Symbolism Of The Woods Illustrated In Anthem And The Hunger Games

In reality, the woods symbolize danger. However, in literature the wild is a symbol of a safe place and freedom. It allows characters to do what best for themselves and get away from the government that controls every aspect of their lives. When the government takes over, society morphs into the wild and the wilderness becomes a safe haven. In the stories Anthem and The Hunger Games, characters use the woods to escape brutal law enforcement, as a place to find love, and a place for a fresh start. The totalitarian government controls the societies in the stories of Anthem and The Hunger Games and the protagonists use the woods to get away from the brutal and cruel government. In Anthem, the protagonist is Equality 7-2521 and he uses the woods

Caring more for one person than another is called the Transgression of Preference, which no one is allowed to commit to in the society. When any of the laws of Anthem are violated, then they have consequences. When Equality 7-2521 was at the age of ten, people in the society gathered at the square so they could watch a man, the Transgressor, be burned at stake and had his tongue cut out so he could not speak the “Unspeakable Word”. Equality 7-2521 was one of the men to see it with his own eyes. So when they go against the World Council they can get injured or could have a death penalty. The men and women were always told to think together and to do together so they were always scared to say whatever was on their minds. It was against the “Great We” so they never spoke. In the book it says, “And as we all undress at night, in the dim light of candles, our brothers are silent, for they dare not to speak the thoughts of their minds. For all must agree withal, and they cannot know if their

In Anthem, it happens more towards the end of the story when he starts to realize what is really going on in the government. After Equality 7-2521 escapes to the woods and the Golden One follows they are walking around and they find a house that was beaten up but seemed nice enough to live in. When they were looking around the house, the Golden One says to Equality 7-2521 that they should live in it and never leave. He soon discovers the Unspeakable Word, “I”. He then realizes everything that he has been missing his whole life. That he is the goal of his existence and his own personal happiness which he never had under the government of the society. He was soon free from the government and he said, “To be free, a man must be free of his brothers. That is freedom. That and nothing else” (Rand 86). He has a new view on things and one of them is that the word “we” must always be a second thought to men, after the word “I”. He says that he is done with his old society and collectivism and now wants everyone to go with the word “I”. He mentions that he wants to have a son and on his own he will teach him about individualism and how great it is to be independent and not be under a collectivist government. Katniss in The Hunger Games is one of the tributes that have to go into the arena to fight for her life and her district. The arena is set in the woods and in this story the woods represents a fresh start to