Sunday 4 December 2011

Journal #3

Throughout reading the novel I have noticed a few symbols. Firstly, Katniss’s mockingjay pin that was given to her by the mayor’s daughter to represent district 12. A real mockingjay is a bird that was originally a jabberjay formed by the Capitol to repeat information that they heard from the districts. Once the Capitol had no more use for the birds they left them in the wild and they mated with mockingbirds. They no longer can repeat messages, only songs or tunes. The mockingjay is a sign of rebellion to the Capitol, because they are something that the city couldn't’t control. The mockingjay reminds Katniss of her father because before he passed he used to sing to them and they would repeat his song. It is also associated with Rue, who had a love for music. She would sing a song to the birds to let the rest of her district know that they were finished working.
Secondly, dandelions symbolize hope. This is because after she had seen the dandelion she knew that she would have enough food to feed her family. Most people see these as nothing but weeds, but for Katniss it means keeping her family alive.
Lastly, food is a great symbol for wealth. The author puts huge emphasize on how the amount and variety of food in the Seam compared to the Capitol. In the Capitol they can have anything they wish to eat at a push of a button and they eat far more than they need. In the Seam there are many families that die from starvation and are lucky to be full after a meal. Also they have to work very hard for there food.

3 comments:

  1. I also agree that food is a huge symbol in the Hunger Games universe. It’s clear that one of the biggest things that separates the class levels is how much food they have. It’s obvious that Peeta is in a higher class than Katniss, not just because he has more money but because he’s rarely hungry. Now that Katniss has won the Hunger Games she will clearly be of a higher class but she may still have the mindset of someone who is poor. At the end of the Hunger Games Katniss rebelled by eating the berries, she did this while wearing a symbol of defiance. I think that later in the series the mockingjay pin will hold even more significance.

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  2. I believe the mocking jay pin was a symbol in the games and also a bit of foreshadowing because the facts that rue did not take the pin. I also agree that food is a symbol in the book as it shows different varieties of the different districts and the capitol. I believe Katniss will make her capitol a higher end district.

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  3. I agree with Shivu and how the food is a big symbol in the Hunger Games, because Peeta is a son of Baker, so he would have the chance to eat a lot more, where Katniss has to hunt for her family's food, and has to make an effort into not being hungry. I also agree with Tyler and how Katniss will make her district a higher district with winning the Hunger Games.

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