Symbolism (Notes)
- Bread
- The Mocking Jay
- Names
- The games
- Fire
- Plants
- Symbolism Task
- Mocking Jay
- Names
- Fire
- Bread
- Games
- Plants
Plants
Plants during the text can either be your best friend, or worst nightmare. The right plants will help you survive, whereas the wrong plants will kill you instantly. Plants play a huge role in the creation of this text, it allows the districts with less money but with more knowledge to have a larger chance of winning in the games. During the games Katniss was able to stay alive due to her extensive knowledge on plants that she acquired from her father.
Many character’s names are also the names of plants, e.g Rue, Primrose and Katniss. Often the names of the plants that correspond to their character represent them in some way, such as Katniss. The Katniss plant is shaped in an arrowhead that represents her skills in archery.
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Bread
Bread (P.G 35) – “When I passed the baker’s the smell of fresh bread was so overwhelming I felt dizzy.”
Bread (P.G 119) – Peeta talks about the different breads different tributes have.
References –
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bread_and_circuses#cite_note-2
- https://www.coursehero.com/lit/The-Hunger-Games-Series/symbols/
The Games
The games itself is a symbolic representation of the world, with countries continuously battling each other for resources
In Mockingjay, Katniss looks at a holograph of the booby-trapped streets of the Capitol and realizes she has simply entered another level of the Hunger Games. This time, though, more people are involved, the government itself is being forced to play, and the future and freedom of the districts are at stake.
On a symbolic level, the Games and the larger battle for Panem both become microcosms of the world itself, where territories and countries continually battle for resources, power, or survival. They also design terrible weapons to control or destroy one another, and the morality of using these weapons becomes of secondary importance.
Also, just as in the Games, the soldiers who do the actual fighting have little choice in the matter. They are sent into battle by leaders who pit them against each other, and fan the fires of hatred. As Katniss says at one point to a young enemy from District 2, soldiers are slaves of the Capitol/government and 'have no fight except the one the Capitol gave us.' Through her portrayal of the Hunger Games and the battle for Panem, Suzanne Collins is revealing a larger truth about the world in general.
Bread Symbolism
As mentioned at Pages; 8, 37, 51
Gale presents Katniss with fresh bakery bread that he traded for a squirrel. “It is real bakery bread, not the flat dense loafs we make from our grain rations. I take it in my hands…inhaling the fragrance that makes my mouth flood with saliva. Fine bread like this is for special occasions.” Gale and Katniss split this piece of bread to protect themselves from the reality that two people in District 12 will be sent to their probable deaths later that day. The bread is told as being ‘real’ by Katniss. To be real it must be; not artificial, not fraudulent or illusory. Bread is portrayed as being a sense of freedom, at home within the confines of the district she makes, “…flat dense loafs…” these types of loafs are horrible compared to the “…real…Fine bread…” that is brought by Gale from a bakery. Katniss only refers to bread being real once in the book, and this was outside the confines of the Capitol, although she does refer to the bread in the Capitol as tasty but never refers to it being ‘real.’ Bread’s status (real or fake) is directly proportionate to the amount of Freedom present.
This part of the book is a flashback of Katniss’s, in the flash back Peeta purposefully burns two loafs of bread enough that her mother will reject them, “His mother was yelling…” His mother then forced him to take the loafs and feed it to the pigs, and once there was an opportunity Peeta throws the burned loafs in Katniss’s direction, “…he threw a loaf of bread in my direction. The second quickly followed…” This section on p.g 37 gives Katniss a bit of hope that there is light in the constant shadows that is her life. Peeta also saves Katniss’s life here and Katniss feels that she owes Peeta her life and this affects her mentally during the lead-up to the games
Within district’s people can request a tesserae which is a small package consisting of grains and oil, but, in exchange of this your name is entered into the drawing for tributes once more. This is an exchange of ones’ chance of life, for continuation of life.
Mocking Jay
Mocking Jay (P.G ?) – Mocking jay was used by capitol to spy and then was used against them.
Mocking Jay Symbolism
- Mentioned at Pages; 51, 52
“At the last minute, I remember Madge’s little gold pin. For the first time, I get a good look at it. It’s as if someone fashioned a small golden bird and then attached a ring around it. The bird is connected to the ring only by its wing tips. I suddenly recognize it. A mockingjay.” This mockingjay is shown to be a symbol of defiance in the novel, its symbolism deriving from its origins in the text. The mockingjay came about as a result of a failed project by the Capitol to spy on the rebellious districts, and since the bird has served as a reminder to the capitol of their failure and the districts’ recalcitrance. Katniss describes the mockingjay bird as, “somewhat of a slap in the face to the Capitol.” The mockingjay pin that Madge gives Katniss is first an emblem resistance; later in the novel, however, the birds come symbolize a friendship between Katniss and Rue. The two using mockingjays as a form of communication. When Rue dies, Katniss decorates her body with flowers as a means of memorializing Rue, but also to defy the Capitol. When Katniss later sees mockingjays, they remind her of the relationship she had with Rue, and this stirs an unresolved hatred towards the Capitol. The mockingjay overall represents a general rebellion towards the Capitol, but we learn throughout the book that it symbolises Katniss’s specific desire to defy the Capitol.
“My father was particularly fond of mockingjays. When we went hunting, he would whistle or sing complicated songs to them and, after a polite pause they’d always sing back.” The mockingjay is something that Katniss can remember her father by. Katniss uses the pin that Madge gave her as a token of protection from her father.
Eventually after the first book and far into the second; Katniss – metaphorically – turns into a Mockingjay, and becomes the symbol of the resistance. When Katniss and Peeta win the 74th hunger games they – like the mockingjays – are something that never should have existed
Names Symbolism
Mentioned At Pages; 63,
Katniss Everdeen – (dictionary definition) ‘an edible tube looking plant that grows in the woods near bodies of water.’ Hardy, valuable, and sometimes sweet, the katniss plant is also a flexible survivor, just like the character. The plant also known as a duck potato and swan potato, the plant is sometimes referred to as; 'arrowhead,' derived from the Latin name for its genus: Sagittaria, which refers to the archer in the zodiac—a master with the bow and arrow, signifying Katniss Everdeen. The Katniss plant is mentioned in the book at page 63, “In late summer, I was washing up in a pond when I noticed the plants growing around me. Tall with leaves like arrow-heads. Blossoms with three white petals. I knelt down and pulled up handfuls of the roots. Small, bluish tubers that don’t look like much but boiled or baked are as good as any potato. “Katniss,” I said aloud.” The author included this to show that Katniss Everdeen is ‘one with nature’ – literally – and to be ‘one with nature’ you must, “…absorb what comes natural in life.” (John Smith, August 7th 2014) Katniss Everdeen knows what the life situation is and she accepts it, “Whatever the truth is, I don’t see how it will help me get food on the table.” Instead of trying to attack the Capitol she accepts that nothing will change and just accepts life and tries to survive. The katniss plant connects with nature and evidently so does Katniss Everdeen
President Snow has a very symbolic name, snow is; deceptively clean, white and pure, can also freeze and destroy whatever it covers. The man’s goal is to figuratively; chill Katniss to her core. His first name is also Coriolanus which you find out in the second book in the series of four (Hunger Games: Catching Fire). His first name refers to a character in one of Shakespeare’s tragedies (Gaius Marcius Coriolanus). This man supported aristocracy at the expense of common people, President Snow treats the people in the Capitol with the utmost respect whilst neglecting the common folk.
Rue – (dictionary definition) ‘To regret, wishing a certain situation never happened, to remorse.’
Fire Symbolism
Mentioned at pages; 81-86
Fire makes its first appearance (p.g 81-86) in the opening ceremony where the Capitol and the districts are introduced to the tributes. The stylist Cinna, who secretly works for the rebellion as we find out in the Mockingjay, design Katniss’s costume so it bursts into synthetic flames. Cinna wants to make the tributes from District 12 memorable, but additionally to show that the people of District 12, like the coal they mine, are a source of great amounts of energy. Cinna succeeds with his intentions; because throughout the text she is referred to as the girl on fire (e.g page 145, “…girl on fire.”) Later, in the series (Catching Fire) President snow forces Katniss to wear a wedding dress. Here Cinna alters the dress so that when she spins it burns and turns into a Mockingjay. She becomes a phoenix rising from the ashes.
Names
- Effie Trinket –
- Trinket meaning a small ornament or item of jewellery that is of little value.
- Peeta’s Name –
- Type of bread (Pita)(Homonym)
- Pan- Panem –
- Latin, literally 'bread and circuses,' supposedly coined by Juvenal and describing the cynical formula of the Roman emperors for keeping the masses content with ample food and entertainment.
- Rue -
- bitterly regret (something one has done or allowed to happen) and wish it undone.
- Rue is a hardy herb that is drought tolerant. It not only is a great herb to add to meals (in small doses), but it has medicinal values and essential oils that are highly beneficial. The leaves emit a powerful odour, and although safe to consume in small amounts, it tastes very bitter. Chewing on a leaf or two is said to relieve a headache.
- Katniss Everdeen –
- Katniss represents hope to her people, and a symbol of revolution. Katniss did not ask to be a revolutionary or a martyr. She participated in the Hunger Games to save her young sister, who was too weak to participate. Yet Katniss was a part of the rebellion long before she even realized it.
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