Hi All,
Tammy asked me if
I would write up the January book club notes.
Reluctantly, I agreed since our most distinguished leader does such a
extraordinary job of writing that I am writing this disclaimer to begin my
synopsis. Tammy, we are all anxiously
awaiting your first novel. You have the
gift of writing and I am envious.
Being retired has afforded me the luxury of spending more time analyzing
our book The Hunger Games this month. I really enjoyed this thought-provoking work
of fiction especially from a teacher perspective; almost makes me wish I were back in the classroom to teach this
book to teenagers. This is a novel is a
cross between a Greek and Roman tragedy and a modern day reality TV show.
Winning means fame and fortune,
losing means death. Survival means
comfort for Katniss and her family at the expense of humanity or life against
love. Without really meaning to, Katniss
becomes a contender in The Hunger Games. Katness Everdeen regards it a death
sentence when she steps forward to take her younger sister Prim’s place at the
reaping. “The Games” take place in the
ruins of a place once known as North America
in the nation of Panem. The cruel, harsh Capitol is surrounded by twelve
outlying districts which are kept in line by forcing them to all send one boy
and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the
annual event to fight to the death on live TV.
The ultimate reality show!
Politics, reality, love, competition,
appearance, sacrifice, strength and skill, rebellion, and humanity are all
themes that weave the tapestry of this intriguing story. I become almost paranoid when hearing about
all the primary election results on TV wondering are we being manipulated by
our own government through the “media!”
Are we only hearing what others in power and high places want us to
hear? This book certainly had me thinking about the “science fiction” in our own lives. Could this possibly happen in the USA? As I mentioned at our meeting, Suzanne
Collins, the author of the Hunger Games,
enjoyed reading books such as Nineteen
Eighty Four by George Orwell, Slaughterhouse-Five
by Kurt Vonnegut, Lord of the Flies
by William Golding, and A Wrinkle in Time
by Madeleine L’Engle which certainly influenced her writing of science
fiction/fantasy. These books bring back
many memories of my high school/college years of reading. I am sure many of you can relate as well. We must be diligent in knowing what the truth
is. Hence, our faith and the scriptures.
Sacrifice is a major theme in this
novel as Katniss takers her sister’s place in the games, and Katniss and Peeta
sacrifice themselves by pretending to eat the berries. Sacrifice reminds us that human life has
meaning and is a powerful defense for the tributes in “the games”. In our own life, reality TV and violent video
games de-humanize humanity and life.
Another important theme is
competition. The tributes are forced to
play a game of life and death. Can you
ever win “the games” against this manipulating, unjust government? Are
the Hunger Games really over? Is it
better to win or lose? Katniss and Peeta
must view each of the other tributes as competitors or allies.
Speaking your mind or having a
voice could get you killed by the absolute power and fear of this Totalitarian
government which reminds me of Nazi Germany. Katniss learns to play politics in
order to survive. The people of Panem are pawns in this chess game of power by
the Gamemakers. The government pits each
district against each other which is symbolic of how the capitol prevents the
districts from joining forces and rebelling.
This government’s motto should be “Divide and Conquer”. Two examples of how Katniss resists this government
occur when she “salutes” and puts flowers on the body of Rue calling attention to
the humanity of the tributes and eulogizing Rue with dignity and respect.
Image is everything in producing
the theme of appearances. This absolute
government manipulates the persona of the tributes and the public image.
Katniss and Peeta are assigned a team of beauty technicians (Cinna, Haymitch
and company) to craft their look but will a “make-over” on the outside change
the spirit and determination of Katniss and Peeta on the inside? They walk a
tightrope between how they look and how they really are. Katniss must craft a persona for the cameras
to sell herself to get sponsors to survive. “The Girl on Fire!” and “ A
Star-Crossed Lover”.
Each of the
tributes displays strength and skill.
For example, Cato’s temper and anger are demonstrated by his ability to
snap a neck with his bare hands. Foxface
is crafty, Rue navigates from tree to
tree with the extraordinary ability of “Tarzan”. Peeta is a master of camouflage and Katniss’
archery skill is unprecedented. Each
tribute has a strength or skill which makes them a strong contender but will it
help them win the game?
This is a
society of ‘haves” and “have-nots”. The
ultimate class warfare is at play, “He who has the gold rules.” The wealthy districts the haves) have the
funds to train better verses the god-given skills of the “have-nots”. This reminds me again of our “state of the
union”. Are we a society of haves and
have-nots? Jesus says, “the poor will
always be with you” (Mark 14:7) while Genesis 4:19 states the age old question
from Cain, “Am I my brother’s keeper?”
What is the truth and what do you believe?
A love story is another thread woven throughout the Hunger Games
tapestry. Katniss is the girl who cannot
love and surviva prevents her from
getting attached to others. Does love get in the way to survive on the
battlefield or does it help her? Katniss is playing the role in the underlying
play of Romeo and Juliet with Petree or is she?
Is the love between Katniss and Petree real or is it another episode of
“The Bachelor”? I’m not sure because I
want to believe in loyalty to her friend Gale in The Seam with whom Katniss
seems to really love. Collins
ingeniously weaves this love story throughout the entire book leaving us with a
cliff hanger ending as Katniss and Petree become co-winners of The Hunger Games
for the first time in the history. Will Gale and Katniss return to the forest to
ignite the love that was just beginning to flame or will the love that Petree
and Katniss become real instead of just a show for the Capitol? In Catching
Fire, book two, the tapestry of The Hunger Games continues.
As you can read, this young adult
fiction has spawned many adult questions of life for us today.
One of my favorite quotes from this
book is, “I knelt down in the water, my fingers digging into the soft mud, and
I 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. It’s the plant I was named for. And I heard my father’s voice joking, “As
long as you can find yourself, you’ll survive.”
This speaks of one of the major themes Identity. Only after we are boiled and baked in life
do we know who we really are and will survive, even if we don’t look like much!
Our next meeting will be at Panera
Bread on Wednesday, February 29th at 6:30. Our book is “The Uncoupling.” A New York
Times Bestseller by Meg Wolitzer which
should provoke some lively discussion among our group about female desire and
passion.
Becky
No comments:
Post a Comment