71 pages • 2-hour read
The Hunger Games
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Book Club Questions
General Impressions
Content Warning: This section of the guide contains discussion of child death, graphic violence, mental illness, substance use, death, bullying and emotional abuse.
Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.
1. This novel depicts a society that turns children’s deaths into entertainment. What emotions did this evoke in you?
2. The Hunger Games balances action, political commentary, and emotional storytelling. Which aspect resonated most strongly with you, and why?
3. How does this novel compare to George Orwell’s 1984 or other dystopian classics in its exploration of government control? Can you see this novel’s impact in newer dystopian novels?
Personal Reflection and Connection
Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.
1. Katniss volunteers to take her sister’s place, demonstrating incredible sacrifice. When have you sacrificed something important for someone you love? What was the outcome?
2. What examples of entertainment being used to distract or control have you observed in our society? Which ones do you enjoy? Do any feel uncomfortable or even sinister to you?
3. Have you ever felt pressured to present yourself differently to gain approval or an advantage, similar to Katniss’s struggle with her public persona? Have you ever had to pretend to be someone you’re not for strategic reasons?
4. Have you observed economic disparities in your own community that are similar to the divide between District 12 and the Capitol?
5. What insights did the novel provide about how people cope—either well or poorly—with traumatic experiences? Does this resonate with your own experiences?
Societal and Cultural Context
Examine the book’s relevance to societal issues, historical events, or cultural themes.
1. What connections do you see between modern reality TV culture and the spectacle of the Games?
2. In Panem, citizens are distracted by entertainment while living under authoritarian oppression. What parallels exist between this fictional society and historical examples of governments using the media to distract from social issues?
3. What does the novel’s depiction of a post-apocalyptic America that has regressed to a system resembling ancient Rome suggest about the cyclical nature of history?
Literary Analysis
Dive into the book’s structure, characters, themes, and symbolism.
1. What does the mockingjay symbolize, and how does its meaning evolve throughout the novel?
2. How does Collins’s choice to tell the story through Katniss’s first-person perspective affect your understanding of Panem?
3. Examine the various ways “performance” functions in the novel. How does this theme reveal deeper truths about identity and survival?
4. How do the contrasting settings of the Capitol’s excess and District 12’s poverty reinforce the novel’s themes?
5. How does Haymitch’s character reveal both the lasting trauma of the Games and the potential for resistance?
Creative Engagement
Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.
1. If you were selected as a tribute, what skills would you rely on to survive the Games?
2. Design your own Arena for the Hunger Games that would reflect a theme or message about society.
3. If you could rewrite the novel from another character’s perspective, whose viewpoint would you choose? How might that change the story?
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