The Whole Rotten Lot
An important theme in the book, The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins is the radical difference in lifestyles between the rich and the poor. The page of this book that best illustrates this concept is page sixty-five. At this point in the story line, Katniss has already been stripped from her home in District 12 and shuttled off to the Capitol to compete in the 74th annual Hunger Games. Katniss’ transition from life in District 12 to life in the Capitol is a tremendous one, and unluckily for her, she is not the greatest at adapting. The plot begins in District 12. District 12 is described as having "black cinders streets" and "gray squat houses” , and on the other hand, the Captiol is described as having "glistening buildings …show more content…
She starts to wonder how easy life would be in the districts if food was as accessible as it is in the Capitol. Katniss spends most of her time hunting and gathering in order to barely make ends meet for her family, so what would she do if food supply was no longer an ongoing issue? This meal makes her realize one of the reasons why she dislikes the Capitol so much, because of how selfish the people are. This revelation leads her to the question, "What do they do all day, these people in the Capitol, besides decorating their bodies and waiting around for a new shipment of tributes to roll in and die for their entertainment?"(65). As dramatic as this sounds, it is in fact true. The Capitol is a place full of shallow people who only care about their appearances, and Collins reveals this to the reader during the interviews prior to the games. The introduction of Caesar Flickerman begins with Katniss explaining how weird it is that "his appearance has been virtually unchanged" (124). Caesar Flickerman has been the host of the interviews for over forty years, and his appearance has remained exactly the same. Katniss is utterly perplexed by this. The reasoning behind this claim is that in District 12, it is an honorable thing to look old. Looking old is a sign of survival, which is very honorable in the districts, so the fact that the Capitol's citizens frown upon the fat and old is why …show more content…
When Katniss gets to the Capitol there is no surprise that she is taken aback by how much the citizens only care for themselves, as she has grown up providing for the people around her. Similarly, she is surprised by the way people present themselves in the Capitol. For example, they do whatever it takes to make them appear young and skinny, and this enrages Katniss because she does not understand why they spend their time and money on themselves when they could help solve the bigger issues of Panem. Panem, the country that Katniss and District 12 reside in, is an imperialistic country where the districts work hard to provide for the Capitol. This is not fair, and once Katniss gets to the Capitol, she finally sees it. As revealed on page sixty-five, Katniss could never imagine herself wasting food, or paying money to drastically alter her appearance. While enjoying her meal in the Capitol, Katniss can not help but relate everything she is doing to its’ equivalent back home. Katniss’ nature, along with her utter hatred of the Capitol are the two reasons why she would never last in the Capitol, and page-sixty supports this
An important theme in the book, The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins is the radical difference in lifestyles between the rich and the poor. The page of this book that best illustrates this concept is page sixty-five. At this point in the story line, Katniss has already been stripped from her home in District 12 and shuttled off to the Capitol to compete in the 74th annual Hunger Games. Katniss’ transition from life in District 12 to life in the Capitol is a tremendous one, and unluckily for her, she is not the greatest at adapting. The plot begins in District 12. District 12 is described as having "black cinders streets" and "gray squat houses” , and on the other hand, the Captiol is described as having "glistening buildings …show more content…
She starts to wonder how easy life would be in the districts if food was as accessible as it is in the Capitol. Katniss spends most of her time hunting and gathering in order to barely make ends meet for her family, so what would she do if food supply was no longer an ongoing issue? This meal makes her realize one of the reasons why she dislikes the Capitol so much, because of how selfish the people are. This revelation leads her to the question, "What do they do all day, these people in the Capitol, besides decorating their bodies and waiting around for a new shipment of tributes to roll in and die for their entertainment?"(65). As dramatic as this sounds, it is in fact true. The Capitol is a place full of shallow people who only care about their appearances, and Collins reveals this to the reader during the interviews prior to the games. The introduction of Caesar Flickerman begins with Katniss explaining how weird it is that "his appearance has been virtually unchanged" (124). Caesar Flickerman has been the host of the interviews for over forty years, and his appearance has remained exactly the same. Katniss is utterly perplexed by this. The reasoning behind this claim is that in District 12, it is an honorable thing to look old. Looking old is a sign of survival, which is very honorable in the districts, so the fact that the Capitol's citizens frown upon the fat and old is why …show more content…
When Katniss gets to the Capitol there is no surprise that she is taken aback by how much the citizens only care for themselves, as she has grown up providing for the people around her. Similarly, she is surprised by the way people present themselves in the Capitol. For example, they do whatever it takes to make them appear young and skinny, and this enrages Katniss because she does not understand why they spend their time and money on themselves when they could help solve the bigger issues of Panem. Panem, the country that Katniss and District 12 reside in, is an imperialistic country where the districts work hard to provide for the Capitol. This is not fair, and once Katniss gets to the Capitol, she finally sees it. As revealed on page sixty-five, Katniss could never imagine herself wasting food, or paying money to drastically alter her appearance. While enjoying her meal in the Capitol, Katniss can not help but relate everything she is doing to its’ equivalent back home. Katniss’ nature, along with her utter hatred of the Capitol are the two reasons why she would never last in the Capitol, and page-sixty supports this