as certain language isn’t appropriate to use because of the connotation it brings out.
In addition to this, both novels share disjointed familial relationships or a lack thereof, as in this novel, it is the grandparents who responsible for the raising of children. In The Giver, parents are more described as helpful mentors rather than invested individuals (for example, the act and language of love were forbidden to use).