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New Cover Design

Rationale

Originally, we thought that it would be fun to use a collage of the various events, with Katniss in the foreground of our new cover. However, we then were discussing the effects of television within this novel, and noticed how similar this book is written to an episode of a reality show. A decision was made to add the television as a background for this, so really showcase this aspect of the novel. We made the choice to draw this back ground because it is a child’s way of portraying the world.  We found the color green to be significant because it is a color that lies between the primary colors yellow and blue.  Katniss is an adolescent young woman, a period where she is moving from childhood to adulthood, two definite moments in life. 

            Moving to the inside of the screen, Katniss is thrown into the televised event, where we see the battlefield which is real and horrifying, and forces her to rationalize things as an adult would. This creates a sort of contrast in the readers mind, because it places a child in a very difficult situation.  The use of a television also plays into the theme of constantly being watched. By putting Katniss on TV, the person who picks up the book will be immediately sucked into District 12 and will hopefully take a step back after reading the Hunger Games, look at the cover and then try to find the difference between the citizens watching the Hunger Games in the book, and watching reality television in the real world.

Panem's dystopian history: the modern young adult's world

The genre of the dystopian novel was traditionally adult-oriented. But recently, the age of interest has extended to children and young adults and in fact seems to dominate these two particular markets. As a cliche (but in any case the truth!), the youths are the symbol of the future, posterity. To have these age groups read and experience such injustices and horrors tells something about contemporary society: that we are concerned for our future more than ever. 

        In his article “The Worst is Yet to Come,” Philip Reeve writes that “tomorrow isn’t what it used to be.”  The dystopian idea did not appear out of nowhere. Utopias were the “in thing” starting with Sir Thomas More’s Utopia (1516) in which the writer describes the ideal world and way of living. That (and the fairytales which much of us are so fond of) is what Reeve is talking about when he says that “tomorrow isn’t what it used to be,” that there is no optimism at the ends of the contemporary YA dystopian novel. But, let’s step back and talk about the history of the genre first.

        In the Dystopian Impulse in Modern Literature, M. Keith Booker¹ says of the genre:

I maintain an awareness of certain special literary issues raised by dystopian fiction, including the relationship of the genre to the tradition of utopian fiction that precedes it and to literary movements like modernist and postmodernist that surround it. [...]  I wish to underscore the role of dystopian fiction as social criticism.  In particular, I emphasize throughout this study that treatment of imaginary societies in the best dystopian fiction is always relevant more or less directly to the specific "real world" societies and issues.  As Andrew Ross usefully puts it, utopianism is based on a critique of the "deficiencies of the present," while dystopian thinking relies on a critique of perceived "deficiencies in the future.²

The above quote seems to ring true almost two decades later, and especially now that more and more people are becoming aware of the natural environment, the state of economies and the politics of their nations. This is especially the case with older young adults who are starting to become involved with the political, social, and economics of the world of the adults.  For example, in the Fall of 2008 when the stock market crashed and the world economies slowly with it, high school seniors began worrying about their financial situations in regards to attending college. 

            There are multiple subspecies within the dystopian genre. The one we will be focusing on is the totalitarian vein because this is the stem that The Hunger Games grows from. There are three novels which define not only the subtopic of the totalitarian dystopia, but in fact the entire genre of dystopias, and they are (here on referred collectively as “the big three”): We (1924) by Yevgeny Zamyatin, Brave New World (1932) by Aldous Huxley, and Nineteen Eighty-Four (1949) by George Orwell. All three are great reads, all three are dystopias, but all three take different approaches.  Most young adults will have read at least one of these before finishing high school as they are important in terms of literary history and themes the novels stress. But, fast-forward to today, what makes The Hunger Games so interesting is that it does not follow in the style of just one of big three: It synthesizes taking a little bit from each and creating a story that is uncannily relevant to what is happening around the world.
        Let's talk about the totalitarian setting found these YA books.  A young adult probably feels the oppressive nature of the school system.  With said system entails requirements and expectations of these youths such as social diversity, academic excellence, and community involvement.  They are under a lot of authority, even outside the home.  They must face teachers who are indeed, on occasion, tyrannical.  There are hierarchies among the students.  In short, it is difficult for an Average Joe or Jane student who just want to get through life.  Some students really feel that they go through high school like Jerry does in the Chocolate War where the universe seems to be against them.  Or perhaps like Holden in Catcher in the Rye, where society is asking him to fit in and he does all he can to not succumb to a life of conformity, though it is something he truly and so greatly desires.  In both cases these characters are afraid of what happens next, the "deficiencies in the future" as Booker says.  For the young adult, the world is a place of competition.  They have to compete for scholarships, compete for recognition, compete for acceptance into a college or university.  And it doesn't stop there, they have to compete for a job after they complete their degrees, and sometimes even compete for love.

        Suzanne Collins takes the grim Greek myth of Theseus and the Minotaur (see mythology) and brings in the elements of totalitarianism as depicted by the big three. Every year the adolescents of Panem are sent into the arena to kill each other. This is where the totalitarian aspect comes in.  The teens are not sent in just because they feel like it, their government known as the Capitol sends them there as a punishment for their ancestor’s rebellion against the state. It is a requirement.  This is an annual reminder for the citizens of Panem that if they wish to rebel, they must think again because their ancestors lost.  The Games are the product of that insurgence. Collins references Nineteen Eighty-Four when she talks of surveillance, not being able to speak one's mind for fear of punishment, rebelling in personal ways. She brings in elements of Brave New World when she forces the Capitol citizens to consume, and to ignore the world outside the limits of the city, living a life of ignorance and luxury. She recreates the world of We when she has people refer to the adolescents within the arena as a Tribute only known by their District number. While these are only superficial references, what Collins does with the tone of the Hunger Games far more horrific than the tones of the big three. So why do teens enjoy this dark story? 
         For one, the main characters are their age. The main characters in the big three are men and much older, but in the Games, Katniss is a 16 year-old young woman who does not know what she wants in life and has much to live for.  Like Ponyboy from the Outsiders, Lyra from the Golden Compass, or Marjane from Persepolis, Katniss is forced to grow up before the she comes to the right age. Here we are given a plain teenager who must illegally hunt for food outside the walls of her District to feed her starving mother and sister, and all of a sudden we find her fighting to the death in an arena as a punishment for her ancestor’s attempt to freedom. It is something about the dark world with a young hero that creates a fantastic image in our heads, that a youth, a symbol for the future, is fighting in a crumbled age-old world. They are faced with a task fixing the world that has tumbled to the ground because of the neglect and wickedness of the adults. Katniss’s story in the Games is exactly that.  The novel, because of its particular usage of first person, is about Katniss's formation of a world view, albeit one that is potentially harmful to her well-being as it is a view rebellious to the Capitol's government. She, like other youths in the contemporary dystopian novel, slowly becomes aware of the injustices of the societies they inhabit.  The novel Feed by M.T. Anderson portrays Titus as distracted and controlled by the Feed, thus unaware of his condition.  But he gradually learns that he will lose himself to the Feed though he doesn’t fully realize it until the end.  He did not come to this conclusion alone. He first had to be told about the injustices that are made to him and his peers by the awkward Violet. 

        This is what Reeve means when he says there is no optimism at the end of a YA dystopian novel, that by the last page of the book, the conflict is not resolved or at least not completely. The readers are, however, left aware of the injustices happening in their particular worlds. It's the realization of these evils done that the writers of YA dystopias wish to stress. If their readers can understand what is in the book and apply it to what is happening around them, that they will do something before it is too late. The characters in these novels realize the problem and by the end there is some hope for change.  By contrast, in the adult versions, the main characters realize their conditions too late, though they feel the wrongs from the beginning, and then they die not having their chance to change the world. Here in the YA versions, they are given that opportunity whether they succeed or not.  Though many argue that the violence and the content of the book are grounds for not giving it to adolescents, we believe that the Hunger Games is a perfect for them not only because it introduces them to the literary tradition of the dystopian genre, but also because it will help them become attentive to social and political problems.  It is the critical thinking during the reading of the novel that helps us understand what exactly is wrong with the world Katniss lives in.  And if young adults, and even us grown-ups, are able to take this analytical skill from reading and apply it to real life, the world could potentially become a better place.

Other interesting information related to dystopias or the Hunger Games:

The debate over the dystopian genre goes on.  The New York Times has a particularly fruitful and interesting debate called "The Dark Side of Young Adult Fiction." Read what other writers think!

For further contemporary historical context of the novel, we recommend reading the Salon.com article "What Occupy can learn from the Hunger Games" which talks about how we, adults and young adults, can use literature to combat or at least respond to social and political injustices.

Modern writers on the what they feel the dystopian/utopian genre is:

1. Booker, M. Keith. The Dystopian Impulse in Modern Literature: Fiction as Social Criticism. Westport: Greenwood Press, 1994. 18-19. Print. 
2. Ross, Andrew. Strange Weather: Culture, Science, and Technology in the Age of Limits. London: Verso, 1991. 143. Print.

Cover designs around the world

Dutch

Similar to the American cover.

German

This is much more menacing cover. It is accurate to the contents of the Hunger Games.

UK (Cover 1)

The problem with this cover is that it is aimed at girls. The quote is from Stephanie Meyers and it gives off the impression that this is a book for girls, and so boys might be hesitant to buy it.

UK (Cover 2)

The problem with this cover is the same as the problem with the previous cover. It makes it seem like a boys book, and could potentially turn off girls from purchasing it.

Japan

Anime is popular in Japan, so it makes sense that the cover (exciting as it is) would be in that genre.

Russia

A nice cover, but it gives off the wrong impression that Katniss and Peeta are lovers, when in actuality, they are not. (Though I have not read past book one, so maybe they could be, but at this point, they are not.)

Alternate Russian Cover

Source:. All images were taken from this website without permission. All text is original and property of our group.

Mythological Influences

Theseus and the Minotaur  

The Huger Games plays off of the myth of Theseus and the Minotaur.  In this myth, King Minos would send seven youths and seven maidens to Crete, where they were thrown into a labyrinth and devoured by the Minotaur, a savage half man, half bull monster.  This is an extremely ruthless plot, but one that shows up again within the Hunger Games.  In the original myth, Theseus, the son of the king, volunteers to become one of the individuals sent to Crete, and he is able to overcome the Minotaur by attaching a ball of yarn to the entrance of the labyrinth, and once he finds the Minotaur, kills it with his bare hands.  The daughter of King Minos, Ariadne, falls in love with Theseus, and is thus able to devise the plan to take the yarn with him, so he may remain safe.  Theseus, Ariadne, and the fourteen youths and maidens are able to escape from Crete. 

          This myth is one of the most famous tales in Greek mythology.  Theseus is a perfect example of a Greek hero.  He uses cunning and strength to kill the Minotaur, and once he returns to Athens, he reunites his family and his kingdom, and becomes a benevolent monarch.  This myth also plays off of the perception that Athens was the most respectable land.  The government of justice that Theseus became ruler of became a model for Greek and Roman culture.  

Source 

Panem

"Panem" literally means "bread" in Latin.  This is an important theme within the novel, as in the beginning, Katniss is struggling to provide food for her mother and sister.  As the novel propels forward, and Katniss is forced into the arena, she is again dealing with the reality of starvation.  After Rue dies, she is given the gift of a load of bread from District 11, and she vows to avenge Rue. 

          The full phrase "panem et circenses" means "bread and circuses" in Latin, but specifically the "et circenses" means "recreation by government to appease discontent."  This is another important theme within the novel, as the Hunger Games are a sort of circus act, forced onto the people of the districts by the Capitol for their amusement.  The Hunger Games are a spectacle.  The Capitol creates these games to appease its people, and give them something to watch. 

Source

Panem through critical theory

Feminism

Katniss is a character that embodies many of the characteristics sought out by feminists.  She is a rebel, and yet true to a sixteen year old self.  She deals with issues of self-doubt, devotion to her family and friends, and has a will to always do the right thing.  She maintains a relatively positive outlook throughout the text, and yet her decision to not marry (and thus, not have a child who would be put through the torture of the Hunger Games) defines her as a strong female leading character.

            She is determined, inventive, and clever, and these aspects of her personality make her not only a more relatable character, but in addition, these characteristics help keep her alive throughout the Hunger Games.  She is smart and cunning, and she has strong emotions, yet is always able to keep these feelings in check.  She is continually aware that her family, friends, and district are watching her, and continues to do this for their sakes as much as her own.

            Even when kissing Peeta, she maintains her integrity by doing so to keep him alive, rather than for selfish reasons.  Although the public admires and adores this doomed couple, Katniss is able to understand that “one kiss equals one pot of broth.”  (261). She does all of this to benefit him, rather than herself. 

            Being such a strong female character, Katniss is a breath of fresh air for young adults that would normally veer towards books such as Twilight.  Like Bella, Katniss is caught in a love triangle between Peeta and Gale, but this is a subplot, rather than the main theme of the book.  Although her love for these two boys is prevalent within this novel, the main plot of the Hunger Games is survival.  

Marxism

The Capitol is depicted as a sort of aristocracy—a place where the wealthy watch as these tributes from the twelve districts must battle to the death. 

            The Hunger Games themselves are shown as a symbol of power and control which the Capitol exercises over the twelve Districts.  However, even within the space of the Capitol the citizens face a dystopia similar to that of the Brave New World or Feed. 

            The citizens of the Capitol are taught only to consume and live a life of extreme luxury.  There being thin and young is indicative of one’s wealth, where as in the Districts (especially District 12) being plumper or older is a sign of a hard lived life worthy of respect.  The citizens of the Capitol are forced to consume and worry only about their appearances. (Regarding focus on appearance, this is similar to the women in Iran in Persepolis where Marjane comments on how they've forgotten the politics behind the using of the veil.)

            What is frightening is that they force the Tributes to be beautified prior to the Games.  They pluck every hair, shape brows, clean the nails and strip the adolescents of the rags which tell of their miserable lives in the slums of Districts.  The government doesn’t allow the Captiol citizens to know that outside of their walls exist populations of hungering people.  They are simply distracted by their luxurious lives to care. 

            Yet more frightening is the fact that during the games the Tributes are forced to think of their survival and consumption of goods.  Their beautification is an ad for their survival, the better they look the more sponsors they get to send the extremely expensive gifts of food, weapons, or medicine in the arena.  We find during the Games that this is a large portion of Katniss’ preoccupations. 

                         

The Hunger Games

(this is where our cover and back cover will go)

У лукоморья дуб зеленый, Златая цепь на дубе том: И днем и ночью кот ученый Всё ходит по цепи кругом; Идет направо - песнь заводит, Налево - сказку говорит. Там чудеса: там леший бродит, Русалка на ветвях сидит; Там на неведомых дорожках Следы невиданных зверей; Избушка там на курьих ножках Стоит без окон, без дверей; Там лес и дол видений полны; Там о заре прихлынут волны На брег песчаный и пустой, И тридцать витязей прекрасных; Чредой из вод выходят ясных, И с ними дядька их морской; Там королевич мимоходом Пленяет грозного царя; Там в облаках перед народом Через леса, через моря Колдун несет богатыря; В темнице там царевна тужит, А бурый волк ей верно служит; Там ступа с Бабою Ягой Идет, бредет сама собой; Там царь Кащей над златом чахнет; Там русской дух... там Русью пахнет! И там я был, и мед я пил; У моря видел дуб зеленый; Под ним сидел, и кот ученый Свои мне сказки говорил. Одну я помню: сказку эту Поведаю теперь я свету...

Interview With the Author

Here are select interviews with Hunger Games author Suzanne Collins:

The New York Times

“Writing in The New Yorker last year, Laura Miller suggested that “The Hunger Games” is most coherent when read as “a fever-dream allegory of the adolescent social experience”: doesn’t everything feel like life or death on the battlefield known as the high-school cafeteria? Many of Collins’s fans surely see “The Hunger Games” through this prism (one children’s-bookstore owner told me the books would be a good tool for teachers broaching the subject of popularity). For protective parents, reading “The Hunger Games” as an allegory of adolescence rather than of war may be more comfortable. But this is not a theory that appeals to Collins. “I don’t write about adolescence,” she said. “I write about war. For adolescents.”

School Library Journal

"What inspired you to write [The Hunger Games]?

One night, I was lying in bed, and I was channel surfing between reality TV programs and actual war coverage. On one channel, there’s a group of young people competing for I don’t even know; and on the next, there’s a group of young people fighting in an actual war. I was really tired, and the lines between these stories started to blur in a very unsettling way. That’s the moment when Katniss’s story came to me."

Scholastic Interview

Q: What do you hope readers will come away with when they read The Hunger Games and/or Catching Fire?

A: Questions about how elements of the book might be relevant in their own lives. And, if they’re disturbing, what they might do about them.

Q: What were some of your favorite novels when you were a teen?

A: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith

The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers

Nineteen Eighty Four by George Orwell

Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle

Lord of the Flies by William Golding

Boris by Jaapter Haar

Germinal by Emile Zola

Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury

More video interviews with Scholastic.

Scholastic interview with Suzanne Collins (Part 1)

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(Part 2)
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Teaching Ideas

Pre-Lesson Assignment

-Read the book.

-Read Feed by M.T. Anderson

-Lead a discussion on the differences in how the use of technology and entertainment effects the protagonists in both novels.

Lesson Template                                           

 Lesson Title:   Our Own Hunger Games:  Reality TV in Our Homes

Subject:­­­­­­­­­­­­­ High School English Unit: Literature
Essential Academic Learning Requirements-(EALRs) (put number and write out): -EALR 2: The student understands the meaning of what is read. (Comprehension) -EALR 3: The student reads different materials for a variety of purposes. (Types of text: literary and informational)
Purpose (goal of lesson): Reality TV has been a part of the entertainment world since the early days of television (Candid Camera and the Miss America Pageant) but in the 21st century there has been a tremendous growth of competitive shows and survival shows (Scholastic). My purpose is to discuss this phenomenon with respect to The Hunger Games.
Behavioral Objective (what you want students to accomplish): -Students should be able to understand the aspects of how our popular culture is reflected in the book. -Students should be able to argue for or against the claim above.
Time (total time) – (make sure to include time for each activity): -1 hr. max.
Materials Needed: -A notebook -Pencil/Pen -An recorded episode of Fear Factor.
Timing	Anticipatory Set (spark class interest?): -As a class, have students generate a list of Reality TV shows they watch or know of. -Ask questions:                  -What is entertaining about these shows?                  -Why and how does it appeal to audiences?
5-10min.
Timing for each activity	Instructional Content -Watch an episode of the reality TV show and have students record their “gut-hits” (what are their first emotional reactions while watching the episode). -Have students break up into groups and have them answer these questions:                    -Share your “gut-hits” with members of your group.                    -Do you consider this show cruel show and why?                    -What do you think studios consider to be the entertainment                                                  value of this show?                    - Can you see parallels between this show and the Games? -Have groups get together as a class and share their findings with other students and teacher.
25-30min. 15 min. 15min.
5min.	Closure (end of lesson): -Hand out essay prompt and go over assignment with the class.
Assessment (how will you evaluate? know if students reached the objectives?: -Watch a reality TV show on your own time at home and answer the following questions individually in your essay. What do you think studios consider to be the entertainment value of this show? Can you see parallels between this show and the Games? Use textual evidence to support your claim/opinion.
Multiple Intelligences Used in Lesson: Howard Gardner viewed intelligence as 'the capacity to solve problems or to fashion products that are valued in one or more cultural setting' (Gardner & Hatch, 1989). He reviewed the literature using eight criteria or 'signs' of an intelligence. -Linguistic intelligence involves sensitivity to spoken and written language, the ability to learn languages, and the capacity to use language to accomplish certain goals. This intelligence includes the ability to effectively use language to express oneself rhetorically or poetically; and language as a means to remember information. Writers, poets, lawyers and speakers are among those that Howard Gardner sees as having high linguistic intelligence. -Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence entails the potential of using one's whole body or parts of the body to solve problems. It is the ability to use mental abilities to coordinate bodily movements. Howard Gardner sees mental and physical activity as related. -Interpersonal intelligence is concerned with the capacity to understand the intentions, motivations and desires of other people. It allows people to work effectively with others. Educators, salespeople, religious and political leaders and counsellors all need a well-developed interpersonal intelligence. -Intrapersonal intelligence entails the capacity to understand oneself, to appreciate one's feelings, fears and motivations. In Howard Gardner's view it involves having an effective working model of ourselves, and to be able to use such information to regulate our lives. Source

The Author's style

Hungry for Action? The Hunger Games ought to Satiate

The Hunger Games is a plot-driven novel. By this, I mean The Hunger Games relies heavily on action. This is evidenced by the fact that when most people recommend the book to their friends, they will say that one of the best parts of it is how fast the story is and how quickly one can get sucked in to it. This is one of the main advantages to writing like this. And Suzanne Collins has clearly done a wonderful job at it, as evidenced by these fan reviews:

“I was barely able to put this book down for a second after the first few pages got me completely hooked.”

-          Michael A. Behr

“I found the book to be well written with a fantastic pacing.”

-          Jay R. Chase

“I bought the book and read it in one day!”

-          Andrea Hogarth

Fan reviews from Amazon

These are all pretty standard reviews. However, there certainly is a dissention. While The Hunger Games may be extremely fun to read (and it is), it does not hold much literate value, despite its Classical and Dystopian influences.

The New Yorker had this to say:

“As a tool of practical propaganda, the games don’t make much sense. They lack that essential quality of the totalitarian spectacle: ideological coherence. You don’t demoralize and dehumanize a subject people by turning them into celebrities and coaching them on how to craft an appealing persona for a mass audience. (“Think of yourself among friends,” Katniss’s media handler urges.) Are the games a disciplinary measure or an extreme sporting event? A beauty pageant or an exercise in despotic terror? Given that the winning tribute’s district is “showered with prizes, largely consisting of food,” why isn’t it the poorer, hungrier districts that pool their resources to train Career Tributes, instead of the wealthier ones? And the practice of carrying off a population’s innocent children and commanding their parents to watch them be slaughtered for entertainment—wouldn’t that do more to provoke a rebellion than to head one off?” (Source)

These are important questions to ask of this novel. The Hunger Games may very well take place in a dystopian society, but Collins doesn’t portray that too convincingly in the classical sense [refer to the dystopian link]. Otherwise, these questions wouldn’t be asked. In The Hunger Games, Katniss does not come off as either Wintston from Nineteen Eighty-Four, or The Savage from Brave New World. If Collins wanted to write a classically dystopian text, she would have had Katniss rebel right at the Games. She would have not played by the rules; or, rather, she would have rebelled, and then out of cowardice of going too far, would have tried to play by the rules, but by then, it would be too late and she would die. The Hunger Games is a trilogy, and it would not behoove Collins to kill off her main character when two other books still had to be released.

Instead, I view this as what Collins said it to be, as a response to reality TV and war. When you are surrounded by cameras, after a while, you learn to play by the rules of the camera and follow them. When Katniss discovers that she can get soup from her sponsors when she kisses Peeta, she plays this up to do whatever it takes to survive.

Speaking of that “love affair” between Katniss and Peeta… In my opinion, that is the cleverest part of the novel. Collins has single-handedly created a round, unreliable character in Peeta. I really do not know if he has tender feelings towards Katniss, but he plays the game exceptionally well. Again, it all comes back to trying to survive. Once Peeta promulgates his “love” for Katniss in front of all of the districts, he is stuck with her for the rest of their lives. Of course, Katniss already has distraught feelings towards another boy in District 12 named Gale, but it’s too late for that now. This is where the love triangle comes in. Reading about violence and scathing critiques on reality television are exciting, but that’s not too much of a human element. People do like to read about stories that involve relationships. And, the more doomed, the better. But love triangles are also a popular one.

In fact, the love triangle comes from a surprising source – Suzanne Collins’ editor, Kate Egan. While Kate may think that “Suzanne is a terrific storyteller”, she did mention one particular weakness in her writing:

“As an editor, I help her develop the characters. For example, I asked her for more of the Peeta-Katniss-Gale love triangle. Suzanne was more focused on the war story.”

Source

Remember earlier when I said that this is a plot-driven story? Well, evidently, it possibly may have been TOO plot-driven. (NOTE: this is the author’s opinion and it is complete hearsay and should not be taken seriously outside of the context of this critique.) A story that is all plot-driven cannot succeed because there has to be that human element that I mentioned, that takes on the form of a “love triangle”. This is what makes Katniss and Peeta complex characters. They have to not only survive in a terrifying death match straight out of Ancient Greece, but they also have pretend that they have feelings for each other. This is what causes the reader to SYMPATHIZE with the characters. The mark of a successful book is being able to identify with a character and occasionally yelling at the book over an action a character has done or crying over a character’s death. The Hunger Games certainly brings on these emotions. I sympathized with Peeta over the fact that he has to be viewed in the public as a man who has found his true love, but, in reality, she is cold to his touch, so he will only be happy on the surface; he will be TV-happy. And I also sympathize with Katniss over having to become a charlatan and show the world how much she loves Peeta, when she doesn’t and in fact, is nervous that Gale will think of them as together and will lose interest in her. This situation is an awful one to be in.

Yet, I cannot help but point out a certain irony here. The Hunger Games is a critique on reality television. Drama that is as high as it is unnecessary fuels reality TV. People don’t want to waste their time watching a reality TV show where everyone is happy all the time and the roast is never burnt. I cannot help but think that if it doesn’t work out between Katniss and Peeta (Gale apparently provides some pretty stiff competition), then their fallout could be broadcasted in front of all the districts and it satiate the reality TV demons inside everyone. This is just a prediction, however.

However, the love triangle has also been compared to that of the Bella-Edward-and-Jacob love triangle of Twilight. So much so, that in fact, Good Reads asked, “Which book has a better love triangle, The Hunger Games or Twilight?”

Source

The responses were overwhelmingly in favor The Hunger Games, but having such a close relation to Twilight would normally be a kiss of death to most literature, yet, it has not hurt the popularity of The Hunger Games. The reason I suspect this is because while both stories are plot-driven, Twilight falls victim to sentimentality. This is what makes that love triangle so insufferable and the butt of many jokes. But Collins’ editor, Kate Egan, did a fantastic job of bringing up the love triangle without making it sentimental. I know this because if you ask someone what they liked most about The Hunger Games, they will either tell you that they were thrilled to finally see a strong female in literature, or they will tell you that liked how action-packed it was. They won’t say the love-triangle. But it remains in the story regardless.

Earlier, I mentioned how The Hunger Games wasn’t literate fiction. By that I mean that there is a high chance that it won’t be as closely scrutinized as works like James Joyce’s Ulysses, Marcel Proust’s In Search of Lost Time or Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway. That’s okay because that’s not its aim. In Stephen King’s review of The Hunger Games, he says that, “Balancing off the efficiency are displays of authorial laziness that kids will accept more readily than adults” (Source). By “authorial laziness”, I am not entirely sure what he means, but it sounds like he is referring to the love triangle that he described as “standard”. She could have made it more original, certainly, but remember, when she wrote the first draft, she was more concerned with the war stuff; the critique on war and reality TV. The love triangle is important for helping the characters be relatable. Last time I checked, young adult readers still fell in love.


Also, another point to bring up is the point of view (POV) in The Hunger Games. It takes place entirely in the first person. This is when the story is "narrated by a character in the story, usually the story's protagonist" (Gotham Writers' Workshop: Writing Fiction, 79). In this case, the narrator is Katniss Everdeen. So, wherever Katniss goes, the reader goes. Wherever Katniss does tread to, the reader cannot tread either, as we are limited only to what she experiences. The Writers' Workshop mentions that the "main advantage of first person is intimacy" (80). And this certainly proves true, as the reader is able to sympathize with Katniss, and not only that, root for her all the more for her to win the Hunger Games. If this story was told in the third person, there would be too much of an emotional distance as the "I" would transform into "Katniss", and the reader might start to root for another representative from another district to win. (Second person POV would be a terrible decision, because instead of an "I" or a protagonist's name talking, it becomes "you". Judging by Katniss' hard life in destitute poverty and having to kill people her in age in order to survive, I don't think one would really wish to have that intimate of a relationship with the story.) This is Katniss' story, remember. We're just privy to it happening.


The first person aspect is interesting choice in dystopian literature. It seems like an appropriate choice, given that dystopians are typically about an individual against a Totalitarian state. Yvgeny Zamyatin's We is an excellent example of first person POV in a dystopian novel, as the book is written as protagonist D-503's diary. The Hunger Games does not do this; it makes it unclear as to whom Katniss is telling this story to, but I think it is meant to show that reader is along for the ride with Katniss and we are subjected to witness everything as new to us as it is to her. This comes back to the intimacy.


However, this POV that Collins has employed has not been viewed favorably from everyone. In fact, it seems to be one the aspect that vexed readers the most. The reviewer for U.K. publication the Guardian states that:


"A novel written in the first person allows the author to go in-depth with the protagonist's feelings; however, Katniss seemed very indifferent throughout the book, and just got on with her life, the deaths didn't affect her so much, which I found rather hard to believe." Source: (The Guardian)


This creates a conflict, as believability is what a writer strives for in a character. However, Katniss' indifference can be justified on a few accounts. When in the arena, Katniss is playing for her life. This means that she has to kill a human being - one that probably has hopes and dreams - because if she doesn't, then that human could easily come up and destroy her. And the person will remain indifferent. It's kill or be killed. Black and white. When Katniss makes a truce with tiny Rue, Katniss tells the reader that, "Of course, this kind of deal can only be temporary, but neither of us mentions that" (The Hunger Games, 201). This was sad to read, as I was worried that at the end of it, it would just be Katniss and Rue and one would have to kill the other. Thankfully, that didn't happen. (I imagine it would have been too dark and gloomy for readers.) But still. This rationale shows Katniss is cognizant that the most dangerous move that can be made is to get emotional. 


On a thematic level, I believe that the indifference is meant to represent the indifference that a lot of people feel in regards to watching reality TV, no matter what the kind. It's not happening to them, and to get emotionally caught up could be depressing.

So while The Hunger Games may not be an accurate representation of a classic dystopian novel, it is action-packed and a fun read. Unfortunately, I did not really understand the critique on reality TV until I started research on this project. I picked up on the themes of surveillance and voyeurism, however, so that is close enough. What I hope this writing does is show young adult readers the importance of doing research on literature. There is a video posted on this blog showing questions that Collins wants her readers to ask themselves after they read The Hunger Games. Go and watch the video. In fact, to make it easy, here it is right here:

Did you ask yourself these questions?

Bibliography

Gotham Writers' Workshop: Writing Fiction. Written by Gotham Writers' Workshop Faculty. Edited by Alexander Steele. Published by Bloomsbury, New York and London. 79 - 80. 2003. 

The Hunger Games. Written by  Suzanne Collins. Published by Scholastic Press. 201. 2008. 

Booker, M. Keith. The Dystopian Impulse in Modern Literature: Fiction as Social Criticism. Westport: Greenwood Press, 1994. 18-

Recognition and Reviews

Awards and recognition The Hunger Games received:

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

#1 USA TODAY BESTSELLER

WALL STREET JOURNAL BESTSELLER

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY BESTSELLER

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY'S BEST BOOKS OF 2008:

CHILDREN'S FICTION

NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE CHILDREN'S BOOK OF 2008

AN AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION
TOP TEN BEST BOOKS FOR YOUNG ADULTS SELECTION

AN ALA NOTABLE CHILDREN'S BOOK

2009 ALA AMELIA BLOOMER PROJECT LIST

#1 ON WINTER '08/​'09 CHILDREN'S INDIE NEXT LIST

INDIES CHOICE--BEST INDIE YOUNG ADULT BUZZ BOOK HONOR

2008 CYBIL AWARD--FANTASY & SCIENCE FICTION

2009 CHILDREN'S CHOICE BOOK AWARD

TEEN CHOICE BOOK OF THE YEAR FINALIST

YALSA'S TEENS' TOP TEN, 2009

NYPL “STUFF FOR THE TEEN AGE” LIST, 2009

CCBC CHOICES 2009

A NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW EDITORS' CHOICE

A KIRKUS BEST BOOK OF 2008

A HORN BOOK FANFARE

SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL BEST BOOKS Of 2008

A BOOKLIST EDITORS' CHOICE, 2008

LA TIMES FAVORITE CHILDREN'S BOOKS, 2008

BARNES & NOBLE BEST BOOKS OF 2008

FOR TEENS AND KIDS

BORDERS BEST BOOKS OF 2008: TEENS

AMAZON BEST BOOKS OF 2008:

TOP 100 EDITORS' PICK

TOP 10 BOOKS: TEENS





Reviews of the novel

There are of course negative reviews (from Amazon) about the book.  But these comments are about the violence in the book and how it's not for children.  Otherwise, the novel has received multiple positive reviews. 

"What happens if we choose entertainment over humanity? In Collins's world, we'll be obsessed with grooming, we'll talk funny, and all our sentences will end with the same rise as questions. When Katniss is sent to stylists to be made more telegenic before she competes, she stands naked in front of them, strangely unembarrassed. “They're so unlike people that I'm no more self-conscious than if a trio of oddly colored birds were pecking around my feet,” she thinks. In order not to hate these creatures who are sending her to her death, she imagines them as pets. It isn't just the contestants who risk the loss of their humanity. It is all who watch."

--Publishers Weekly, Megan Whalen Turner, STARRED REVIEW

"...brilliantly plotted and perfectly paced...a futuristic novel every bit as good and as allegorically rich as Scott Westerfeld's 'Uglies' books."

--The New York Times, John Green

“...enthralling, imaginative and creepy...”

--Los Angeles Times

"Collins's characters are completely realistic and sympathetic as they form alliances and friendships in the face of overwhelming odds; the plot is tense, dramatic, and engrossing. This book will definitely resonate with the generation raised on reality shows like "Survivor" and "American Gladiator."

--School Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW

"[A] plot-driven blend of suspense, science fiction, and romance."

--USA Today,

"The plot is front and center here—the twists and turns are addictive, particularly when the romantic subplot ups the ante—yet the Capitol’s oppression and exploitation of the districts always simmers just below the surface, waiting to be more fully explored in future volumes. Collins has written a compulsively readable blend of science fiction, survival story, unlikely romance, and social commentary."

--Horn Book, STARRED REVIEW

"Populated by three dimensional characters, this is a superb tale of physical adventure, political suspense, and romance."

--Booklist, STARRED REVIEW

"[A] stylish postmodern 'Lost' in direct collision with 'Lord of the Flies.'"

--The Wall Street Journal, Katie Roiphe

"Themes of government control, "big brother," and personal independence are explored amidst a thrilling adventure that will appeal to science fiction, survival, and adventure readers. The suspense of this powerful novel will keep the reader glued to the page long after bedtime."

--VOYA, Deborah L. Dubois

"Impressive world-building, breathtaking action and clear philosophical concerns make this volume, the beginning of a planned trilogy, as good as The Giver and more exciting."

--Kirkus

From Suzanne Collins's site.