The Hunger Games Sociological Analysis

What if, in a not too distant future, the United-States of America is overrun by a single government that decides to divide the population into groups based on social class, race and ethnicity? What if this dictatorship then decides to enforce its power by taking one young boy and one young girl from each group and pitting them into death games, to snuff out hope and fortifying despair and inequality? One would think that this scenario is completely based upon the storyline of the famous book published in 2008 from the brilliant mind of the author Suzanne Collins, which in turn became a blockbuster movie in 2012, The Hunger Games. Believing so this person would be entirely correct, however, what if there was more to this apocalyptic thriller

This is where a sociologist, or any actively invested movie watcher, may thrive, in seeing between the lines of the movie script, right down the concrete and applicable truths that it brings about. Using the sociological toolkit (Sutherland and Feltey 9), The Hunger Games can be seen through a whole new lens. That of a critique of modern society, of the hidden truths, of the unequal footholds, favoritism and drawbacks that the world upholds. This paper will focus on five different and specific sociological aspects that are depicted in the 2012 sci-fi movie: social stratification, fear mongering, normalization, social constructionism and paths of greater resistances (PLR). Each concept will be defined and exemplified with The Hunger Games movie to demonstrate how it criticizes some implicit sociological principles followed by our current world in how they generate disparity between its

As stated before, norms are the social rule of appearance or behavior that links beliefs and values to rewards and/punishment. For Katniss in The Hunger Games, for example, her behavior is based on her life belief and values she commits to. She volunteers to participate in the Hunger Games in the stead of her sister as she values her family resulting in the punishment of the games. She is also a natural fighter with a bow and arrow, as she practiced hunting her whole life, this results in beneficial rewards in the games as she knows how to survive in the woods. These behaviors are her norms that she holds because of her beliefs and values. A character like Peeta, or even President Snow, hold different statuses of normalization. Peeta was brought up in a richer home, with food and warmth and is more open to dialogue, normality is different with him. However, it is also different then any other character from any other district or the capitol. Normality is what is aspired to by everyone in the real world too. Its keeps people together and gives them different types of rewards or punishment much like the movie