Workshop #1 - Themes and Ideas || The Hunger Games || English

Workshop 1: Unpacking Themes and Ideas

The themes/ideas we are looking at in The Hunger Games:
Rich vs. Poor
Hope and Rebellion
Struggle for Power
Power of Propaganda

Rich Vs. Poor
Poor- Poverty, less money, disadvantaged, no power
Rich- Lots of money, more opportunities, privilege, power

Definition: Theme of "Rich vs Poor"
It is more than just money, it is about who has more power, privilege and opportunities.
Rich: 
- President Snow, Caesar, Capitol
- Capitol: don't get reaped for the Hunger Games, plenty of food, excessive, variety, cleaner clothing, brighter, designer, possibly new outfit every day, privilege of choice in clothing, more access to it.
Buildings - bigger, different and more sturdy, not worn own, architecture is modern, example of power and privilege.
Technology- more advanced, they have airships, trains, tracking technology.
Medical technology- blood scanners, healing balms.
Children- get presents, get to play, they don't have to work, don't need to worry
Poor:
- District 12, District 11
- District 12: Buildings- Broken, not secure, holes in roofs, made out of wood, they are smaller, don't have much access to materials to make anything better, don't have a lot of power
Clothing - bland, worn out, raggedy, not much variety, older style clothing. boys best outfits - broken, button up, trousers/shorts/suspenders, shows us that their clothing doesn't fit properly, hand-me-downs. girls best outfits: dresses, shirts/skirts, not great fits. Coal miners- black, gray, dark colours don't show dirt.
Technology - medicines- we don't see any, we see sick people, shows privilege of being healthy, transport- walking. electric fence doesn't even work- not enough energy.
Food- Not enough, scarce, hunting, rations, put your name into the reaping for extra food
Children- Have to work, no time to play though can push sticks into the mud, scared of being pulled out of the Reaping, not a lot of choice for future jobs- most will be coal miners, some could be bakers, black market traders, or they could be medics

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In The Hunger Games, setting is used effectively to show the theme of 'Rich vs Poor'. Rich vs Poor is more than just money, it is about who has more power, privilege and opportunities. For instance, we can see the idea of privilege reflected in the physical environments of District 12 and the Capitol. In District 12, the buildings are worn out, broken down, and not secure whereas the buildings in the Capitol show modern architecture, variation in materials, and built on a grand scale. This makes the audience think about the differences in wealth and power between the two locations. District 12 has nothing whilst people in the Capitol are safe and secure in their advanced buildings. The purpose of this was to show that Katniss Everdeen has come from a place of less privilege and power so her success in the games is very unlikely. Coinciding with this is the use of colour. In District 12, there are lots of browns, greens whilst in the Capitol we see a futuristic palette of metallic grays, blacks and silvers. The use of settings and colour effectively show us the imbalance of privilege between those living in places like District 12 and the Capitol.