Ericka P.

Sumatra 12-ABM Mother of Christ

A Marxist Analysis into The Hunger Games 2012

"For the real battle lines are drawn, to put the matter simply, between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have-
nots". The people in the districts are the "have-nots" in The Hunger Games, while the Capitol
folks are the "haves." The 2012 American dystopian science fiction-adventure film Hunger
Games, directed by Gary Ross and based on Suzanne Collin's 2008 novel about a futuristic
nation where the bourgeoisie enjoys extravagance, the proletariats continue to suffer in poverty,
aims to reveal contradictions in how a capitalist society exploits the oppressed.

The Hunger Games (2012) is a worldwide blockbuster film that has captivated audiences of all
ages. The story evokes displeasure as the film details the suffering of people in Panem districts,
and there has been a war over class, which the Capitol uses to exploit and oppress the Districts.
The Capitol has all of the luxuries, while the Districts are starving. Every year, the Capitol
obliges 12 Districts to offer a boy and a girl from each district as Tributes to compete in the
Hunger Games, a nationally televised event. Because twelve to eighteen-year-old are required to
participate, the Capitol also uses reaping to keep tabs on the population. Reaping is thus a way
for the Capitol to know how many people live in each district. So, this data helps the Capitol in
maintaining control of Panem. Some Peacekeepers are stationed in each District to ensure that
the Districts follow the rules and do not attempt to begin a rebellion. The barbed fences also
make the Districts' residents feel like prisoners. The Capitol renders money by playing with
people's lives and hypnotizing them into believing that if they offer themselves as Tributes and
win the competition, it will be a symbol of pride for them and their district.

As I have seen, the film is a depiction of a Marxist society when Peeta burns the loaf of bread. It
is used as a symbol for the poor lives of the people in the districts. Furthermore, neither men nor
women have a financial advantage over the other. Despite having different jobs and family roles,
both men and women in the districts share the struggle to survive. According to Marxist theory,
human societies are created by the organization of economic power, meaning that there can be no
human culture or community without economic power. The desire to maintain economic power
drives every social and political activity, including education, philosophy, religious belief,
government, the arts, science, technology, and the mainstream press. The Capitol holds
economic power through the Hunger Games because they control production, resources, what
should be produced, the population, and the educational system. Through granting the Capitol
entire authority, the film's creators are implying that in the real world, the wealthy are powerful
and always can manipulate everything. Folks in the Capitol depicts wearing enormous hairstyles,
expensive clothes, and polished makeup. They dress in ways that emphasize their affluent
lifestyle. Women and men alike use beauty and clothing to distinguish themselves from those in
the districts: those in the districts cannot afford such high-class items. They use beauty to brag
about themselves and to remind lower-class citizens that they are not all the same, that wealth
constitutes superiority. Those folks without wealth cannot afford to style themselves similarly.
Without similar appearances, they will never be accepted into the elite group of the wealthy and
thus will never have any power.

Viewers may wonder why citizens at the Capitol have not attempted to fight for a better living.
They keep silent because they are fighting for survival. As they struggle to survive, they depend
on the Capitol to provide security, food, and a livelihood. However, because of the comparisons
between what is happening in our country today with the COVID-19 vaccine and what is
happening in other nations due to the ongoing pandemic and lockdowns. It is necessary to delve
into the exploitation shown during the film.

Although Panem is a futuristic country found only in the pages of a book or an alternate universe
in a film, it could conjure images of the Filipinos. Do there exist groups of people who live in the
same country but seem to be worlds apart? Any society with people from various socioeconomic
groups, whether rich or poor, will experience some kind of exploitation of the unfortunate group.
Even though exploitation seems to be an inevitability in the future, there should be no
classification of how we should treat people. Instead, we should help the needy during the
circumstances that we are facing right now.

To conclude, this film is one of the best I've seen, with great plots and life lessons. Many scenes
of deprivation of the lower class portrayed in this film, with the bourgeoisie enjoying
extravagance while the proletariats continue to suffer in poverty. The film shows how the lower
socioeconomic class has been oppressed as a result of their social status. However, one should
delve deeper into each of the film's characters, particularly Katniss Everdeen, the female
protagonist. Throughout the film, one can see how Katniss is treated and viewed, particularly
during her performance in the Games. She may have been viewed as an underdog because of her
gender, but her abilities were questioned from the start, and her chances were thought to be slim.
Katniss Everdeen is a notable character in the film, demonstrating that even in these difficult
times, we all should not relay everything to the government. We must not be afraid to speak up
and act when things aren't going well or when we have been misled because it is justifiable to
act, especially when we believe what we are doing is correct and beneficial to everyone. The
Hunger Games also demonstrates that there is a window of opportunity to improve one's
understanding of literature and why it is written and viewed.