Diction In The Giver By Lois Lowry

Generally, when a person is put on the spot they suddenly feel different from those around them. Jonas experiences this type of situation first hand. Lois Lowry uses this moment to create anxious and anguished tones in chapters 7 or 8 of The Giver by utilizing specific words and phrases.

The first tone Lowry creates through careful wording during the Ceremony of Twelve is anxious. The text states, “Then, at last, the Chief Elder called number One to the stage, and the Assignments began.”(52) Lowry uses a small cliffhanger in order to create suspension. She utilizes the transition words “then” and “at last” in order to create the sense that all the suspense that had filled the room from the very start has slowly been built up until this specific portion of the ceremony. The author makes it clear that the room is filled with anxiety and

Another example occurs when Jonas’ number gets skipped, and the text says, “He felt dizzy, and couldn't focus his attention. He didn't hear what Assignment Pierre received, and was only dimly aware of the applause as the boy returned, wearing his new badge. Then: Twenty-one. Twenty-two.”(57) Jonas had mentally prepared himself for the moment when he would get called up and receive his assignment. But just when he’s supposed to get called, the number after his is called instead. Both Jonas and the reader are instantly filled with confusement and anxiety. Jonas slowly begins to panic as can be seen in the quote. He starts to feel dizzy and pays almost no attention to the boy who was currently receiving his assignment. Lowry uses this to make it obvious that at that moment Jonas was filled with a very large amount stress and anxiety — so much that he was barely aware of the applause of the entire crowd sitting in front of him. Jonas felt as if he was about to pass out. At the end of the quote Lowry writes, “Then: Twenty-one. Twenty-two,” which only assists in displaying Jonas’s feeling of