Both the adolescent novel "The Giver" (Lois Lowry) and the classic work "Animal Farm" (George Orwell) deal with the idea of a controlling society. "The Giver" gives the reader an understanding of what it is like to live in a society where every move and every decision is basically made for you, but the people living in the society do not know life any differently. The reader may wonder how such a society is formed and how it is decided what the rules should be. In "Animal Farm" the reader can see how such societies are formed. The reader begins to see what goes on when trying to form a "utopian" society and the problems along the way. It is the dark side of the "perfect" society that is portrayed in "Animal Farm," and the brighter side that is portrayed in "The Giver." This thematic curriculum unit of about 2 weeks duration is intended for a ninth-grade classroom with 50-minute periods. The unit provides many diverse types of activities to implement in the classroom. It is divided into the following parts: I. Thematic Unit; II. Rationale; III. Motivations; IV. Student Activities; V. General Discussion Questions; VI. Vocabulary; and VII. Assessment. (NKA)