And So It Ends.

The Hunger Games trilogy have always been a favourite series of mine, as I really enjoyed finally finding a Young Adult novel with a strong female protagonist, where a love story is not the main focus of the novel. I loved that Katniss cared more about herself, her family and the uprising then getting caught up in boy drama. Honestly, it was refreshing even to my 16 year old mind! This blog has given me the chance to delve deeper into these novels again, which I have loved. While I had always been struck by the stark difference between The Capitol and the districts, I never realised just how significant the use of food is within these texts.

The function of food in these texts is to show the significant differences between classes, and thus the different districts. We see this in the kind of food that is eaten in the districts; in 12 they survive on what they can find or what little food they can buy, with many children being forced to sign up for tesserae to ensure their families survival. This compared to all the luxurious meals that are served in the Capitol, where we witness absolute gluttony and excess. The idea that the wealthy have it all and the poorer, lower classes are left to struggle on is only to reminiscent of modern society, and I wonder if Suzanne Collins actually intended readers to make this connection when she thought up the fictional Panem.

I am amazed by how much influence food actually has in these texts, and how important it is to the story to take note of what is being consumed as we follow Katniss on her journey. There is so much left to explore on the topic of food in The Hunger Games, and I hope to continue writing on this blog after the push of final deadlines in my last term at University.  But I hope you have enjoyed this learning process with me, and we can continue on together in a few months!   

Until then, may the odds remain always in your favour.

 

 

Bibliography:

Collins, Suzanne. The Hunger Games. New York: Scholastic Press, 2010. Print.

Collins, Suzanne. Catching Fire. New York: Scholastic Press, 2013. Print.

Collins, Suzanne. Mockingjay. New York: Scholastic Press, 2010. Print.