In small ways, Jonas attempts to change people. After receiving the memory about the elephant hunt, he tries to share his newfound knowledge of elephants with Lily and his father. The idea comes to him one evening when Lily is playing with her comfort object, which is a stuffed elephant, while Jonas' father is combing Lily's hair. Jonas touches each of them on the shoulder, trying to give each of them the "being" of a real elephant. However, Lily complains that Jonas is hurting her, and Jonas' father never responds. Disappointed, Jonas removes his hands from their shoulders.
Another illustration of Jonas' trying to break community members of their Sameness occurs when he attempts to show the color red to Asher, who is standing with Jonas near a flowerbed of bright red geraniums. Jonas wants to share color with Asher. Disregarding the rule that it is rude for a person to touch anyone who is not part of the person's family unit, Jonas puts his hands on Asher's shoulders and instructs him to look at the flowers. He tries to "transmit the awareness of red." Asher, feeling quite uncomfortable, moves away, and Jonas, sighing, makes up a story about the flowers wilting and needing water.
Jonas becomes accustomed to asking The Giver questions. Through The Giver's answers, he learns about the kind of life he can look forward to as the Receiver of Memory. He will be able to apply for a spouse and children (The Giver's spouse now lives with other Childless Adults), but his life will be strained. Like The Giver, he will not be allowed to talk about his work, not even to his wife; because books are forbidden to citizens, he will not be allowed to share them with anyone. His life will be difficult because of the burden of pain, and he will be extremely lonely.
