The Hunger Games Summary
Are the odds ever in your favor? In the movie the “The Hunger Games” the odds don’t seem to be in district twelve’s favor. Katniss Everdeen, whose only pronounced skill is being good with a bow and arrow, volunteers in place of her younger sister Primrose to fight in the 74th annual Hunger Games. Both her and Peeta Mellark, who is just a boy who works in in a bakery, are the two contestants from district 12 to fight in the games which are hosted by the Capitol of Panem. In the end of the games, both Katniss and Peeta win after many many trials.
When they win President Snow is very angry at Katniss because there is only supposed to be one winner. This movie is a great example of a Gothic literature. Gothic literature is a genre that combines fiction, horror, death, and romance. The five elements that need to be in Gothic literature are supernatural elements, bleak or remote settings, strong and dangerous language, macabre or violent incidents, and psychological and physical torment. The Hunger Games uses all five of these elements which is why it is such a good example of Gothic literature.
The Hunger Games Genre
The Hunger Games is a movie that can be classified under the genre of dystopian fiction. It is set in a future world where the government controls everything and the people are divided into different districts. The story follows Katniss Everdeen, who is chosen to compete in the hunger games, a televised event where 24 participants must fight to the death.
The movie was released in 2012 and was directed by Gary Ross. It starred Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, and Liam Hemsworth. The movie was very successful, grossing over $700 million at the box office.
If you’re a fan of dystopian fiction, then you’ll definitely enjoy The Hunger Games!
The Hunger Games Analysis
Supernatural elements are things that are beyond what is natural, they are abnormal. The Hunger Games shows a few supernatural elements in the movie. An example of a supernatural element in the movie is the “mutts” made by the game makers and controllers of the Capitol. These mutts are very, very strong, fast, large, and vicious. They can easily tear apart a person and kill them, far easier than a normal dog could. Another example of a supernatural element are the “trackerjacker” wasps. These wasps are also created by the game makers in the Capitol.
They are genetically engineered wasps that are programmed to attack anyone which causes very painful stings and powerful hallucinations. One last supernatural element shown in the Hunger Games are the giant fireballs that are fired at Katniss. When Katniss awakes to a forest fire and starts to run as fast as she can away from it, huge fireballs are launched towards her. These fireballs are placed in the games by the game makers and they end up burning her leg pretty bad. These are some of the times supernatural elements are seen in the movie.
A bleak or remote setting is a bare, desolate, or far, distant, secluded place. The Hunger Games also demonstrates this gothic element. One example of a bleak or remote setting is district twelve. District twelve is a poor, secluded district that is the farthest from the Capitol. Another example of a remote setting is the arena where the games take place. The contestants are placed in a remote forest created by the Capitol and game makers. The forest is surely secluded from everyone else, considering they are flown there by the Capitol.
The movie also uses strong and dangerous language, which is simply a forceful statement with a dangerous meaning. One time that this is seen is when Thresh says to Katniss “Just this once twelve, for Rue” because he is warning her that he’ll spare her one time and one time only. Another time strong language is seen is when the Capitol announces that there can now only be one winner after Katniss and Peeta are the only two contestants left. This is strong and dangerous because it now means either Katniss or Peeta needs to die.
Bleak/remote settings and strong, dangerous language are two gothic elements that can be pretty clearly seen in the Hunger Games. One of the last Gothic elements used in the Hunger Games is macabre or violent incidents which is “disturbing and horrifying because of involvement of death and injury”. An example of a macabre scene is when when Katniss saws down the branch full of tracker-jacker wasps and the wasps swarm Clove and she gets consumed by them and dies. The scene shows her screaming and trying to escape but she cannot get away because there is too many of the wasps.
Another macabre scene is when Cato falls off of the metal object him, Katniss, and Peeta were fighting on. He falls into the pack of vicious mutts and gets eaten alive by them. The last Gothic element used is psychological or physical torment. An example of psychological torment is when Katniss gets stung by the trackerjacker wasps. This causes her to hallucinate which messes with her ability to make clear judgements. An example of physical torment is when Katniss gets burned by a fireball in the leg.
She is in a lot of pain because of how bad the fireball burnt her leg. These are the last two Gothic elements which are a part of the Hunger Games, these two elements seem to be the strongest ones out of the five. The movie “The Hunger Games” is a great example of Gothic literature because it shows all five Gothic elements throughout the movie. There are plenty examples of supernatural elements throughout most of the movie such as the mutts, the tracker-jacker wasps, and the fireballs. Bleak/remote settings are also seen in district twelve and the game arena.
Strong language is a bit harder to find but is found when Thresh warns Katniss and when the Capitol announces that there can only be one winner. Violent and macabre incidents are a easily spotted element in the movie, like when Clove gets swarmed by the wasps and when Cato gets eaten by the mutts. Lastly, psychological and physical torment are seen when Katniss gets stung by the tracker-jacker wasps and when she gets burned by the fireball. In the end, both Katniss and Peeta won the games. So, were the odds in their favor after all?
