Throughout the Hunger Games trilogy, there has been many instances where the characters and character arcs within the series strongly resemble that of classical characters from Greek mythology, namely that of Katniss Everdeen, the protagonist and narrator of the story and that of Finnick Odair, Katniss’ friend and fellow victor from District 4. However, despite the many similarities in character arcs of Katniss and Finnick with their Greek mythological counterparts, there are also instances where we see the pattern of certain archetypes disrupted within the series, namely that of Katniss’ rise and eventual retreat from power through the series.
Katniss, with her exceptional gift for archery and hunting, can be seen as an intentional partial
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Katniss is far more passive and does not possess the exceptionalism and superior gifts that seemed to be a prerequisite for the celebrated heroes in Greek mythology. Unlike the classic heroes, whose stories centred around godly warriors destined for fame and blessed with superhuman abilities, readily distinguishable from everyday commoners, Katniss starts of as an ordinary girl from the poorest District of Panem living in its poorest area (the Seam), she is unceremoniously plucked from her mundane life when she volunteers as tribute to save her sister, ultimately forced into extraordinary circumstances. Her reluctance to be the hero and hesitation to be a leader through the series differentiates her from the classic heroes as she is essentially drafted into a situation that she initially wants no part in. This point is further highlighted as we see how irreparably damanged Katniss becomes psychologically and physically after the rebellion. Instead of behaving like the classic hero and stepping up as the new leader Panem, we see a broken Katniss retreating into desolation of the ruins of District 12, alone with in a place where there is nothing left for her — her sister and most of her friends have died, her mother and Gale have chosen not to return to District 12 in favour of rebuilding Panem, and Peeta’s once unwavering love seems to have been irrevocably damaged by President Snow’s
Katniss then goes through an interview with the host Caesar Flickerman. Where with help from her stylist and escort, appears gorgeous and stunning. However, Katniss owes the success to a plan organised by her mentor and Peeta, Katniss’ ordinary person type companion. Peeta admits to Caesar that he loves Katniss, who is unaware the plot and stands surprised, to make the two seem more desirable. Katniss then pretends to be in love with Peeta to earn favours from the sponsors. As a result, the star-crossed lovers receive many sponsorships. Thus, this scene represents a part of the “Road of
As an impoverished resident of District 12, the priorities that have shaped Katniss’ identity are those of survival. Whether is it in hunting the fields with her trusty bow and arrow, or trading her catch at the illegal hub, Katniss’ society has enabled her to hold many attributes and attitudes that would traditionally be considered as masculine. Her characteristic plait is done so for functional rather than fashionable purposes; she is a surrogate father over her sister Prim since his death in the coal mines; she is the main provider for her family; and her ‘romantic attachment’ to Gale has developed through his respect for stubborn and resilient nature rather that her looks or dependence upon
Katniss is the main character in the novel, The Hunger Games. The author of this book is Suzanna Collins. Katniss is a 16 year old who has been chosen with 23 other tributes. In my class we have studied themes and key ideas such as Power of the Capitol, Competition against other tributes and Sacrifice for what Katniss acts and does in the Hunger Games. There are many themes but I have chosen these 3 because they show the most emotions and power.
It has often been said that there is nothing new under the sun. In this vein, authors across all literary genres often borrow themes and plot from the stories of long ago. Many of those authors choose to borrow from the rich mythology of the ancient Greeks. Suzanne Collins has been asked on numerous occasions where the idea for The Hunger Games originated. She readily admits that the characters and plot come from Greek mythology and more specifically, from Theseus and the Minotaur (Margolis 30). One familiar with both both stories can easily recognize the identical framework upon which each of these stories are built. Both Theseus and Katniss Everdeen, Collins’ heroine, volunteer to go into battle for their respective homelands, they both fight beasts of strange origin, and they are both brave in battle and emerge victorious, but it is the uniqueness of the characters that makes each story appropriate for the time period and audience to which it belongs. Collins modernizes the classic hero of Theseus by changing his gender, his motivations and altering his selfish personality, and by doing these things she creates a heroine that better resonates with today's audience of young adults.
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be a powerful king or in a totally different situation being part of the Hunger Games ? Katniss is the famous teenage girl that lives in District 12. On the other hand, there is Oedipus, who became the ruler of a city called Thebes. They seem to be two totally different people with two different lives, but there personalities are quite similar. Katniss is her family's provider, the survivor of the Hunger Games , and also known as the girl on fire. Oedipus is a king who shows much determination. Katniss and Oedipus both have similar but different characteristics and personalities who portray who they are and how they play their role in society by showing their intelligence, confidence, and sometimes
Katniss lost her social interaction with many of citizens by just staying at her own distance, not leaving her bubble of safety. Katniss really did not have a problem with personal space, but she did not like being around others. She preferred the wilderness where she could do what she wanted to do, without having to deal with others. In that ...
Crookshanks, which is the name of Hermoine’s cat, seems to be better treated by its owner than Katniss’s cat. When it comes to emotion, Hermoine is definitely not reluctant to show them whether she cries, gets jealous, or feels hurt. Katniss usually believes in remaining tough and concealing her emotions from others. Hermoine is certainly not afraid to be girly at times, but does not let it interfere with her reputation as a powerful witch. Katniss is never interested in dressing up and seems to have difficulty in balancing both beauty and being strong. Watching Hermoine as an eleven year old girl grow up to be a beautiful and powerful woman may lead some readers to become more emotionally attached to her character than
In our Society when you don't follow the rules, you become an outcast to the rest of the society. Suzanne Collins’ novel series, The Hunger Games criticizes our society and its demands for people of specific genders to act in certain ways and become certain things. Stereotypes concerning gender are prevalent in our society and all over the world. However, The Hunger Games gives a very refreshing tone of “mockery” to these stereotypes. Katniss Everdeen isn’t your typical 16 year old girl, and neither is Peeta Mellark a typical 16 year old boy, especially when they are fighting everyday just to survive. The Hunger Games is a work of social commentary, used to convince us that there can’t and shouldn’t be any defined “roles” based on gender. A mixture of “stereo-typical” gender roles within a person and their actions is what people need just to survive in our world that is changing every day.
Katniss does many things others will not do in her situation. Whether it is helping her family or helping others. Katniss’ father died in a mining accident when she was eleven (5). Katniss’s mother did not handle it well. She stopped caring for her family. She became a zombie. Katniss had to start caring for her family (26, 27). One day Katniss figured it all out. Katniss thought, “The first dandelion of the year. A bell went off in my head. I thought of the hours spent in the woods with my father and I knew how we were going to survive” (32). This is when Katniss realizes her family would no longer starve. Katniss knew hunting in district 12 is illegal and the penalty could be death (5). Katniss risks her life. Katniss’s only concern is her family, no matter the danger.
Underestimated by her competitors, she was able to rise her way to the top by pulling out he secret weapons. Her hunting abilities, problem solving skills, and ability to think on the spot may not seem like super powers; however, they helped her survive and win the hunger games. Like Tris, Katniss also had a supernatural aid. Peeta was able to help Katniss make it through the games and they both made it out alive. Two to protagonists , Tris and Katniss, are alike in many ways and they both have the self-respecting, strong, smart, and independent qualities that one would expect to find in a
Since she is the female victor from district 12, she is in the 74th Hunger Games. She sees how painful and scary it is and so she tries to stop the capital which is who is controlling everything. She doesn’t want that to happen to anyone else. She rebels against President Snow in plan of eventually killing him to take over the capital and change the world. Teens can relate to this because a lot of the time we feel controlled. It might be by a parent, teacher, grandparent or someone else but all of us are controlled by someone. A lot of teenagers end up rebelling because they feel as if they have no choices. They go against the rules of who they are rebelling against. That persons rules and values are not necessarily right. Who decides what is right? It seems as if we have entered into a state time where there is no right and wrong. Katniss breaks free of that control and does her own thing. Another way teens can relate to the hunger games is through the love triangle. Some of us might have a similar situation of where we might like two people. In the movie it says, “What I need is not Gales fire, kindled with rage and hatred. I have plenty of fire myself. What I need is the dandelion in the spring. The bright yellow that means rebirth instead of destruction. The promise that life can go on, no matter how bad our losses. That it can be good again. And only Peeta can
Collins portrays Peeta, as having feminine characteristics by showing him to be as emotional, romantic and more passive than Katniss. In the novel, Peeta “blushes beet red and stammers out” his love for Katniss on national television. He confesses that he has a crush and he tells the interviewer that his crush “[is] here with [him].” (Katniss, 130) Whereas Katniss’ reaction to Peeta’s confession is to “slam [her] palms into his chest” (Katniss, 135). This illustrates Peeta’s emotional personality and compares it to Katniss’s cold personality. This disproves the idea that gender roles are exactly true, and men cannot have similar features to
Gender roles refer to theoretical construction about how people who belong to different genders should speak, think, dress, act and interact within the context of community they live in. Moreover gender roles divided into two main elements, which are dependent on the cultural context as well as the personal preferences or tendency of someone. Gender representations in “The Hunger Games” represents classical shifts away from mainstream gender roles with some elements and reinforces established gender roles in others. Girls are presented as the fairer gender, with an inclination towards being emotional and kind and rarely have characteristics of toughness and strength as is characterized by boys. On the other hand,
In The Hunger Games, the main character named Katniss finds her own way around the games. Katniss is not the person who likes to kill, she tried her best to kill as few people as possible, yet not get herself killed. Katniss hated the idea of the hunger games, so she wanted to try to find a way to stop it. Over the course of many books/movies, Katniss was able to go her own way and rebel against the rich people. She was unique, Katniss was able to get many people to respect her and help her fight against the rich. Like any other person, Katniss could have just followed the instructions given to her to be safe. However, this is not who she is, Katniss stuck up for what she believed in. She had a decision to defeat the rich and try to end the games, and she stuck to it. There are many movies and books in the arts that show people not following the crowd. So many show how people can be unique and be there own person. Any body can take there own road, just like
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 throughout the series is a 16-year-old girl from District 12 named Katniss Everdeen.