Jonas' life seems ideal. His parents both work. His father is a Nurturer, a caretaker of infants, and his mother has an important job with the Department of Justice. Jonas and his seven-year-old sister, Lily, attend school, and Lily goes to the Childcare Center after school. Jonas and Lily argue and tease each other. Each evening at mealtime, the family members share their feelings about that day's events and then comfort and support each other. Their life seems too good to be true.
Not only Jonas' family but the entire community appears to be a utopia, a perfect place where nothing bad happens. Everyone who is at least nine years old rides bicycles because they seem to be conscious of improving their air quality by not using vehicles. Children eight years old and younger are not allowed to ride bicycles until they receive their own at the age of nine, but, like most children, they secretly practice. The elderly people in the community are honored for a life well lived and are released at celebrations of their lives. Each school day begins with a patriotic hymn — a "chanting of the morning anthem" — and citizens of the community encourage the use of precise language.
