Literary Analysis #1
By Hunter Burgtorf
Name of Books: The Hunter Games, Catching Fire, And Mockingbird
Author: Suzanne Collins
Prompt: Character
“In the distant future, there is a country called Panem, formerly known as North America, where a Capitol rules over all of the districts. As a reminder of the failed rebellion where the thirteenth district was destroyed, the Capitol hosts the Hunger Games once a year. In district 12, Katniss Everdeen’s younger sister Prim has been chosen as a tribute, and Katniss must take her place. Over the course of her fight to live, she learns not only about love, but about how believing in yourself and what you want to achieve can move mountains.”
I read The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins and it was a three book series. The first book was called The Hunger Games, the second was Catching Fire, and the third and final book was called Mockingjay. Katniss Everdeen was the main character and she intrigued me by the way that she showed courage, bravery, and the fight to never give up. Through her relationship with Peeta, her partner in the games, and Prim, her sister, I learned about who she was and what she believed in. I was also intrigued by the way that she changed over the course of the three books and grew as a person. She was willing to take chances, and that ultimately defined her and her success.
When the story opened, Katniss was a young and innocent girl. She had to fight for her life daily but she didn’t know much about the world that existed outside of her small and poor district. After the hunger games, she changed a lot. The tough Katniss came out and decided to fight and that made the Capitol’s desire to end her life all that more important. But she never gave up and she continued to be the symbol of the rebellion. Although she faced so many personal issues and lived in fear every day, she never lost sight of the big picture. And to me, that is the most courageous thing anyone could do.
Katniss’ courage was shown throughout each book. In The Hunger Games, she defied the Capitol by choosing to not play by their rules. Katniss empowered everyone around her to take the initiative and fight for what they believed in. She showed true bravery and was willing to risk her life every day to save the people that she loved. In Catching Fire, the second book, she showed her country that she would not let anyone else decide her fate and defeat her. Even though she was faced with tough decisions, she figured them out and stayed true to who she was. And in the final book, Mockingjay, Katniss revealed her sensitive side by fighting to save the person that she loved, Peeta, and take down the person that she hated, the Capitol’s president. Her courage and bravery taught me that no matter what happens I should never give up. If I truly believe in something, I need to fight to make it happen, and not let anyone else tell me any differently.
The different relationships that Katniss had in her life showed me who she was as a person. Peeta, her fellow tribute and lover, stood by her from the beginning. Although they hit many rough patches, he never stopped believing in her and she was always there for him. Without him, she would have never been able to defy the Capitol and become a leader of the rebellion that would change her life forever. Haymitch, her mentor in the games and her eventual friend, helped her to make the right decisions instead of thinking irrationally. Katniss tended to think irrationally sometimes. And Prim, her younger sister, reminded Katniss of compassion and how to use it. Prim showed Katniss her pure side every day, and that kept Katniss going even when she thought that she couldn’t any more. And Gale, her best friend, reminded her of the fight that she had left in her and what she had to do to save her country from pain. As strong and powerful as Katniss was, she could have never even attempted to do half of what she did without these people in her life.
Through the three books, Katniss slowly grew into the young woman that I knew she was always meant to be. She started out as a soft and basically clueless young girl who didn’t question the city that ran her country and never even thought of the power that she could have. She spent each day worrying if she would make it to the next. But once she fought in the hunger games, she learned of the evil that existed in her world and became determined to destroy it. As the story grew, she learned the hard way who to trust and who not to trust. But with the help of her friends and family, she stayed on the right path and became a real leader. The most important lesson that Katniss learned was to be loved and give love in return. The people that she met along the way changed her life by showing her what it meant to be free. And she learned that if she tried hard enough she could truly be free from the country that controlled her and free from the life that held her back.
By the end of the book series, Katniss had grown into a strong and courageous young woman who broke boundaries and never gave up. She fought with many demons inside of her every day, but she had beaten the unbeatable. And with the help of Peeta, she knew that she could get through anything. She was happy with who she was and what she believed in. Through her bravery, Katniss taught me that I can do anything in this world. I cannot be defeated as long as I take chances and have the courage to believe in myself.
