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Power In The Hunger Games

Decent Essays

Literature from the speculative fiction genre aims to expose problems or concerns that pertain to society and the struggle of humanity. In the case of Suzanne Collins’ ‘The Hunger Games’ the issues of power and gender are displayed. Collins reminds audiences of past societies that have disempowered individual citizens in order to offer a social critique through her literature. Although the circumstances seen in ‘The Hunger Games’ are extreme, audiences are reminded of their plausibility through Collins’ discussion of political, economic, social and gender imbalances of power. The text encourages audiences to critique the ideological structure of modern societies. One of the more noticeable examples of the inequitable distribution of power …show more content…

Like unjust societies in the past, Panem restricts the basic human rights of its citizens. In one way or another all articles from the Declaration of Human Rights have been breached by the government of Panem; specifically, the right to live free from torture, the right to life, liberty and security and also the right to move freely. Importantly, throughout this text Collins celebrates the power of the individual spirt to triumph over these injustices. Despite economic, political and social control, the citizens of Panem find ways to resist and rebel the Capitol. Early in the text, this is seen through the example of “the Hob, the black market that operates in an abandoned warehouse” (pg. 13). The Hob is significant as it represents the subtle rebellion of the districts and their desire to be autonomous. The desire to self-govern and control one’s own life is most prevalent when Katniss threatens to eat the berries. This is the ultimate act of rebellion against the Capitol and its ways evident when Katniss narrates “when I poured out those berries, I was only thinking of outsmarting the Gamemakers, not how my actions would reflect on the Capitol. But the Hunger Games are their weapon and you are not supposed to be able to defeat it” (pg. 435). Collins uses war-like language such as ‘weapon’, ’actions’, ’outsmarting’ and ‘defeat’ to reflect how Katniss’ actions were an act of war and resistance against the

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