She stands up, tired and stiff from the struggle, but she knows in her heart that it is all over. She looks up into the eyes of the man who was with her through it all and sees something this time. Could it be true? Is it possible that she has fallen for the man who was once her adversary? The Hunger Games, starring Josh Hutcherson and Jennifer Lawrence, is a great example of overcoming gender stereotypes. The scene is set in a post-apocalyptic, authoritarian, dystopia named Panem, where each major industry has been divided into 12 isolated districts. The regime is ruled by President Snow, who controls the masses with fear, propaganda, and the annual Hunger Games. Every year on the day of the Reaping, each district chooses one male and one female from age 12 to 18 to fight to the death in an arena of violence. This is done to ensure that the districts will stay loyal and that the populace will never rise against The Capitol. The Hunger Games is unique in that it both challenges and affirms Deborah Tannen’s values of “intimacy and independence” by showing that women are capable of possessing qualities that are usually associated with men, and by depicting a woman who possesses an underlying need for intimacy that is overshadowed by her independent spirit.
Katniss Everdeen, played by Jennifer Lawrence, is portrayed as a teenage girl with a rough upbringing in which she is often forced to assume dominance in her family. She lives in District 12, where the citizens are forced to work in coal mines, live in prison-like conditions, and must scrounge to survive. At the age of 11, Katniss’s father dies. This is a pivotal moment in her life, as she is forced to take care of her family. Every day, she cares for her sick mother and young si...
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...er. In this moment, Katniss expresses her underlying need for intimacy. At the same time; however, she knows that martyrdom in defiance of The Capitol will spark a revolution amongst the districts, so she chooses independence from the system over a relationship with Peeta.
Although it is easy to classify people with gender roles, there will always be exceptions to the rule. Carefully scripted to defeat gender stereotypes, The Hunger Games breaks the norm by both challenging and affirming Deborah Tannen’s views. The film portrays Katniss as an example of a woman who is capable of filling masculine roles that are usually reserved for men. While Katniss does reveal an underlying need for intimacy, she is capable of exceeding society’s gender roles by providing for her family, defying the system, and in doing so, showing her independence.
Works Cited
The Hunger Games
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
As human beings, we thrive to find the meaning of our existence and also the truth. In the books and movies, The Hunger Games trilogy, the very heroic character Katniss Everdeen is on a quest to find truth. As she peels back the layers of lies that swaddle her world, she finds truth within herself and everything around her. To reflect on the novels and films, we must look at the principles of axiology and also examine the plot, characters and how they react to each situation; for reflecting on “the girl on fire” we must study the grounds of epistemology with her own identity. The whole story starts off with the day of the reaping when Prim, Katniss’ sister is selected to enter the Hunger Games, a game created by the government at the time to keep the society scared. One boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 from each district are selected by an annual lottery to participate in the Hunger Games, an event in which the participants must fight to the death in an outdoor arena controlled by the Capitol, until only one individual remains.
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.
The lives of men and women are portrayed definitively in this novel. The setting of the story is in southern Georgia in the 1960’s, a time when women were expected to fit a certain role in society. When she was younger she would rather be playing ...
The Hunger Games film, based on the books written by Suzanne Collins, has received much praise from adolescents and adults alike. Having never watched or had interest in the film I became more and more curious as to what the film is about and the type of message ascribed. People expressed their anticipation and excitement for the release of the film. Most of the eagerness indicated was due having read the books, – which are designed for tweens, adolescents, and young adults despite all of the gore being referenced, – wanting to see Katniss in action and others bought into the hype created by the media (“Anticipation builds…,” 2012, “Movie Anticipation…,” 2012). Other websites referenced anticipating the film because the lead character’s strength, caregiver qualities and warrior qualities could be a role model for young girls. In addition, Katniss was praised for being a caregiver to her family and served as a savior for taking her young sister’s place in the game (Brewster, 20...
Over the past few years, there has been various books, films, and even songs about influential, heroic, women throughout the world. Some of the most recent heroic female figures include the fictional character “Hermione Granger” from the novel Harry Potter by J. K Rowling. Another strong female figure includes “Katniss Everdeen” from the novel The Hunger Games by Suzzane Collins. The two heroic women certainly share their differences. Hermoine was described as a bookworm who could be a tad bossy at times. Katniss was athletically inclined, however, lacked certain communication skills with people. Although Hermoine and Katniss have their distinct differences,
The Hunger Games, a film based off of a novel written by Susan Collins, was released in March of 2012. The film, and the book it was based on, chronicles the struggles of a girl named Katniss Everdeen, a girl who lives in a poverty stricken province or “District”, until untimely circumstances forces her to play in the Hunger Games, a gladiatorial like contest where children between the ages of 12 and 18 are forced to fight to the death. A contest that was set up by an oppressive and authoritarian government, and has thus far been sustained via the forced obedience of the rebellious Districts, the brainwashing and conditioning of Districts 1 and 2, and the conditioning of the residents of its Capitol. The movie has a variety of messages, most especially in regards toward social control and social conditioning. With these ideas in mind, a case could very well be made that The Hunger Games, throughout its two hour long run time, shows a very realistic look at a socially conditioned society and what humanity can become with the right amount of conditioning and control by an authoritarian force.
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.
The vogue reputation of dystopian themed writing has caught the attention among current adolescents due to its immediate correlations with modern society. As well as providing the first person perspective of an altered reality, and its innovation in connection to different kinds popular genres in today's culture. This has branched out into film franchises such as The Hunger Games, The Maze Runner and Divergent. One key factor that constituents to the relativity of young adult dystopian literature are that the protagonist is perceived as someone with independence and strong ambition towards something that is yet to be developed in the story. An illustration of this is quoted from Katniss Everdeen, the main protagonist from the novel ‘The Hunger Games’, quotes, “Eventually I understood this would only lead us to more trouble. So I learned to hold my tongue and to turn my features into an indifferent mask so that no one could ever read my thoughts." This clarifies Katniss Everdeen that throughout the text she finally comprehends herself as a self-controlling
The Hunger Games was a good movie when it came out. This movie refers to a dystopia world in which there are 12 districts and a capitol who rules with an iron fist, in which the districts must provide a tribute to fight in an annual Hunger Game as a punishment for a past rebellion. Katniss Everdeen is a hunter from the 12th district, which Gale, her friend gives her tips on hunting. One day her sister, Primrose Everdeen, is chosen for the Hunger Games, and in order to save her, she volunteers instead to serve in the Games along with Peeta Mellark. During a TV interview, Peeta confesses her love for Katniss Everdeen, which causes the enragement of the latter; however, she later forgives him as he explains to her that it was only to gain sponsors. During the Hunger Games, she did not receive a lot of supplies except some medicine to cure a wound, but Districts 1 and 2 almost won the Game due to their training, and amount of supplies which Katniss destroys but cannot recover any of them. The Hunger Games was one of the best movies I ever watched because it has a little bit of everything and it captures the real-life survival game that we live on a daily basis.
Ever since her act of defiance in her first games, the leaders in The Capitol have been outraged with her. She made the conscious decision to disobey the rules. Her and Peeta would have rather killed themselves than be forced to kill one another like the game’s rules were set up, so the head game maker let them both live. The Capitol, and many people in the districts saw this act as defiance, which no one in Panem is allowed to do. But for Katniss, it was the most moral action in a world where morality is questionable. If she decides to play the game how she is supposed to, then she knows she has to die in the arena. At first, Katniss accepts this fate, as long as Peeta is the one to survive. She also knows that if she does not follow through with this plan, her family, friends, and everyone she cares about could potentially be murdered as a result of her actions. If she decides to play the game how it is supposed to go, Katniss can make The Capitol happy and end any potential threats that can lead to an uprising. She knows that his option is probably her best choice because she can protect the ones she loves. She would rather sacrifice herself for the lives of many other people than save herself. In this option, Katniss is choosing the most Utilitarian action to take. With her death, she thinks that peace will be the outcome, and
In our universal society, Rodney M. DeVault argues in “The Masks of Femininity perceptions of the Feminine in The Hunger Games”, acknowledges we have a natural proclivity for placing gender groups within certain arenas of social expectation. This is to say that men and women are expected to conform to gender roles. As a simple example, females are not expected to exhibit such male-associated attributes as dauntlessness, strength, and heroism. In The Hunger Games, however, Katniss Everdeen, the protagonist, actually exemplifies these attributes, which are associated with masculinity. She is not found in the private sphere serving in domestic capacities; she is exhibiting signs of strength, negating the manner in which women are perceived. Everdeen negates the manner in which women are usually portray by engaging in unwomanly traits such as hunting, dominating, and restricting
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
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.
effected. Katniss provides protection for her younger sister, Primrose Everdeen, and her mother, again carrying out the role of the father, or the alpha of the house. She satisfies this role to the degree of volunteering to compete in the annual hunger games in the place of her sister, who was initially chosen. Katniss felt it was her responsibility to protect her sister, as she was the main provider and protector of her family and the household. After volunteering to take Prim 's place, Katniss is taken away where she is isolated in a room and given only 3 minutes to speak with her family and close friend and huntind partner, Gale. When she is talking to her mother about caring for Primrose, she speaks with a firm voice, and very emphatically. The language and tone of her voice changes depending on the person who she is talking to. For example,