The Giver, written by Lois Lowry, is a story about a society with citizens who have no memories of its past, except for the individual known as the Receiver of Memory. Citizens are not given freedom or choice. Without choice, the elders of society believe they can prevent negative elements, such as war and poverty.
The Giver, an elderly man with a beard and pale eyes, is the current Receiver of Memory. He carries the burden of the memories of the world, and suffer from the pain in the memories.