sunrise on the reaping pg. 195
“Lenore Dove, I love you like all-fire. That’s for always.”
“I love you like all-fire, too. You and no one else. Just like my geese, I mate for life. And then some. Forever.”
I need to say, no, don’t spend your life grieving me, love whoever you want…
Haymitch immediately knows that this is no way to live your life, and he would want the love of his life to move on and find happiness with someone else, believing that this is possible, but also acknowledging that he is young and selfish and can’t quite wrap his head around the idea yet. SC is giving us this beautiful moment between the two of them (along with a few others) to solidly these poignant memories and symbols of her he gets to keep. But, the reader knows that he will be the one grieving her, meaning that SC already wants us to be applying these words to Haymitch instead.
sunrise on the reaping pg. 348
The only person who keeps an eye on me is Effie Trinket.
sunrise on the reaping pg. 367
The Raven. The unforgiving songbird. Repeatedly reminding me of Snow’s crystal clear message to me on my homecoming. That I will never get to love anyone ever again. Nevermore. Because he will make sure they end up dying a horrible death.
The black bird on his shoulder, Haymitch maintains this way of thinking for a long time. He pushes away anyone that tries to stay close to him, and Snow pretty much succeeds in his intention to make sure Haymitch is in despair with nothing and no one to fight for. Specifically saying, ‘I will never get to love anyone ever again,’ similar to how Lenore Dove said, ‘You and no one else.’ SC doesn’t want us to want this for Haymitch; it is deeply depressing, hopeless, and signifies a death of the self along with your lover (a symbol SC loves, mind you). But she also put Effie in this book, and she gives us this line telling us that she is the only one who looks out for Haymitch after this. She tries to keep him sober and stays positive; we know that she is the only positivity in Haymitch’s life all the way through the trilogy.
So why not come right out and say that Haymitch will be able to find love again, maybe even with Effie, but make their dynamic so obviously important to Haymitch’s life? And why is it still important to establish her character in this book and disprove the cynical perception of Effie and Hayffie some readers were set on?
SC does not agree with the cynical perception of Effie, and it was important to point out that being susceptible to propaganda does not make you a bad person or incapable of having compassion and being kind. Effie’s dynamic with Haymitch is not resentful and it is not a source of strife in his life, it is a bright spot.
This book is not a love triangle. It will be years before Haymitch and Effie are anywhere near the possibility of a romantic relationship, and the nature of their relationship has years to evolve. SC does not want us to perceive them as romantic here, because that is not the purpose of this story. We are not to come out of this discussing whether Haymitch ended up with Effie or if he could only ever have one true love. Like OP said, it is more important to talk about the social and political layers that deepen the story, and that is part of what makes Hayffie so compelling.
Haymitch’s black bird reminds him that Snow’s regime has robbed him of love, but that regime will not always hold power over him, therefore this way of thinking will not either. As the cracks in the government’s control open wider, so does Haymitch’s heart, slowly allowing Katniss and Peeta and Effie in. And while keeping his promise that the sun won’t rise on the reaping, that also guarantees that it won’t take anyone else’s ability to love away, including his own.
