"The Hunger Games" a short analysis

By: Maja Berntsen

The Hunger Games is a novel written by Suzanne Collins and was published in 2008. The protagonist in the story is Katniss who lives with her mother and little sister. They live in a completely different world to what we are used to. Panem is the remains of what used to be North-America and consists of 12 Districts and the Capitol. The people who lives in the Capitol live a life in luxury with more food than they can eat. Life in the Districts however, are pretty different. People are starving in some areas and they are heavily controlled by the government. Every year, the government arranges “The Hunger Games”. The Hunger Games is a reality show where 24 teens fight against each other until there is only one left. The Games are broadcasted all over Panem and works as entertainment for the people in the Capitol. There are two contestants from each district, a girl and a boy and they are picked at random. Katniss becomes well known after volunteering for the games in stead of her little sister, who is the one who originally gets picked. The novel follows the games and everything that happens behind the scenes both in the games and in the Districts during the games.

I think that the book is well written and that it reaches out to the age group it has been written for. The first time I read it I was thirteen years old and I became obsessed with this whole universe pretty quick. I think that it catches on so easily because the author uses a language that is pretty easy to understand and it is not a heavy read at all. It is also easy for teens to relate to the themes in the book. Some of the themes that probably is the easiest to relate to are themes like friendship, trust, love and fear.

The novel is written with a first-person narrative where Katniss is the “I”-person. Characters and environment are described detailed through her experiences throughout the book. The other characters are described through Katniss’ description of them, how she looks at them and what what everyone else is saying about them. Katniss is always reflecting on the other character’s tactics on how to survive in the games. When she is comparing the other contestants with each other, you get the idea of who is going to survive the longest and who will get killed pretty quick.

One aspect that can be heavily criticised is how grotesque a lot of the action in the novel is. Just think about it; a group of teens are sent out on an arena to kill each other, for the sake of entertainment. The killings in the book are described quite detailed, so it might not be a novel for the ones who gets easily affected by violence, blood and killing. When I read it as a thirteen-year-old, I did not really think about the violence as a problem, and I do not think that it is such a big deal because it is not the violence that is the main focus in the book. However, if there are young people who have been through for example, wars, this book might not be the ideal book to read because it can bring up old memories.

Over all, I think that The Hunger Games is a brilliant piece of literature and that it has made lots of teens hungry for more books to read and more open to literature. The way the book portrays inequality and corruption is also a great way for young people to learn about complicated themes like this. Books does not have to be boring, to be educational!

Sources:

Collins Suzanne (2008) The Hunger Games, Scolastic Ink, Broadway, New York