In The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, Katniss is a fierce and clever character. She makes her disapproval and hatred of the Capitol’s ways of life and definition of entertainment clear to all while doing so in a way that keeps her, and those she loves, safe. This is clear in her alliance with Rue, a twelve-year-old girl who contradicts and complements Katniss in both personality and outlook of the future.
Although young, Rue is nothing less than “a survivor,” as Katniss mentions when deciding to team up with her (201). While this alliance does not seem to bring many advantages to Katniss in terms of survival and victory, Rue does bring her hope. Besides providing Katniss with medicinal leaves to “leach…the pain right out of the sting,” she reminds her of Prim, her younger sister and the only other hope Katniss has. This alone is enough for Katniss to make an ally of her, but there is more to this seemingly mismatched team.
Rue’s influence on Katniss goes beyond the physical benefits of their alliance; more importantly, Rue changes Katniss’ perspective of the world and motivates her to fight for a better future. Katniss naturally has a cynical side, which is understandable considering the horrors she has been through at the young age of sixteen. Rue provides a balancing effect to Katniss’ distrust, however, which plays a large role in Katniss’ decision to become allies. The hope that Rue brings to Katniss changes her view of the world and future, even beyond her death. In fact, Rue is a major motivator for Katniss to win the Games and change what the world has become. The injustice not only of Rue being chosen for the Games but also her death drives Katniss to avenge her and the many other children from the districts. Katniss’ rebellion to the Capitol begins with Rue’s death when she “decorate[s] her body in the flowers” in order to “shame them, to make them accountable, to show the Capitol that whatever they do or force [the tributes] to do there is a part of every tribute they can’t own” (236, 237).
Although their alliance is brief, Rue forever impacts Katniss’ view of life. Especially after her death, Rue brings Katniss hope for a better world, and she eventually succeeds in creating this world both she and Rue envisioned. Despite Rue’s time in the Hunger Games being brief, her legacy lives on in Katniss’ determination to rebel against the oppression of the Capitol and create a better future for herself and future generations.
Another aspect of the hope Rue gives Katniss is how Rue’s death leads to unity between districts. Part of how the Capital remains in power is by isolating the districts from each other. However, by forming an alliance with Rue, they’re able to share information about each other’s lives that they never would have known otherwise. During one of these conversations, Katniss even says, “I wonder if the Gamemakers are blocking out our conversation, because even though the information seems harmless, they don’t want people in different districts to know about one another” (203). Many of the skills Rue brings to their alliance are because of her unique background as a resident of a different district- for example, her knowing what the night-vision glasses are and her ability to move through the trees. While the Careers also form inter-district alliances, these are portrayed as alliances solely for utilitarian purposes. For example, they only have the boy from District 3 in their group for his technological ability and kill him the moment he’s no longer useful. Katniss and Rue are a representation of two people from different districts who form an alliance not just because they’re useful, but because they care for each other and can work together against the Careers and the Gamemakers. On a larger scale, they show how the districts could potentially work together against a common goal as true allies.
ReplyDeleteThis is best illustrated after the death of Rue. While she’s still mourning, she receives a gift from a sponsor. She opens it to find a loaf of bread. However, as she examines it, she notices “[it’s] not the fine white Capitol stuff... [this] bread came from District 11” (238). This gesture deeply touches Katniss, who wonders, “[what} must it have cost to the people of District 11 who can’t even feed themselves?” (239). She even comments that it’s, “A district gift to a tribute who’s not your own” (239). While we don’t know for sure, it’s implied that districts giving gifts to other tributes is uncommon. Rue and Katniss’ alliance leads to a rare display of inter-district alliance, something that goes directly against the wishes of the Capitol. This is another way Rue gave Katniss hope, by showing that the Capitol is not infallible, and the districts can rebel against them, even in ways as small as a loaf of bread.