The Hunger Games don't disappoint.

The Hunger Games were created to no only show the districts how much power they had over them, but to also cause the districts to start hating each other.  They create hate between the districts since they can easily become angry at the district that kills their tributes, or become angered that their tributes had to die for a person from another district to live and become rich.  In turn, causes the districts to dislike each other, and therefore, can not team up in cooperation and well to start a rebellion, and the Capitol will be safe from any large and successful rebellions occurring.

The Capitol is has more technology and power than the districts they keep in control.  Through the Hunger Games, they wanted to show them their power of dominance, and make it clear that if one of them were to step out of line and rebel or anything, they would have certain death.  The muttations that they made and that chased after Cato before beginning to try to attack Katniss and Peeta each closely resembled the other twenty-one dead tributes that had died to allow the three of them to still be in the games.  They were meant to remind them of who had died for them (unwillingly) and to scare them, since they were so deadly.

Katniss finally feels a sense of security when she lays on Peeta's arm and he lays his other arm protectively over her.  She has not felt so secure and safe around anyone, ever since her father's death, because after her father died, she no longer trusted her mom enough, because she stopped playing that motherly figure in her family.  Her father's death caused her mom to numbly sit next to the window, day after day, unworking, and helpless.  She had a very difficult time getting food for Katniss and Prim, so Katniss took over that motherly position and went out to hunt for meat and animals, and trade it in the Hob for other foods.  Her mom no longer gave her the sense of security she once had, because her mother has lost her identity and can no longer simply just support and feed her and Prim, so Katniss becomes much more independent, as her mother grows somewhat weaker.

Haymitch doesn't hate people, like some people who read the book might think.  He might despise them, but he doesn't hate people (just making that clear).  Before he left for the games, he had a family waiting for him at home, but two weeks after he was crowned victor of the Second Quarter Quell, hims mother, brother, and girlfriend were killed by President Snow, because of the way he used the force field to kill the last tribute to win the Games.  Because Haymitch has been successful by winning the Quarter Quell, he doesn't need to worry about getting food to feed his stomach, since as the winner, the Capitol provides him with a home and food.  Without anyone to share his happiness with though, and he can't find anyone else to replace his girlfriend, brother or mother, he cannot do much, and resorts to alcohol to wash away all his sadness and problems he's having because of his lost family.

I strongly recommend this book.  I first read it after buying the book for the class, and because I wanted to avoid doing homework, I started to read it, using the excuse that it was a school book to continue reading, and I was absolutely hooked!  I finished the book in less than two days, even with the busy weekend, and couldn't stop thinking about it and was tortured by the search for the second book to read.

Looking for deep connections in the Hunger Games

Part Two of the Hunger Games is where all the action happens.  The part where Katniss and Peeta get thrown into the games, and struggle to survive.  No winner has been declared yet, and when I finished Part Two, I was dying to finish the book, so I finished it. I've been attempting not to ruin the story for anyone, which is extremely difficult.  The story is so dramatic and its nearly impossible to not express my anger about some parts to somebody. (Sorry, Carlybear.)

The Hunger Games, a brutal fight to the death for twenty-four tributes, one boy, one girl from each district, has different meanings and people each view it differently.  Those in the twelve districts see it as a terrible cruelty to those forced to fight, and those who have died it the past.  Those in the capitol view it as mere entertainment, nothing more than something the watch and amuse, with much blood and drama in it.  They feel no pain for the tributes who die in the games every year.  Even though Peeta and Katniss have admitted to all the Capitol and Districts that they were a couple in love, the people in the Capitol don't care, they send them into the games nonetheless, but there's a turn of events at the end of Part Two, which changes their relationship forever.

The people who live in the Capitol don't understand what true love is, since they have never been able to experience themselves; most everything in their lives are temporary, at their big fancy parties, they have drinks especially made to make them vomit out the food they ate, so they are able to eat more and enjoy the party for a longer time.  They have never been able to travel outside of the Capitol to understand the harsh reality of life outside the Capitol, so are basically destined to enjoy the games, they don't know what it's like to see one of their peers die.  Those in the Capitol don't have any chance to experience love, but lust over many things in their lives.  Everything for them is about appearances and enjoying their life, with material goods and flaunting their most (to the districts,) absurd outfits and newest styles.  Love is seemingly meaningless to them, but they have some idea of what it is, and what it may represent, but because they live in the Capitol, they don't know how important it is, or how influential it is.

Hunger Games-The book I'm currently addicted to-book response

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins has been an amazing book that I cannot stop reading.  I got the book during the Black Friday weekend, and in between stores while my family and I were shopping, I would immediately pull out the book and start to read.  After reading it once, I realized that I was going to read it again, and this time, I would have to analyze it.  I thought it would be difficult, thinking that the story was more a book that was for enjoyment than to analyze, but there is so much more to the book than meets the eye.

There was a slight connection to history between Panem and their original thirteen districts, and how America once started with thirteen colonies, and grew to fifty states, making up the United States of America.  In Panem though, the thirteenth colony was wiped out due to war and a nuclear explosion, so it is just a land of ruins.  Panen and the US (as the thirteen colonies) were controlled by a strong power, for Panem and the thirteen districts, it was the Captiol, a place where people lived extravagantly and never had a shortage of food or entertainment, and for the US, it was England, who tried to keep them in control, and if anyone broke their rules, they would have strict laws to punish them.  They stressed the idea that they had power over their people, and made sure that the people never crossed them without big consequences behind them.

The mockingjay pin that Madge gave to Katniss to wear to the games was a symbol of rebellion.  The Capitol originally created jabberjays, birds that could listen to an entire conversation and deliver it to the Capitol, in their labs, so they could monitor what the people were talking about in their Districts, to make sure that no talk of rebellion could come about.  The Capitol's plans backfired though, when the jabberjays began to mate with mockingbirds, creating mockingjays, birds that were able to hear a tune and repeat it.  Slowly, the jabberjays died off, and the mockingjays were left in their midst to remind the Capitol of their failure.

A question I have burning in the back of my mind to get answered, is what would have happened between Gale and Katniss if Katniss didn't have to leave for the Hunger Games? Would something have started between them?

I found many things about Peeta and Katniss strange and interesting especially their relationship.  I'm curious about what would've happened between Peeta and Katniss if they hadn't been chosen for the games.  Would Katniss ever have gotten the chance and taken it to thank Peeta for the sacrifice he made to help her years ago?  Katniss continously looses trust in Peeta and starts to believe that whatever kind actions he is taking to help her out are all a plan to make her trust him, then he would turn against her, although she is reminded constantly about that night years ago... eventually, at the end of the first part, Collins throws a curveball at the readers, completely changing the relationship between Peeta and Katniss, but I don't want to give that away.