Less than 10 days until the highly anticipated release of "The Hunger Games" movie with the girl from "Winter Bones." In February, I reread the "Hunger Games" series to refresh my memory of the major themes and characters. My second read was as thrilling and engaging as my first. Suzanne Collins, the author, does a great job of recreating North America as Panem, the oppressive, tyrannical nation where the capital gets all the goods and the other 12 districts are slave states. Each districts exports certain commodities to the capital. Katniss, the heroine, is from District 12 where they provide coal for Panem and lives in the area that once was part of the Appalachians. Every year each district must send a boy and girl tribute to gladiator-esque fight in an arena. The fight is to the death with only one victor allowed. It is brutal punishment for the districts who once rebelled against the capital back in the day, to lose two of their young every year. The book takes an interesting look at dictatorships, what it is like to grow up in extreme poverty and violence, and what it is like to be oppressed. Good reminders to value the freedom and wealth and limited powers of our leaders we have in our country today- because one day we might not have it (and many people in the world do not have it).
From a literature perspective, The Hunger Games" series has well developed characters, surprising plot twists, and revelations of common human truths and experiences, all the requirements of a good read. And to have truly read the story, all three books need to be read. There are so many haunting, powerful scenes in the second and third books, that without experiencing them, you miss the depth and power of the message Collins writes to us. That's also a mark of a good read: if a scene haunts you after you have finished reading the book. Scenes that haunt me are usually emotionally impactful, like a kick in the gut metaphysically. And there are multiple scenes in "Mockingjay" and "Catching Fire" that leave the wind knocked out of me due to their relevance and insight into the human condition. I mull over them and over them, awed by the pictures they paint.
One human condition that Collins paints and incorporates into the series that I don't think gets enough press is PTSD. I think those scenes awe me the most with how they portray characters who have lost everyone they loved. experienced unheard of trauma and abuse, and yet, still fight for what was right. These characters, many of whom are victors of the Hunger Games, react to their trauma differently, but the depth of hurt of the human heart and soul is there. The descriptions are brutal, raw, and hopefully, accurate. Not to give much of the plot away, I'll say some of my favorite scenes, are when Katniss works through her trauma. I love the image of her wandering through an old building, finding places to spend the day: she hides in closets, cabinets, and bathtubs to recover. She just lets herself be. One day at a time.
What a poignant picture of how some people grieve. And that is important because it balances the heroics of the other parts of the books. Great gains can come with great losses. In Harry Potter, there was the same message: with great triumph, there comes great loss. And while that is not inherently a christian idea, it still holds to the story of Christ. His sacrifice on the cross was huge gain for us, but it was also a big sacrifice and so married loss and triumph. The book does a decent job of expounding upon themes of sorrow and joy, and therefore, has a great handle on the human condition and human experience.
Another interesting fact about the series is the only series that comes to mind that is completely secular, with no reference to religion in it anywhere. Okay, there is mammon, but that is a bit of a stretch to call it a religion present in the book. There are "rites" and "rituals", but no church buildings, no sabbath, no references to God or gods. It is our current culture with its fascination with instant entertainment, looks, and consumerism to the tenth power. Though since it does talk about universal human truths, there are a couple christian themes wound throughout the plot lines. Hope, struggle, importance of community, and agape love are what come to mind. And most of those themes are personified in people. Prim is what Katniss hopes in and maybe represents goodness and beauty; Katniss is survival and struggle; and Peeta is sacrificial love. Haymitch is redemption, though drunken redemption. And the host of other characters that surround Katniss are the community without which Katniss would not have been able to be the hero, her church body, so to speak.
I also enjoy the very noble supporting characters in the book, even with the violence, abuse, and anguish written into every chapter. And these characters surprise the further you get into the books. Add the traumatic events, the losses, the victories, the heartache, the humble realizations of truth and I think you get how a human story is often played out. How the Christian story is often played out. How the fight against evil should be played out, even unto the point of death, which is how Katniss has to play her life out constantly. With friends and neighbors and strangers, with hope, with love, do we fight for what is good and true and right. It is how Jesus fought, it is how we should fight. There's a war out there for our hearts, minds, and souls. Do we have what it takes to be called into the arena like Katniss to combat it?
No comments:
Post a Comment