Wealth Disparity And Authoritarianism In The Hunger Games By Suzanne Collins

The dystopian genre warns readers of the instability of society and its institutions, especially, the fragility of the social, economic, and political systems. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, encompasses these themes especially well throughout its narrative structure. This three-book series follows the protagonist, Katniss Everdeen, who is from the smallest and poorest area in the entire country, as she navigates life first as a “tribute” in the series’s titular “game”, and afterwards as she becomes the face of the revolution against the corrupt government of Panem (the fictional country in which the books are set). Throughout the story, the twelve impoverished districts surrounding the capital city are juxtaposed with the extreme, excessive

The Hunger Games is a strongly formatted, realistic warning to readers in the modern world, because it portrays extreme versions of existing wealth disparity and authoritarianism. While some may argue that the governmental system in place within The Hunger Games is unrealistic, the truth is that the issues plaguing the fictional country of Panem can be seen reflected throughout the world today.
Wealth disparity is an already prevalent issue that The Hunger Games exemplifies and highlights throughout its text. The reader is first introduced to this jarring difference in funds and resources through Katniss, who in District 12 has to feed her entire family through illegal poaching, lest they starve like many other families in her district. The text states, “Starvation’s not an uncommon fate in District 12. Who hasn’t seen the victims? Older people who can’t work. Children from a family with too many to feed. Those injured in the mines. Straggling through the streets. And one day, you come upon them sitting motionless

In The Hunger Games, the main force that drives the will of the Capitol within the districts are peacekeepers. An extremely militaristic and severe force that stops at nothing to enforce the rules the Capitol sets. These rules and laws are crushing, forbidding any act outside of producing one's district assigned resource and slowly starving to death. A quote that shows the extent that peacekeepers will go to maintain order in the districts: “‘They arrest you or something?’ I ask. ‘They whip you and make everyone else watch,’ says Rue. ‘The mayor’s very strict about it.’ I can tell by her expression that it’s not that uncommon an occurrence. A public whipping’s a rare thing in District 12, although occasionally one occurs.” (Collins, 202). This quote is referring to the punishments for stealing crops in District 11. One would assume that this is somewhat of a minor offense, but the peacekeepers and the Capitol by proxy, punish anyone caught with this crime as a severe criminal. At another point in the book, Rue tells Katniss about how a boy who was caught stealing glasses that let one see in the dark was executed. These severe punishments for petty crimes are stated almost offhandedly several times throughout the novels, with one such example being when Katniss states, “All forms of stealing are forbidden in District 12. Punishable by death.” (Collins, 29). One thing