Love, Loyalty, and Compassion Theme Analysis

In the harsh environment of the Hunger Games, it is normal for tributes to form temporary “alliances” for strategic purposes, only to eventually kill their allies when the time comes. Yet though the Games turn tributes into brutal competitors who know only that they must kill or be killed, Katniss forms not alliances but relationships. First, she volunteers for the Games in place of her little sister, Prim. Because District 12 has a history of losing the Games, Katniss is essentially volunteering for a death sentence, showing that she cares more about her little sister’s life than her own—a revelation that immediately draws the attention of those in the Capitol, who aren’t used to seeing the inhabitants of the districts sacrifice for one another. Next, she breaks from common practice of tributes when she teams up with Rue, the smallest of the tributes, and tries to protect her despite the nature of the Games. This, in turn, prompts Thresh, a competitor from Rue’s district, to show mercy on Katniss.

Katniss certainly employs strategy in winning the games, but by treating her sister and at least some of the other tributes as people worthy of love and care, Katniss, in a sense, breaks the Games. Once she has created these relationships of caring, the logic shifts from how to kill each other to how to beat the Games themselves, which translates directly into beating the Capitol at its own game. This effort comes to a head in the last moment of the Hunger Games, when Katniss’s relationship with Peeta—a relationship founded on the love Katniss inspires in Peeta; and on Katniss’s own willingness to kill herself rather than kill Peeta—finally breaks down the structure of the Games. By preparing to eat the poisoned berries, Katniss and Peeta demonstrate that they are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for one another, and this tragically noble display shows that there’s undeniably more to them than just bloodlust and survival instinct—their loyalty forces the Gamemakers to change the rules. And because the government gathers strength by dividing up its residents and pitting them against each other, the way that Katniss’s fierce and yet compassionate behavior encourages people to form groups willing to sacrifice themselves (as opposed to killing each other) is directly threatening to the Capitol’s control.