Thank you for sticking around and being patient with us!

There has been a shortage of content on here for the last little while. As most of you know and I’m sure can sympathize with, it is currently exam season for nearly all of us, and I think I can speak for everyone when I say that this time of year is nothing less than unbelievably busy and stressful. Which leaves little time for us to make well thought out posts on here, which is what we’d like to provide!

I myself [Emma] am now on summer break, so I will be posting more over the next few weeks, and I’m sure that everyone else will have more time once school is done!

Again, thank you all so much for following!

Don’t forget, you can always let us know YOUR thoughts in the ask!

insideonemind said,

"Hey. I submitted a discussion topic on the differences I saw between the initial District uprisings and the actual war with the Capitol. I submitted it a few days ago but it hasn't been published so I was wondering if you actually received it or if you only post new topics after a certain amount of time?"

We currently have a lot on our plates at the moment, and quite a lot of topics in our inbox to address. Unfortunately, many of our members including myself just don’t have the time to answer them. We will get back to discussing as soon as possible, thank you for understanding.

thgdiscussion:

A characteristic that seems to be present in children across the board, is that of curiosity. I’m sure all of our parents remember the stage of our childhood in which our response to everything we heard was “Why?”. Children want to understand, they want to be able to comprehend the big questions of the universe, just like the rest of us.

This led me to wonder: Did the children of the Capitol ever wonder about The Hunger Games? Did they ask their parents about what happened to the Tributes when they died? They must have. What did their parents tell them in response to these questions? Would Capitol children be presented with Capitol propaganda type information about the First Rebellion in school?

Of course, I would have to assume, that the Capitol citizens are indoctrinated into the importance and “fun” of the Hunger Games at a very young age, in order to quell any kind of REAL questions from presenting themselves, especially given their blatant disregard for the sanctity of life, and their [perhaps] naive lack of notice to how perverse it is that children kill each other for a televised event, throughout the series. Otherwise, how would the Capitol and Snow be able to keep their central control, and use the Games as their tool?

So what the real question is, is what are the Capitol’s views on death? Do murders happen in the Capitol, just like in any other city? Katniss never really mentions any crimes like these occurring in District 12. This is probably because everyone in D12 is so concerned with surviving, and with the advent of the Hunger Games, it is probably not something that would occur to a district citizen to kill someone. I also feel like violent crimes would be severely punished in the districts. Fear of the Peacekeepers [with the exception of D12 where the PCs are pretty much the citizens equals] would also most likely keep the citizens at bay. But what is the Peacekeeper/law presence like in the Capitol? Would the PCs instill the same kind of fear as they might in the districts?

Now, what I’m wondering is whether crimes like these would have happened in the Capitol. We don’t really have any insight into this concept through the books because we are reading through Katniss’ POV, and that is not the kind of knowledge that she would possess, especially having never left District 12 until the Games.

It has proven to be true that violent crimes like murder, rape, etc, occur more often in places that have a high level of poverty rather than in places that possess more wealth. Obviously as we see throughout the books, the Capitol holds the monopoly on all wealth and resources in Panem, and its citizens want for nothing. In this kind of society, who would be driven to commit murder [I mean of course with the exception of President Snow, whom we all know has no problem killing anyone who stands in his way], and what would their motives be? What would be punishments be like? Would they be tried, or just sentenced to death? Afterall, this is a false utopian society.

After defining these variables, we would be able to understand the kinds of thoughts that would define Capitol families, and the values that they teach their children.

Another thing I was wondering about is what would happen to those in the Capitol who didn’t buy into the Hunger Games culture? Would they be silenced? I wonder if they’d be made into Avoxes. Maybe rebellious thoughts are a more severe crime than committing a crime like murder.

I would love to hear your thoughts!

— Emma

Just thought of something to add: Would information about violent crimes [assuming that they DO occur in the Capitol] be made public like they are in our time, for example news casts, etc? Would Caesar Flickerman make announcements about trials? I think that they would be treated as the same kind of spectacle as the Games, especially because those who attended the trials, or watched them on TV would be interested in all of the gritty, horrific details. Kinda like how the world was fascinated by the trial of OJ Simpson.

Just a few more things to think about.

Don’t forget: You can now comment directly on posts via Disqus! So tell me your thoughts, either in comments, or in the ask, especially if you have some answers for some of my questions, or questions of your own!

— Emma

A characteristic that seems to be present in children across the board, is that of curiosity. I’m sure all of our parents remember the stage of our childhood in which our response to everything we heard was “Why?”. Children want to understand, they want to be able to comprehend the big questions of the universe, just like the rest of us.

This led me to wonder: Did the children of the Capitol ever wonder about The Hunger Games? Did they ask their parents about what happened to the Tributes when they died? They must have. What did their parents tell them in response to these questions? Would Capitol children be presented with Capitol propaganda type information about the First Rebellion in school?

Of course, I would have to assume, that the Capitol citizens are indoctrinated into the importance and “fun” of the Hunger Games at a very young age, in order to quell any kind of REAL questions from presenting themselves, especially given their blatant disregard for the sanctity of life, and their [perhaps] naive lack of notice to how perverse it is that children kill each other for a televised event, throughout the series. Otherwise, how would the Capitol and Snow be able to keep their central control, and use the Games as their tool?

So what the real question is, is what are the Capitol’s views on death? Do murders happen in the Capitol, just like in any other city? Katniss never really mentions any crimes like these occurring in District 12. This is probably because everyone in D12 is so concerned with surviving, and with the advent of the Hunger Games, it is probably not something that would occur to a district citizen to kill someone. I also feel like violent crimes would be severely punished in the districts. Fear of the Peacekeepers [with the exception of D12 where the PCs are pretty much the citizens equals] would also most likely keep the citizens at bay. But what is the Peacekeeper/law presence like in the Capitol? Would the PCs instill the same kind of fear as they might in the districts?

Now, what I’m wondering is whether crimes like these would have happened in the Capitol. We don’t really have any insight into this concept through the books because we are reading through Katniss’ POV, and that is not the kind of knowledge that she would possess, especially having never left District 12 until the Games.

It has proven to be true that violent crimes like murder, rape, etc, occur more often in places that have a high level of poverty rather than in places that possess more wealth. Obviously as we see throughout the books, the Capitol holds the monopoly on all wealth and resources in Panem, and its citizens want for nothing. In this kind of society, who would be driven to commit murder [I mean of course with the exception of President Snow, whom we all know has no problem killing anyone who stands in his way], and what would their motives be? What would be punishments be like? Would they be tried, or just sentenced to death? Afterall, this is a false utopian society.

After defining these variables, we would be able to understand the kinds of thoughts that would define Capitol families, and the values that they teach their children.

Another thing I was wondering about is what would happen to those in the Capitol who didn’t buy into the Hunger Games culture? Would they be silenced? I wonder if they’d be made into Avoxes. Maybe rebellious thoughts are a more severe crime than committing a crime like murder.

I would love to hear your thoughts!

— Emma

thestillwatersrundeep:

And I think the reason that this makes my heart hurt is for the same reason that I get frustrated at people who say that Jennifer Lawrence is too big to play Katniss, which is just a load of bull.

To me, the Barbie line represents and supports a very materialistic mindset, which is one thing that Katniss fights (or doesn’t have the luxury of understanding) throughout the series.  She appreciates Cinna’s clothing for their utilitarian purposes, and she rarely appreciates the clothing for the physical beauty.  It’s an art form to her, but she cares not to adorn herself in luxurious clothing.  I think in today’s society, we don’t need any more support for a materialistic mindset- a capitol mindset.  We’re already there, we already want the newest, shiniest, most trendy things that we can find.  And for me, to make a Barbie doll for a character who couldn’t care less about her clothing, it just seems odd.. or wrong.. or something.

As always, I want your ideas, thoughts, reactions.. tell me what you think.

I originally posted this on my personal blog, which is why it was a reblog, but it was suggested that it be posted here too :) -Elizabeth

thgdiscussion:

Contrary to popular belief, I do not think it had anything to do with romance. Rather, I think it had to do with the fact that Clove was probably his only friend in the Arena, considering they were both very dangerous and from the same District. The other Career’s, he knew they had to die eventually. But when Claudius announced the new rule, he obviously grew happy with the thought that two victors could come home glorious to their proud District. Seeing her die, I think he lost his last bit of sanity, granted that he had any to begin with. I would love to continue this conversation.

-Nick

I’d also like to add that even with that interpretation that Cato was brutal and bloody, that’s just his style in the games. Remember that even Finnick was a career, and that it’s not like they enjoy killing people (well, it’s my personal opinion that Clove did, but that’s really up for interpretation). Cato’s goal was to bring glory to his district, and two District 2 victors would have brought twice as much glory. He was so upset when she died not because he was in love with her (there’s not a lot to suggest this), but because she was his one ally who, to his knowledge, he would not have to kill. Despite his alliance with the career pack, the understanding was that when they were the only ones left, that alliance would be broken. Cato believed his alliance with Clove would not have to end before the games did. He likely allowed himself to become friends with her, and I would assume they had a “what are you going to do when you get home?” conversation, since the dark factor of “you can only go home if I’m dead” is removed. 

He was upset to see her die because he had accepted that it was not inevitable. He didn’t think she would have to die for him to live, so he saw her death as a murder rather than another part of the games. 

And that’s terrible. 

-Dan

Caesar is the host who made all the tributes look fantastic, and we all know that. He kept a very good job of staying serious when needed, but he was also bright and captivating. We see him as that, but what about when(in the movie) he sees Peeta and Katniss exchange looks during the final interview? He doesn’t look like we usually perceive him. You see, there was a different look in his eyes. It quickly left of course,  and he went straight back to his usual self and showed the duo off. My question is, what did he figure out? He played up everything, but never once in the movie did we see him give a look like that. Don’t believe me? Watch it again! You may be surprised. Peeta and Katniss looked at each other, Katniss talking and looking into Peetas eyes, etc. In the book, Katniss doesn’t describe Caesar’s expressions or emotions, so this could be just a fantastic case of acting from the great Stanley Tucci, or it could be that maybe Caesar figured out about them. I am probably over thinking, and this isn’t making any sense, but think about it. I wouldn’t say it was a look of horror, but maybe even surprise. When asking Katniss about volunteering at the Reaping, he was calm and collected, and same when Peeta confessed his love for Katniss. He wished them luck and showed them off as Peeta Mellark and the Girl on Fire, Katniss Everdeen. But I think that he figured out something about Peeta and Katniss. Or maybe he knew they were deep in trouble with the Capitol. Thoughts? Am I just over analyzing and over thinking the whole deal? -GoGetYour-Shovel

veelachild said,

"I mean, I'm sure it was primarily English, but I do wonder if they had other languages spoken, like we have Spanish and French and Chinese and such."

Oh okay!

Well, some people (myself (Martin) included) think that Mags was possibly speaking Spanish when Katniss described her as “babbling”. Since Mags is so old and District 4 is located in the southwest near Mexico, it’s entirely feasible that Mags was just speaking Spanish and not babbling in her old age.

augustushaze said,

"Just a random thought, what about the language? Do you think Panem spoke English? Or do you think there was another language settled?"

I think it’s understood that they spoke English, but does anybody have any objections?