The Hunger Games - Literary Analysis

The Hunger Games Trilogy: A Formalistic Criticism The ‘Hunger Games’ trilogy is a great and eye-catching work of art when you look at it as a whole. It is because Suzanne Collins, the author of the book, carefully considered all of the literary elements and it worked well together: from its plot, setting, characters, themes, and symbols. The characters in the story are accurately described together with their own unique characteristics. Every character in the book expresses their traits through their own words and deeds, such as Katniss's fiery personality and outstanding bow and arrow skills, Peeta's willingness to sacrifice anything for his loved ones, President Snow, who is not pleased when the protagonists defy the Capitol's power and influence, Cinna’s creativeness when it comes to fashion that helped Katniss and Peeta all throughout the story and many more. The point of view of the text came from the main character or the protagonist, Katniss Everdeen. She served as the narrator all throughout the ‘Hunger Games’ trilogy. The 74th annual Hunger Games gave the people of Panem hope despite the fact that they are unsatisfied with the situations in where they reside. This gave the people of Panem the determination to oppose the government of the Capitol and to pursue the rebellion that was led by Katniss Everdeen. Given that the author created a realistic plot and scenes, their acts seem incredibly credible. The theme of the book is greatly influenced by the actions and motivations of the characters because they are ultimately the factor that made this masterpiece known. The setting of the text is just important as how the character’s actions and motivations are. Every literary element has made their roles equally and perfectly. The setting that has been made is unique and memorable because of its names, such as how the nation of Panem is described and is divided into the Capitol and the districts: The Capitol is where the government's leaders as well as the privileged people reside and in the twelve districts where poverty and suffering are rampant. The arena where the annual hunger games is being held is also part of the setting. Its setting gives us the idea that all of the districts are experiencing injustices and poverty. The influence of the setting is a huge factor that drove the characters to do some act. In this world, people have various lifestyles from one another. Some people are enjoying every luxury and comfort. They even have a habit of buying anything they desire without considering the cost. Having money that may be used for a variety of purposes must be a privilege, so we have to use it wisely. On the other hand, there are others who are dealing with all of life's challenges. I suppose they are already used to the fact that poverty is a reality in their lives and that they have to do those jobs in order to survive on a daily basis. Everyone should be treated equally, and it shouldn't be biased depending on your life estate. Other than that, one of the best lessons I learned was the importance of trying to stand up for oneself and others. Not everyone can stand up for themselves, thus doing so is a noble act. Don't let other people's opinions determine your life's path. In our judgmental society, people may say or do horrible things to you, but at the end of the day, their actions will reflect on them, not you. Everybody has their own journey, and you have your own. The Hunger Games Trilogy: A Marxist Criticism An American author named Suzanne Collins is best known for her novel entitled ‘The Hunger Games’. In this work, there has been a class conflict that the Capitol is using to oppress and take advantage of the districts. The districts are starving to death while the Capitol enjoys all the comfort and luxuries they can have. Every year, the Capitol makes it mandatory for each of the 12 districts to provide a male and a female aged between 12 and 18 as a tribute to take part in the Hunger Games, a nationally televised competition. The Capitol is taking advantage of people's lives to go and get money by hypnotizing them into thinking that if they participate in the competition as tributes and win, it will be a great honor for them and their district. I suppose that this work perfectly captures the conflict between the bourgeois and the proletariat in terms of class, and that is why I chose to criticize this through the Marxist approach. The novel focuses on the story of a 16-year-old girl, Katniss Everdeen, who offers and volunteers herself as a tribute of district 12 in the 74th annual Hunger Games in replace of the real chosen tribute which is her younger sister, Primrose Everdeen. She made her way to be the last survivor together Peeta Mellark. The last two survivors earned some winnings although it cannot cover the fact that there is still poverty in the districts that remain. It's also saddening that they are oblivious to the fact that the "reward" the victors could receive only amounts a negligible portion of the wealth the Capitol is obtaining at the expense of the lives of their citizens. It did not take a long time for all of them to realize what and how the Capitol treats them. After the 74th annual Hunger Games, all the districts found an inspiration to fight for their rights through rebellion. Together and through Peeta and Katniss as their symbol of hope, they knew that justice will prevail just like how the sun shines brightly after the storm. The literary work reflects and relates to the social and political conditions of the time as its relevance is obvious just like here in the Philippines. The sad fact about our country is that laws are somehow favorable to the rich while injustices are experienced by the poor. On the other hand, it makes me happy that we, Filipinos, are choosing to fight and stand for our rights. As what other Filipinos say, an honest government will lead to a better life for all. And for us to achieve that, we need great leaders that will lead us to a better life. In the book, it is shown that class conflicts have been the issue and the source of struggle and tension even at the very first part of the story. The main problem was solved by fighting and standing for their rights to equity with the citizens of the nation of Panem. At the end of the text, justice was prevailed just like what the 12 districts want. I would say that ‘The Hunger Games’ trilogy is an inspiration for every one of us to seek for social and political changes. It is not very far with reality because both of it illustrates the same ill or problem. As a matter of fact, what differentiates the reality from this text is that they have found the solution to this while in reality, it is not yet found and we’re still standing and fighting for it. References: Cao, D. (n.d.). The Hunger Games Character Analysis. LitCharts. https://www.litcharts.com/lit/the-hunger-games/characters N.A. (2023, February 11). The Hunger Games. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hunger_Games N.A. (2018, May 27). Questions to Consider. Marxist Literary Theory. https://introtoliterarytheory.wordpress.com/questions-to-consider/ Thunga K, N. (2022, September 15). The Hunger Games Plot Summary. Book Analysis. https://bookanalysis.com/suzanne-collins/the-hunger-games/summary/ Thunga K, N. (2022, September 15). Catching Fire Plot Summary. Book Analysis. https://bookanalysis.com/suzanne-collins/catching-fire/summary/ Thunga K, N. (2022, September 15). Mockingjay Plot Summary. Book Analysis. https://bookanalysis.com/suzanne-collins/mockingjay/plot-summary/