Identity and Difference Theme Analysis

The non-native residents of Village are overwhelmingly those who have physical disabilities that in other settlements, like Leader's (Jonah) in The Giver or Matty's village in Gathering Blue, would spell death or abandonment for them. In Village, however, the guiding principle is that physical difference isn't anything to be ashamed of or something that should be "fixed"; indeed, Messenger implies at various points that physical difference is often a mark of emotional maturity or kindness. Despite the prevalence and importance of this concept in Village, the characters of Messenger—Matty included—often struggle to truly practice what they preach. As Matty embarks on his journey through Forest, he grapples with this disconnect and comes to realize that it's not people who are born different who need to change. Instead, the world needs to change to become more accepting of those who are different.

Messenger takes a very clear stand regarding what constitutes a person's identity, what the most important parts of a person's identity are, and what parts should or shouldn't change. It does this first by introducing the reader to the idea of "true names," which are bestowed upon young people or adult immigrants and confer adult status on them in the community. These true names reflect what Leader, the aptly true-named leader of Village, sees as the truest and most important element of a person's identity. Mentor, for example, got his true name because, prior to the start of the novel, he dedicated his time and energy to teaching and mentoring anyone and everyone. Gatherer, on the other hand, was named for the physical contribution he makes to Village—gathering food—while Matty fears that his regular fishing escapades will earn him the name Fisherman. Instead of Fisherman, Matty wants to be named Messenger, as his admittedly rare ability to walk through Forest unscathed means that he's one of the only villagers able to carry messages to faraway settlements. It's important to note that while the novel offers only a handful of named adults, the names that Leader chooses for people appear to only pertain to what those people can do for the community, whether that be teaching, leading, or working with a food source. They don't, as far as the reader can tell, have anything to do with a person's physical characteristics, either positive or negative—suggesting that, within this society, a person's physicality isn't especially important to the way its inhabitants think about identity.

This begins to change, however, when Trade Mart starts to take on a questionable role and allows people to trade their true selves for physical traits. Matty sees this happen most noticeably with Mentor, who, in his middle age, used to be a bit stooped, balding, and had a noticeable belly, in addition to having a birthmark that covered a large portion of his face. Because of his desire to court Stocktender's widow, Mentor begins to trade away his true self in exchange for becoming taller, thinner, and getting rid of his birthmark. Importantly, the novel suggests that trading one's true self for physical traits is always a bad idea, because as he becomes more handsome, Mentor also becomes callous, selfish, and fearful of those who are different than he is. Matty also notices one woman who traded some of her true self making fun of her husband for his limp after trading—something that Matty finds disturbing and unproductive by nature, given that as far as he knows, the woman's husband cannot change his limp.

However, Matty's innocent and good-natured view of physical difference isn't entirely without fault. When he arrives at Kira's, he asks if he might fix her limp so that they might travel more quickly back through Forest, something that suggests that Matty sees physical differences or disabilities as a struggle to overcome—and one that he knows he can fix with his gift. Kira refuses, however, and insists that her limp is part of her identity and isn't something she cares to change. As a skilled weaver and textile artist, as well as a generous person with the power to "see ahead," Kira's leg simply has little to do with how she sees herself—her value, as far as she's concerned, comes from what she can do in terms of her craft, not what she looks like.

All of this challenges Matty's understanding of what someone's true identity actually is and ultimately, comes to affect Matty's identity as well. While Matty's lack of a true name makes it clear that his identity is still forming, his desire to be called Messenger is, according to Leader, not an accurate encapsulation of who Matty truly is. Leader's choice to bestow the name Healer upon Matty after Matty's death reinforces yet again that identity isn't something someone can bestow entirely upon themself. Instead, identity is something connected to what a person can do for their community and ultimately, comes from that community as well.