In The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins seems to be making pointed social commentary while telling the story of Katniss and Peeta. Collins does this through the extravagance the ignorance of the Capitol, as well as her descriptions of the dire situations of many of the districts.
From early on in the novel, it is very apparent that Collins intends the reader to have an unfavorable view of the Capitol and those who live there. The very basis of the annual Hunger Games is to portray the Capitol's controls over all of the districts. "All year, the Capitol will show the winning district gifts of grain and oil and even delicacies like sugar while the rest of us battle starvation" (19). The Capitol could very feasibly feed all of the 12 districts, yet it will only show a district favor if its tribute wins the hunger games. Here, I believe Collins is providing commentary on how developed nations treat not only their poor, but other impoverished countries as well. Developed nations like the US have citizens who have more resources at their fingertips than they will ever need, yet there are so many who go without food and have to live in poverty. The gross overindulgence of citizens of the Capitol further serves Collins' point. Katniss says: "What it must be like , I wonder, to live in a world where food appears at the press of a button? How would I spend the hours I now commit to [finding food] if it were so easy to come by?"(65). Katniss comes from a district where she has to forage for food in the forest and if she has a bad hunting day, her family won't eat. However, in the Capitol, full course meals come at the press of a button. Collins is pushing the reader to draw comparisons between what many see as the gross extravagance of the "1%" in the US today and how the Capitol acts in the novel.
The layout and daily lives of the 12 districts is a detail of the story that is loaded with Collins' social commentary. Districts 1, 2, and 4 provide luxury items and technology for the Capitol, and therefore are the wealthiest of the 12 districts. Meanwhile, in Districts 11 (Agriculture) and District 12 (Coal mining) many of the citizens go hungry. The Hunger Games only reinforce the disparity between the wealthy districts and the poor ones. When talking about how ill-equipped to win the tributes all look, Katniss says: "The exceptions are the kids from the wealthier districts, the volunteers, the ones who have been fed and trained throughout their lives for this moment" (94). In America today, there are many who feel that there are certain classes of people who are more privileged than others, and the Careers in The Hunger Games definitely fit this mold. While there is technically not supposed to be any training allowed, the Careers have been trained all their lives to volunteer to enter the Hunger Games. They have an unfair advantage over the rest of the poorer districts, and Collins is connecting them to the privileged individuals in society today who have a much easier time with accomplishing their goals than those who start behind them.
While The Hunger Games is a novel containing an exciting story filled with action and an intriguing love story, Suzanne Collins has also filled it with social commentary that draws comparisons between Panem and the world we live in today.
ReplyDeleteIn her renowned novel, The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins goes beyond writing an adventurous and charismatic story of the protagonist by highlighting some of social inequalities present in Panem. Robert mentions about the social commentary that draws comparison between Panem and the world we live in today. Especially, Collins’ depiction of Panem is most analogous to the current state of North Korea.
Starting with the dictator and the social inequality between the capital and the rest of the country, Panem shares many similarities with the unfavorable conditions of North Korea: In Panem, the Capitol requires tributes from the districts to serve as reminders for “how totally districts are at their mercy” (18). In North Korea, all the citizens are at Kim Jung Un’s mercy. All citizens, men and women, must serve in the military for a minimum of three years. As much as this procedure is to hedge risks against a possible war against South Korea, this is a way for Kim to exercise his power and remind the citizens of the hierarchy in the society.
The class inequality is depicted immediately after Katniss and Peeta make their way up to the Capital. Katniss, who foraged to keep her family alive and fed, is served “an enormous platter of food- Eggs, ham, piles of fried potatoes. A tureen of fruit. A basket of rolls they set before me would keep my family going for a week” (55). The extreme differences in even the basic needs, such as food, is present in North Korea. While the average North Korean earns US$10 a year, some of the “capital riches spend $9 on iced mocha, or dress in their favorite label” (Killalea).
Such realization of the troubling similarities between the virtual Panem and North Korea reality should encourage the world to improve the social conditions for all.
Killalea, Debra. “Pyonghattan: Life inside North Korea's Brat Pack.” NewsComAu, 18 May 2016, www.news.com.au/travel/travel-ideas/weird-and-wacky/north-korea-inside-the-lives-of-pyongyangs-rich-kids/news-story/e9b4dae09f05dbc272495cce2dd9faee.
I agree that Suzanne Collins largely focuses her novel on social commentary of our society. This is achieved mainly through a comparison between the capitol and the top “1%” of our society. As you mentioned, Katniss is appalled by the carelessness of the capitol with their food supply. They have much more food than necessary, while Katniss has spent her whole life on the border of starvation. I believe one of the most important scenes that illustrates this, which you also cited, was the scene where Cinna brings out a feast of food at the touch of a button. As Cinna reads Katniss’s reaction to the feast, he immediately says, “How despicable we must seem to you” (65). In this same scene, Katniss realizes that it would take her days of hard work to produce a “poor substitution” for the meal in front of her (65). This scene was the first part of the novel that clearly mirrored the difference between first and third world countries and the sad similarities between our society and the capitol. Our society often thinks nothing of over indulgence, while we are very aware of the reality of starvation in our world. Through this scene, and so many more, Collins wants to make a statement about how we are not so different from the novel’s main antagonists: the capitol citizens.
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