The Hunger Games presents a rather dystopian alternative to life in the United States as compared to the present time. To audiences, the story provides exciting entertainment as well as raising many ethical, moral, and political questions. However, there is another aspect of The Hunger Games which proves fascinating in an economical sense – the technology. Throughout the drama, contrasts in technological advancement show how important technology is to economic health.
In the beginning of the film, District 12 is shown to be a place whose residence are barely surviving. With food being scarce and the dangerous employment of the mines providing little support, the people of the district represent one of the lowest social classes in Panem. What little economy exists is based on trading and bartering rather than on the transfer of currency. Even those type of exchanges seen and mentioned in the movie are for necessities, such as food and clothes, and not often for luxuries. The lack of technology is especially startling. Minimal electricity is to be found, and even basic plumbing seems nonexistent in most homes. People are forced to work the mines manually with little safety gear, as made evident in the death of Katniss’s father, and with little compensation, as made evident by the extreme scarcity.
Considering that the civil war had been around seventy-four years earlier, the low state of District 12 is both economically and technologically surprising. After all that time,
The Hunger Games contribute to the sea of dystopian films, within this film social commentary is exposed in the gruesome scenes of murder preadolescents are forced to commit. In the dystopian film, the totalitarian nation of Panem is divided into 12 districts and the Capital. Each year two young representatives from each district are chosen to participate in The Hunger Games. The Hunger Games are televised throughout Panem and are used as part entertainment ,and as part retribution for a past rebellion. The 24 participants are forced to kill one another until there is one left. During this gruesome act the citizens of the Panem are forced to watch. Social commentary is shown throughout the whole movie as subtle evaluations of the society
In The Hunger Games Directed by Gary Ross the heavy influence of society’s need for
The Hunger Games novel written by Suzanne Collins reflects significant issues in the reality world nowadays which relate to the humanity, the poverty, the violence,… It describes the issues through the characters and what happens in the story, and the most significant issue occurs throughout the novel is the gap between rich and poor people. In the beginning of the novel, Suzanne Collins describes clearly the scene of the poverty, the terrible fear of the 12-district’s villagers, in contrast to the wealthy of the Capitol’s citizens. The inequality of social classes becomes the theme of the novel because of its relation and the effects to the plots of the story. And the reason, which leads to that issue, is the policies of the dictatorship
In life there is always some sort of violence and there always seems to be a good and a bad side. The Hunger Games, directed by Gary Ross is a movie about 24 tributes fighting to the death for the Hunger Games crown. The prize is riches, fame and freedom from ever having to physically fight in the arena again. It is a game of violence, ferocity, and blood, and only one tribute can win. Even though stories often have a Battle between Good and Evil, it is Katniss’s internal conflict confronting her own good and evil that portrays humanity with a longing for destruction, violent inclination, and sense of separation.
The Hunger Games, the movie, was adapted from the popular young adult novel by Suzanne Collins. The Hunger Games is sometimes described as another cliche love story for which the young adult genre is infamous. Despite appearances, The Hunger Games illustrates a complex and creative dystopian world with a much deeper underlying message, including topics such as, politics, history, and celebrity worship. The setting appears to be a futuristic version of America. This future America is very classist, and the tyrannical government is sure to keep the classes divided by heavily oppressing the working class. The working class is divided into twelve districts, which used to be thirteen districts until the thirteenth district was annihilated as a result of its uprising. In response to the thirteenth district’s resistance, the President created a game called “The Hunger Games” in an effort to instill obedience in the remaining twelve districts. Through the course of the movie, we learn that “The Hunger Games” are not only a mechanism to force obedience on the working class, but also to serve as entertainment for the elite society who live in the Capitol. The Games require 24 randomly selected children from the working class districts to fight to the death in an elaborately staged battle, all of which is filmed and broadcasted to the entire nation, working class and elite alike. Thesis: The Hunger Games, the movie, has a hauntingly feasible storyline and clear references to real
The dystopian genre makes parallels between the fabricated society and actual society. The reality TV element of the games demonstrates the link between the society of Panem and our society. From child beauty pageants to a rich family that no one knows why is famous, these shows are watched by many in today's society. People forget that these people are real and living their own lives compared to the “scripted” TV shows with paid actors. Capitol dwellers are obsessed with their image, making body modifications to look young and to stay in trend. This aspect of the novel makes a comment on plastic surgery and image in today’s society (Frade, 2014). The use of the hunger games as a social event shows that Capitol views the people in the districts as lesser individuals and are willing to watch people die for their entertainment. The games are watched “At homes and community halls around the country, every television set is turned on. Every citizen of Panem is tuned in” (Collins, 2008, p. 124). There is a disconnection from the people in the Capitol and the children fighting in the games. To the Capitol, those children are just part of an elaborate game, but for the Districts, those children are daughters, sons, brothers, and sisters. The view of humans as lesser individuals can be translated into society today. The top 1% of the population that control most of the wealth have power over the individuals that have less money. The Capitol is comparable to the top 1% and the Districts are comparable to the rest of the world. The geographical aspect of
By the outset of 1864, after three years of war, the Union had mobilized its resources for the ongoing struggle on a massive scale. The government had overseen the construction of new railroad lines and for the first time used standardized rail tracks that allowed the North to move men and materials with greater ease. The North’s economy had shifted to a wartime model. The Confederacy also mobilized, perhaps to a greater degree than the Union, its efforts to secure independence and maintain slavery. Yet the Confederacy experienced ever-greater hardships after years of war. Without the population of the North, it faced a shortage of manpower. The lack of industry, compared to the North, undercut the ability to sustain and wage war. Rampant inflation as well as food shortages in the South lowered morale.
As cited before, Panem revolves around a caste system. Residing in a caste system means that it is nearly impossible for one to move out of the social class that they were born into. The social classes in this movie include the people in power which is the Capitol, the people who live a decent life which are districts 1 and 2 because they are closest to the capital, and lastly the dirt poor which are districts 3-12. By using the extreme caste system, the plot successfully showcases the two most basic statuses which are achieved and ascribed. They are both very prevalent in Katniss. Because of her survival skills and hunting prowess, she “earns” her way into winning the Hunger Games which in turn made her a hero for district 12. This demonstrates how she achieved her status. Nevertheless, she was born poor in district 12. This status was ascribed to her. The most important status, which the second movie revolves around, is Katniss’ master status. This status is meant to dominate all other statuses. Her master status is
Reality television has differed throughout the years. At one point it was meant to be a literal depiction of everyday life. Now, reality television has changed to be more dramatic and outrageous than an average person or family’s life. The Hunger Games, in a way, depicts the lives of those who live in the poorer districts where the necessities for life are not in such abundance as in the Capitol. Although children are not forced to kill each other in the districts, there is still the struggle for one’s livelihood. That reality is depicted in the games and it seems that The Capitol takes that theme and develops it into The Hunger Games that we know and love. The Hunger Games suggests that reality television is manipulated to the point where the viewers see what the creators (game makers) want them to see.
In a not-too-distant, some 74 years, into the future the United States of America has collapsed, weakened by drought, fire, famine, and war, to be replaced by Panem, a country divided into the Capitol and 13 districts. Each year, two young representatives from each district are selected by lottery to participate in The Hunger Games; these children are referred to as tributes (Collins, 2008). The Games are meant to be viewed as entertainment, but every citizen knows their purpose, as brutal intimidation of the subjugated districts. The televised games are broadcasted throughout Panem as the 24 participants are forced to eradicate their competitors, literally, with all citizens required to watch. The main character
For thousands of years, governments have been oppressing their people. Although their reasons for doing so may have been different, the outcomes were all the same: a revolt of the people. There are many examples of this throughout history, such as in the French Revolution and the American Revolution. The Hunger Games, a tale of a dystopian society filled with maltreatment by “The Capitol,” displays the path to insurrection triggered by the mounting cases of misery brought on by their government, that was attacking lower classes of people. By using common themes of oppression and rebellion found throughout history, The Hunger Games is a striking example of how repression by government will eventually lead to a revolt of the people.
The title “Hunger Games” evokes a clear message: the way people living in the districts see this terrifying event as something fun, calling it a “game”. The whole event is shown on screens in all the different districts and people gather and enjoy watching their tributes. This clearly relates to a televised sporting event in which participants compete to win. The enthusiasm of the population is seen especially during the opening ceremony with “the pounding music, the cheers “. Moreover, the Games recall the gladiatorial Games of Ancient Rome in which armed competitors, some voluntary and others not, would fight to death. The fact that the games are televised and discussed in Panem’ s media also recalls today’s reality television, and the novel consequently draws a parallel between the gladiatorial Games and reality TV.
With dystopia being a present theme in both George Orwell’s, 1984 and Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games, both titles share similarities and contrasts to one another. Even though these books were written decades apart, they share similarities in the government control and the presence of poverty in the settings. But, both books contradict one another as futuristic settings are viewed differently depending on when the books are written, as well as the remembrance of past struggles in the societies. The seeds of a dystopian theme are found in 1984 and The Hunger Games, presenting similarities and differences from in both books, even though the books were written decades a part.
Telling a story that is set in the future gives authors the chance to depict present day issues in a different light. They usually choose to exaggerate them so readers can see how their society might look in the future, especially if they ignore issues that can grow and become problems. In the case of The Hunger Games (HG), the author, Suzanne Collins, explores issues like the huge inequality of wealth and how the power of television can influence our lives. She does this by portraying the HG as an extreme reality game show where teenagers fight to the death. By highlighting some important connections between our worlds, the author shows us that we may be headed to a place very similar to HG universe. These connections are about how tensions are created by the inequality between rich and poor on television, how an external force like the audience drives ratings higher, and how producers do not care about the message they are sending, as long as the audience watches the show.
wealthy have an advantage over the poor. Through a Marxist literary criticism, this paper will analyze economic and political situations in Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games and compare them to modern-day America. This paper will criticize the motives and actions of the upper class in The Hunger Games and in America in order to explain the inequality and injustices of a non-communist economy. In The Hunger Games, the socioeconomic differences between districts, effects of the Hunger Games, and creation of the Hunger Games support the idea that wealth is equal to power. The power dynamics presented in The Hunger Games, more specifically, the rich versus the