Chapter 19 Quiz — The Giver

by Lois Lowry

Comprehension Quiz: Chapter 19

Why does the Giver offer to show Jonas a recording of the release?

• Jonas demands to see a release after reading about them in the community's history books
• The Giver wants to punish Jonas for questioning the community's rules about twins
• Jonas mentions his father is releasing a twin, and the Giver decides it is time for Jonas to learn the truth
• The Chief Elder orders the Giver to educate Jonas about release as part of his training

How does Jonas's father determine which twin to release?

• He selects the twin that cries more because it would be harder to place with a family unit
• He weighs both twins on a scale and selects the smaller, lighter one for release
• He lets a computer program randomly choose which twin will be released from the community
• He asks the Committee of Elders to examine both twins and make the final decision

How does Jonas's father physically perform the release?

• He administers a sleeping gas that causes the baby to stop breathing peacefully
• He places the baby in a special chamber that slowly lowers its body temperature
• He injects a syringe into the soft spot (fontanel) on the top of the baby's head
• He gives the baby an overdose of medication mixed into a bottle of formula

What does Jonas's father say after the baby dies?

• He recites a formal community prayer of release and bows his head in solemn respect
• He says 'Bye-bye, little guy' in a cheerful tone and places the body in a carton
• He calls a colleague to come verify the release and complete the official paperwork
• He says nothing at all and silently carries the baby to the release preparation room

How does Jonas recognize that the baby has died?

• The Giver pauses the recording and explains to Jonas that the injection causes instant death
• The baby's skin changes color on the recording, which Jonas associates with his color training
• He recognizes the twitching as identical to the dying soldier's movements in the battlefield memory
• Jonas's father announces 'release complete' into a microphone in the Nurturing Center room

What is the central revelation of Chapter 19?

• The community secretly trades released citizens to other communities across the river
• Release is a euphemism for death—it has always meant killing by lethal injection
• The Giver has been secretly planning to overthrow the community's government with Jonas's help
• Jonas's father has been lying about his assignment and actually works for the Committee of Elders

What does the Giver reveal about Rosemary's release?

• Rosemary was secretly sent to live in a different community far from the Giver's reach
• Rosemary was forced to be released by the Chief Elder after she failed her training
• Rosemary injected herself—she chose to perform the lethal injection on her own body
• Rosemary escaped the community before her release and was never found by the search teams

Why is Jonas unable to go home at the end of Chapter 19?

• The Giver forbids him from leaving because they need to plan their escape immediately
• He cannot face his father or family knowing the truth about what his father does during releases
• He is physically too weak from the shock to walk home through the community streets
• The community has imposed a curfew and Jonas would be punished for being out after dark

What literary device is the word 'release' an example of?

• Metaphor (a comparison between two unlike things without using 'like' or 'as')
• Euphemism (a mild word substituted for one considered too harsh or disturbing)
• Personification (attributing human qualities to non-human things or concepts)
• Hyperbole (an exaggerated statement not meant to be taken literally)

Which of the following events actually happens in Chapter 19?

• Jonas watches a recording of his father injecting and killing the smaller twin
• Jonas confronts his father in person about the true meaning of release
• The Giver tells Jonas that Gabriel has already been scheduled for immediate release
• Jonas physically attacks the video screen in rage after witnessing the release

Which of the following is NOT something Jonas realizes in Chapter 19?

• Release is death—it means killing by lethal injection in the community
• His father does not understand that he is killing when he performs a release
• The Giver has the power to stop all releases but has been choosing not to
• The elderly people celebrated at release ceremonies were also killed

What does Jonas's father's behavior during the release reveal about the community?

• That some citizens secretly know release means death but choose to participate anyway
• That the community's conditioning has made citizens unable to recognize killing as morally wrong
• That Nurturers receive special training that desensitizes them to violence and death
• That Jonas's father is uniquely cruel compared to other members of the community

Why is the parallel between the dying soldier and the dying baby significant?

• It proves that the Giver deliberately showed Jonas the battlefield memory to prepare him for this moment
• It demonstrates that Jonas has developed the ability to see connections between experiences and recognize death
• It reveals that the community's injection uses the same chemical weapons as the wars in the memories
• It shows that Jonas is becoming immune to violence after receiving so many painful memories

Which theme is MOST powerfully expressed in Chapter 19?

• The importance of preserving cultural traditions and passing them to future generations
• The danger of a society that uses language and conditioning to hide moral atrocities from its citizens
• The value of technological progress in creating a more efficient and productive community
• The conflict between individual artistic expression and conformity to social expectations

Comprehension Quiz