The ending of The Giver may be interpreted in two very different ways.

[Rolla]

Perhaps Jonas is remembering his Christmas memory—one of the most beautiful that The Giver transmitted to him—as he and Gabriel are freezing to death, falling into a dreamlike coma in the snow. Or perhaps Jonas does hear music and, with his special...

[Rolla]

...vision, is able to perceive the warm house where people are waiting to greet him. In her acceptance speech for the Newbery Medal, Lois Lowry mentioned both possibilities but would not choose one as correct. What evidence supports each interpretation?

[Tracey]

When reading the end, I initially figured that Jonas died as his conscience faded into his remaining memory. Sort of bothered by the ending. I'm not sure how I would have changed it, though. I need to sit on it for a bit before I decide how I really feel about it.

[Erin]

The possibility that Jonas is actually hearing music and arriving at an actual place where people are waiting to receive him, ostensibly in the great and magical "Elsewhere," is not one that feels right to me or that had occurred to me as I finished the novel. I remember that when I first read the novel as a child, I felt quite firmly that both Jonas and Gabriel had simply frozen to death. But now, reading the book as an adult, it is harder to interpret the ending. I still believe that Jonas and Gabriel perish at the book's end, but it is interesting now to examine all the aspects of what takes place. As the characters near death, Jonas is enveloped by joy and love. He feels the certainty of a nearness of something, though he isn't sure what it is. He is then pulled into a very strong memory in which he sleds through the snow, sees Christmas lights from windows where families are, and hears music. He describes this memory as something that is not vague, but something he can keep. It is somewhat a combination of the first memory the Giver transferred to him and the wonderful Christmas memory (the Giver's favorite), both of which are very special for Jonas. Jonas just "knows" that his destination is ahead; he is led by his heart and a "special knowledge deep inside him." I believe that in his last moments of life, with his task complete, and his Giving powers and physical strength exhausted, the essentially supernatural power within him presents to him a very, very last Gift, a beautiful Gift of comfort and help that could not be Received except when all else fails--here at the end of his sacrifice.

The ending, however, quivers with possibility. He hears music--people singing, in fact. This, to me, hints that because of the sacrifices that Jonas has made, there is the possibility of a new future for the people who are left to Receive the memories back again. He hears music ahead and behind, but behind him the music has faded and may be only an echo. Only ahead is there promise, and only in the aftermath of the release of the memories and Jonas's sacrifice.