The Giver by Lois Lowery

    "Sameness" is an ideology in the community in The Giver. The ideology states that in order to keep perfect harmony and community, hunger, poverty, war, love, and sadness must be taken away. At a first glance Sameness seems ideal and blissful. The best way to make everyone happy is to do away with anything that causes unhappiness. However further into the book, the reader realizes that Sameness isn't perfect, it's empty.

     "Ignorance is bliss" is a saying often thrown around. But, why is it so blissful to be ignorant? Because worrying is done away with. One does not have to constantly frustrate themselves on small details. In fact, this quote is from a poem about simply a man reliving his youth and enjoying the sounds of nature. This same ideal is promoted in Sameness. In this community, residents do not constantly think about violence, heartbreak, or sorrow. They don't have to worry about this blissful feeling ever disappearing.

     But sameness is flawed. The structure itself relies on the person that holds the position of the Receiver. The Receiver receives the communities pain, memories, and all around sadness. Like a shaman or a librarian. Since the Receiver receives everything, he or she is at a point of almost collapsing. That happened at one point where the Receiver almost collapsed so she told the whole town about all these weird memories and was released or killed. Which brings me to my next point, releasing. The elders believe that all imperfect people, whether it be seniors who have grown out of their working and productive age or babies that aren't up to the right health requirements, should be released, or killed. And finally there's the logical thought that if one does not experience sadness, one cannot properly enjoy life. Instead people in this community just seem to be going through the motions. This idea of sameness, though it promises prosperity, it produces an empty life.

     Sameness, like most things, aren't what they seem on the surface. When you dig deep into this ideology, it doesn't promise a happy life, just a prosperous, carefree one. Ignorance is bliss, but ignorance isn't joyfulness.