Analysis of The Giver

The Giver represents many ideas in the setting of a dystopia.  I think the exaggerated themes of security and equality emphasize the value of suffering, success, as well as the stress of love in relationships.  The Giver constantly poses the question to the reader, do the benefits outweigh the hardships that occur if life is not controlled.  Although the society possesses a great sense of security, the members are only safe due to the “ignorance is bliss” principle.  There are no feelings present in the members.  Because they cannot grasp the concept of suffering, pain, or sadness, they are always safe and content.  However, in a parallel sense they cannot grasp the concept of love.  This changes the entire structure of their society, most importantly the family structure.  The society becomes built around the function rather than enjoyment.  

Notable Moment in The Giver

            I think the most profound moment in this book is when Jonas transfers his memories to Gabriel in chapter 14 when he calms Gabriel’s crying by giving him the memory of a sailboat.  Jonas has been enduring an inner conflict concerning his frustration that everyone cannot share the memories, which leaves him alone in these experiences.  This action of him deliberately transferring memories marks the side of the struggle that was winning and suggests that subconsciously he had already made the decision that it would be better for everyone to share the memories despite the suffering it would cause.  

Analysis of Mrs. Frisby

            In the fantasy Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, I was especially interested in not only the message conveyed about mothers but also the overall message concerning the female role.  I was first struck by the drive that Mrs. Frisby possessed as a mother to make so many sacrafices and risks to save one of her children, all the while keeping calmness about her for her children’s sake.  I thought it was a positive message that she was willing to go to these measures to save just one of her children and refused to accept the idea of stranding him.  We discussed in class how Mrs. Frisby’s lack of personal identification suggests the dependence of women on their husbands as she is always referred to as Mrs. Frisby or Jonathan’s husband and never given a name.  It is also notable that any help she gets is earned through her husband’s previous relations, none on her own.  Despite the impressive measures that she travels, the owl and the rats are only convinced to offer their serious attention when they learn of her husband.  In addition, the fact that Jonathan had hidden a huge secret of his life and his superiority in knowledge and physicality from Mrs. Frisby indicates a furthering of the idea of male dominance.   

Notable Moment in Mrs. Frisby

           The moment that stood out most for me as an essential representation of the character of Mrs. Frisby was when Mrs. Frisby made the decision to face the cat, putting her children and their well being first above even her own life.  This shows her dedication as a mother as well as her bravery.  When she sees that there are no more options or resources available with the rats, she sacrifices herself but only after considering what is best for her children.  The rats respect her for this and allow her to follow through with the challenge that killed their friend and her husband.  This act of bravery and love by Mrs. Frisby is reciprocated by the rats committed loyalty as they come back to save her and follow through with their promise to save her children even after learning of the danger they were now presented with.

Anticipating Mrs. Frisby

I had never read Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH and to be honest was not really looking forward to another book with talking animals.  The plot was very different than what I expected in my preconceived notions mostly just based off of the title.  I read a book review that focused on "social sensitivity" in this book.  It stated that O'brien presents the effects of science as profound but neither all bad nor all good.  I thought this was interesting because this is very unique to fantasies and many present technology as evil.  The same review quotes O'brien saying that "The mind learns that it is not easy to separate good from bad; they become deviously intertwined. From books [one] learns that not all doors are simply open or shut, and that even rats can become heroes."

Analysis Lewis and Rowling

Both Rowling and Lewis present a similar plot that involves the conflict of real vs. secondary world and contain magic and evil.  The Goblet of Fire and Magician’s Nephew specifically have a created second fantastical world apart from reality.  These stories are both part of a series, which progressively grow darker and darker, to the point where they could possibly be considered dark fantasies.  They both certainly contain a powerful evil focus: Jadis and Voldemort.  These two characters play the same role in their stories and both are foiled by equally strong positive powers: Aslan and Dumbledore who posess an incredible wisdom.  The Goblet of Fire in particular portrays some gruesome qualities.  The similarities between these two series written by Lewis and Rolwings, especially the characters, represent the real world struggle of good vs. evil.  

Notable Moment in The Goblet of Fire

     There are several very profound moments in the Goblet of Fire, I think more so than in most other plots allow.  However, I specifically remember being hooked on a moment the first time I read the book when I was younger.  The moment when Harry sees Hermione at the Yule Ball and is blown away by her gorgeousness.  I wish I could say that this was as notable to me the second time but it is never really supported or worked up it is just stuck in there and kind of left hanging.  It obviously hints towards a special sort of connection between Harry and Hermione that I, as a romance lover, was hoping for a little more.  In my second read however, I found that there was much more of a focus on the moment when Harry saves Cedric in the enchanted maze.  I feel like the seriousness of this moment is not very accurately portrayed in the movie but this moment represents a lot more than just the power of the maze, dark magic, or Harry and Cedric's relationship.  It also stands for all that Harry has been through and its effects on his character.  The movie does portray the out of character hesitation for Harry to save the life of his companion while he is caught up in the competition and then the resuming of his goodness when he shares the prize with Cedric at the end which ironically leads to death.