Section 1: Facing Our Future - Dystopian fiction as social commentaryÂ
Itâs not news that the genre of dystopian fiction is used by authors as a tool to create a world mirroring ours, one open to being exposed and examined under a critical lens, a living diagnostic mirror showing contemporary social, political, and often economic issues. Oftentimes, it is focused on not yet fully developed issues, but those we can still avoid, anxieties and visions of a potential future which is headed our way, yet avoidable if examinations and critiques of these books are taken seriously. Dystopian fiction doesnât invent issues for the future, it takes seeds of sociopolitical issues, existing dynamics, and metaphorically blasts them onto a huge screen; amplifies them, exposes them, and presents them as what they stand for, what they could become (Princesa & Munjid, 2023).Â
Suzanne Collins perfectly embodies this use of dystopian fiction, we see her clear intent of honoring the genre starting with her construction of Panem dynamics. Panem is constructed with a very clear example of structural inequality, it is an authoritarian government, and it uses violence as a way to control the masses. But before I get ahead of myself and deep dive into the violence presented in the books, we need to focus on the extreme inequality presented within them. The Capitolâs control over the districts is inspired by economic disparity we see in real life, these patterns of accumulation of wealth by the elite and the contrast of the situation within the districts which are deprived of resources to various degrees, most of all the neglect and lack of basic resources we see represented in District 12 is consistent with late stage capitalism and it reflects a system in which economic disparity is visibly institutionalized.Â
This is a good moment to talk about Marx and his perspective of structures such as this one, as he writes about class relation first and foremost; Marx (1867/1976)âs vision of capitalism is of a system in which the ruling class accumulates wealth and resources by exploiting labor and the working class. This produces a clear, visible division between those who control the means of production and those whose labor is being exploited. The fictional country of Panem brings this to a whole new level because they forced the districts into complete specialization of labor and production; this intensified the oppressive power dynamic the Capitol has with the rest of the country. They decide who produces the goods, which goods they produce, and what they produce is taken and redistributed by the Capitol - all in a way that isnât equitable. Andreani (2017) would call this a form of systemic oppression - which, donât get me wrong, it 100% is, I am just stating that he specifically defines this; he also emphasizes that, in this particular system, the status quo is not just maintained through economic extraction and control, itâs also largely using political and ideological mechanisms (basically a shit load of propaganda) to both limit the autonomy individuals have and districts can be allowed as units - they pour a lot of energy in maintaining dependency and spreading fear as a control mechanism. It is worth noting that dystopian critique of the world is not only rooted in economy nor shown through the lens of a made up economic system (despite it being rooted in reality) within a made-up world; these structures also include a lot of cultural aspects of power, and a whole list of symbolic representations and displays of power the Capitol has.Â
The Hunger Games as a central structure of the books/movies serve as a prime example of how violence can be used as a tool of oppression (duh), but also how violence can be not just normalized (and yes, we do see the normalization of violence in our real world, just look at how we process news of school shootings in america, mass shootings there in general, how we react to news of the genocide and conflict in west asia, how we scroll through so many videos of extreme violence on our feeds, how we skip horror movies because theyâre not violent enough, etc), but also they show us how violence can be celebrated and how that celebration can be socially acceptable on a large scale (Yes, we see that in real life, too, but in a much less obvious widespread way). The games were framed as punishment for sins of the past, a past rebellion, and they are now a form of national entertainment, and by doing that, the Capitol uses them to obscure the depth of structural inequality present in Panem. It also goes hand in hand with all the theoretical views that speak of the elite, the dominant social group taking meaning and shaping it in order to use it to legitimize their own authority. The Hunger Games is also a dystopia that, like many of them do, discusses the terms in which a rebellion or revolution can not only appear, but also thrive and succeed. The Hunger Games are especially worth mentioning here, because Sunrise on the Reaping also speaks about the importance of discussing that rebellions fail, that it is almost necessary to have movements that make mistakes, start too soon, choose the wrong symbols and wrong people, that not every revolution starts off perfect - and The Hunger Games also touches on this by making Coin the lesser evil who is still inherently evil and a bad fit as the leader of a new Panem. Nur et al. (2024) demonstrate that the acts of rebellion depicted in The Hunger Games are also curated (in writing) to go hand in hand with the political circumstances that make the rebellion necessary such as the specific structural inequality in place, resource imbalance, and political provocation. These things would then essentially suggest that a rebellion and acts of it are not an anomaly in worlds that are governed by systems defined by the domination of the political elite, but rather that they are their inherent feature.Â
From a sociological standpoint, this basically reflects the basic idea that power relations and dynamics within systems are dynamic, and that the power is contested (although sometimes that may be seen through smaller acts of rebellion), rather than just being set in stone and absolute. The Hunger Games also brings up the point of how important interpretation is in these situations, and how the way people engage with symbols, ideologies, and beliefs matters. Curwood (2013) puts an emphasis on how the role of interpretation and meaning making is also on the shoulders of us readers when we engage with the content in ways that are not just passive consumption. To put is simply and use a phrase weâve all heard to prove a point, regardless of authorâs intent, the curtains are just blue unless we engage with their existence on a page in an active way and until we, the readers, assign them meaning based on both the context of the work, its original environment that made its creation possible, and events/conventions we as readers consider important. This participatory dimension of reading reinforces the capacity of dystopia to act as a critique because it encourages readers to compare them to the real world systems reflected within these imaginary worlds, it invites audiences to analyze them, to look for solutions.Â
An example of this is easily seen in the depiction of District 12, and it is the easiest example to use since we see most of what is happening there (and please, put aside the fact that Katniss is an unreliable narrator for a moment, itâs not important right now), the most basic description of the situation within District 12 is that it is completely defined by their poverty and hunger that stems from it, Lucy, Haymitch, and Katniss all give us clear images of that poverty and how it is a constant, regular occurrence that they themselves are basically desensitized to, we have had many direct and indirect lines showing how constant the poverty and starvation within District 12 are from people simply dying against buildings and on the side of roads and paths, collapsing from starvation, illegal activities centered around pure survival, subtle hints at prostitution, black markets, etc. These are examples of things that represent the current situation in many places, and also reflect the concerns currently present in the world, it also resonates with marginalized communities.
Prior to volunteering for the games, Katnissâ primary role was being the sole provider for her family since her father died and her motherâs mental health completely declined after his death, all the responsibility fell on her, that role falling on a sixteen year old underscores the rough situation the district is in, it shows how hard it is to survive, and it gives us a perfect example of how these structural, systemic issues shape individual experiences. Katnissâ father didnât just die of an illness or old age, he died in a mining accident. District 12 is a mining district, and these kinds of accidents are painted of relatively common due to lack of regard for the safety of the workers, her mother essentially shut down after his death as the result of lack of a support system, lack of mental health care. These issues might not entirely present the same way in the real world, but they are present and easy to understand. The contrast between the Capitol and District 12 is also made and written to be jarring; we know that this isnât the case in every district, and that some are richer than others, District 12 was chosen to drive the point home about inequality and unfair redistribution of goods by making them obvious and easily visible, by doing this it directly reinforces the critical stance of the work.Â
The Hunger Games is clear commentary of the present state of the real world, and a warning about the potential future it is facing, and it is reinforcing those messages by amplifying existing issues and including them in new worlds with coherent structure (this is where I think Divergent failed, for the record, the worldbuilding - but thatâs a topic for a different day). I think the foundation of the story of The Hunger Games gives a lot to work with and write about, especially when it comes to class control and the development of the resistance.
Sources used:
Andreani, I. A. (2017). Strategy of oppression against the people by the ruling elite reflected in Suzanne Collinsâs The Hunger Games novels trilogy (2008): Marxist theory. Humanis, 19(1), 1â10.
Curwood, J. S. (2013). The Hunger Games: Literature, literacy, and online affinity spaces. Language Arts, 90(6), 417â427.
Marx, K. (1976). Capital: A critique of political economy (Vol. 1) (B. Fowkes, Trans.). Penguin Books. (Original work published 1867)
Nur, F. D., Adriati, N., & Wanty, A. A. (2024). Katniss Everdeenâs act of rebellion in The Hunger Games: Catching Fire movie. Journal of English Language and Literature, 9(2), 473â482.
