The Grandma’am Character Analysis

The Grandma’am is Coriolanus and Tigris’s grandmother. Tigris dubbed her “the Grandma’am” long ago, as other familiar names for a grandparent didn’t seem to fit such an imperious woman. The Grandma’am has been caring for Tigris and Coriolanus for more than a decade, since both were orphaned during the war with the rebels. The Grandma’am did everything in her power to care for them during the war, including bartering for lima beans, which fed the family for years. During the war, she also began playing an old recording of Panem’s anthem and singing along with it in the morning. Though she still does this into the present, the Grandma’am has begun to decline in terms of her health and mental acuity. She’s unable to cope with the fact that the Snow family is, in the present, extremely poor and at risk of losing their lavish penthouse apartment—and every bad thing that happens to the family makes her even more disoriented. The only thing that keeps her grounded is her rooftop rose garden, which she’s been tending since before the war started. She often sends Coriolanus to special occasions with one of her colorful roses pinned to his shirt or lapel. In the epilogue, the Grandma’am is doing better now that she has the Plinths’ money to help support her lifestyle; she thinks of Ma Plinth as a new maid.