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It should come as no surprise that I'm always on the look out for
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dynamic, engaging, and strong female characters in pop culture
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and the latest fictional female representation that has everyone talking is Katniss Everdeen,
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the dynamic protagonist of the Hunger Games novels written by Suzanne Collins.
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For those unfamiliar with the trilogy, the novels are set in a future dystopian North America,
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in a country called Panem.
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The title of the book is a reference to an annual event organized by the oppressive government
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in which 24 children are selected at random to participate in a televised death match.
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In the Hunger Games, as they’re called, the children are forced to brutally murder one another until only one is left standing.
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For the purposes of this video, I’m going to set aside the fact that some of the analogies Collins is trying to draw
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to reality TV, professional sports, and war begin to fall apart when scrutinized closely.
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I appreciate her attempt to critically comment on social issues,
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I just don’t buy that parents would passively give up their children
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to be slaughtered on national TV without a serious fight.
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The death match as spectacle theme is really only believable
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when the players have been dehumanized or othered by society,
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either as convicts or slaves for example,
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it doesn’t work when it’s just randomly selected children from the general population.
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That said, in this video I’m going to focus mainly on the
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portrayal of Katniss’ character in the first book and the movie adaptation.
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I thought the first The Hunger Games novel, published in 2008 was a captivating, engaging and riveting read
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and I really enjoyed being immersed in the science fiction world that Collins creates.
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If you haven’t read the book or seen the movie yet [spoilers] fair warning.
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The story follows Katniss, a 16 year old from a poor, coal mining community in district 12.
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She struggles to provide for her family in the absence of her father
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and later to survive the brutality of the Hunger Games.
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She is a tough, no-nonsense, responsible, young woman
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who uses her smarts to support her family in an oppressive, and seemingly hopeless situation.
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Katniss is not reduced to her gender,
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meaning her behaviours and actions aren’t attributed to her being a woman,
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she is not sexualized and she is not objectified in the book.
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Her real world concerns and priorities of family and survival are put in sharp contrast
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to the superficial values imposed on her by the Capitol government
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as she is being groomed for the Hunger Games media spectacle.
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These preparation scenes provide a critique of the beauty industry and also of the decadence of the wealthy
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in contrast to poor and working class districts who can barely afford enough food to feed their families.
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Katniss demonstrates empathy and compassion for those around her including her friends, family,
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and those oppressed and underprivileged in Panem.
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Later in the arena she also builds a trusting and supportive relationship with Rue, the young tribute from district 11.
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Later, when Rue is tragically killed, Katniss treats her death with honor and respect.
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The romance elements of the first book were only slightly grating,
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much of it was Katniss’ uncertainty about Peeta’s feelings for her
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and her confusion about whether he was being genuine or just acting.
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It was clear Collins was setting up a love triangle between Peeta, Katniss and Gale ala Edward, Bella and Jacob.
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This is nothing new in novels targeted at girls and women and I could look past the cliché of it
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since it wasn't central to the plot in the first book.
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Katniss' naivety when it came to dating and relationships make sense
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given her age and her difficult economic, social and family life,
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her naivety and confusion is an understandable part of her character's growth,
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but only in the first part of the trilogy, unfortunately the love triangle takes a much more prominent role in books 2 and 3.
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