Wild Mass Guessing for Catching Fire can be found here, the page Mockingjay is here, and the page for The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is here.
- "the disasters, the droughts, the storms, the fires, the encroaching seas that swallowed up so much of the land, the brutal war for what little sustenance remained."
What exactly, tells us that the Districts rebelled, or were under the rule of the Capital in the first place? And the Districts are far too evenly divided, along both ethnic and social lines, to be natural. Given how much other revisionist history the Capital spews, it's more than possible that some number of separate states formed, went to war with each other, and the one that was finally victorious divided up the land and the people, called itself "the Capital" and gave demands of its member states about what it wanted each to produce, moving around people en mass to divide them up into visually similar ethnic groups and reinforce their divisions, hoping that if any District rebelled, they would have too little in common with their neighbors to gain the support of the majority of Districts.
- But 74 years isnt that long of a time. There are likely people still alive who could conceivably remember the first hunger games. Mags for instance. And even if those in the districts didn't know the truth, 13 certainly would.
- Example 1: She shows her how to bypass the mines at the food cache.
- Example 2: She shows Katniss that she can make it to the “feast” and back out safely.
- One: She wanted Peeta to know they were poisonous, specifically because she didn't want Katniss to lose Peeta.
- Two: She wanted Katniss to know, or at least figure out, that she loved her. Foxface could've killed herself any way, at any time, but she chose to do it publicly. This would reveal that she's been following Katniss and Peeta this WHOLE TIME, but it would also put the question in Katniss's mind; 'Why would she steal twenty berries from Peeta?
- Alternatively, she saved part of the world. The rest of the world -other then Panem- that is never mentioned the the trilogy consists only of the experiment's island.
- Jossed; it's brought up in Mockingjay.
Exhibit B: When the Careers have Katniss cornered in the tree, Clove stood there and did nothing. As seen in the bloodbath earlier, Clove should have had no trouble finishing Katniss at that distance. So, why didn't she?
Exhibit C: At the feast, Clove seems to want Katniss as nothing other than dead when she first sees her. So why would she monologue? Is she holding off Cato?
- Alternatively, it is what becomes of Caesar's lands once the NCR wipe them out. They have a President after all and women are seen as being equals in the military. It is also possible that District 13 is the home of descendants of the Brotherhood of Steel; they have a lot of power in the East, less so in the West which is still NCR territory and live in an underground bunker.
- There's at least one nation that hasn't descend to anarchy or follow the same way as Panem. After the war(s) that nearly devastated the Earth, this nation decided to live in peace. Refugees from other nations are welcome. The leaders of this nation try to stop the Hunger Games, but Panem refuses to let this happen as they believe they must continue to "repent" for what humanity has done and forced them to cease their actions.
- Is this other nation by any chance named "Ooo"?
- You mean Adventure Time?
They obviously use them as protagonists in completely fictional, child-friendly stories having nothing to do with the Hunger Games.
Marval and Glimmer are two vain, shallow souls from District One who are thrust into the wilderness with only a spear and a bow and arrows and learn standard life-long lessons to come with the situation. Cato and Clove are a pair of brave warriors who ended a civil war in District Two. Foxface is a clever, well-meaning Robin Hood-like character from District Five who is killed by a Capitol bounty hunter, but her spirit continues to look after those who truly need it. Rue is a skilled bandit from District Eleven whose life is saved by Thresh, who becomes like a brother to her.
Katniss and Peeta may or may not have included their own story, with all names changed, of course. The girl's favorite story is the one about Foxface, whose cunning she greatly admires. The boy's favorite is the one about Rue and Thresh because he thinks they sound cool.
- Okay the above become headcanon for this Troper because it's just so heartwarming...
- The reason for travelling to other systems in Firefly was (amongst others) that Earth became too crowded; in The Hunger Games, there are few humans left and extinction is used as an argument for a ceasefire.
- Well, just so long as she doesn't start up a taxi service, they'd probably have a pretty good time.
- Her and Ziggy Stardust-era David Bowie. I'd buy that they influenced a lot.
- Actually,(believe it or not) there is a method to what Lady Gaga wears. The people in the Capitol seem to wear what they do because they think it looks stylish. So it may be that they saw pictures of Lady Gaga and thought she looked cool, and decided to dress like her. Or it may be something entirely different.
- This is very likely, actually. I doubt someone as clever as Foxface would be stupid enough to die from unknowingly eating poison berries. I think she knew her chances of winning were low then, so the most she could do was kill herself in a quick and painless way. And in doing so, she'd ensure nobody else would get the pleasure of killing her and that (by taking the cheese) the capitol would never know of her true intentions and her family would be safe. In a way, then, she was a Victorious Loser.
- This explains it all! First read I was extremely puzzled on how Foxface, who Katniss remarked to be the smartest person the arena just died because she mistook a deadly berry for a safe one. This makes even less sense in the movie where one of the shots of her is at the EDIBLE PLANTS station.
- This could be Fridge Brilliance at the fact she was possibly revising what berries to eat and what not to eat. This could also turn into Fridge Horror when realizing that she went into the games possibly thinking that she might end up killing herself if faced with a challenge she know she won't be able to survive.
- Also fits well with Katniss' line from the beginning of the book, albeit with poison.
Gale and I agree that if we have to choose between dying of hunger and a bullet in the head, the bullet would be much quicker.
- Peeta is a terrible name. They should have named him something dignified, something proud... young Turn Over.
- I believe that District 12's name scheme for children (yes, fanfiction authors, they have name schemes!) are named after their parents' professions. Katniss and Primrose are plants; Katniss and Primrose are the daughters of the owner of the apothecary. Peeta is a corruption of pita, a type of bread; his parents run the bakery. A gale is a gust of wind, staying nowhere at once; and when we first meet Gale, his mother is unemployed, wandering like the wind.
- Except I think it's mentioned at one point in the first book that it was Katniss's father who named her, and I think Primrose as well.
- Their father was a hunter and brought the plants to their mother. And it beats having to name them after something coal-related, if only for the reason that so many others in the district would do so.
- Presumably Gale's mother didn't hold off on naming him until she had become an unemployed widow. His name has nothing to do with his parents' professions. His siblings are Rory, Vick and Posy which (at least to me, a non-native English speaker) doesn't seem related to any particular profession. Also neither Haymitch, Madge nor Delly have names that relate to their parents' jobs.
- Crosses the line to Unfortunate Implications quite easily: District 11 people are "dark skinned", live in the south, work the earth and are treated horribly by their masters. The District 3 people are all Asian and Nerdy. District 4 is made up of Irish fishermen (with red hair and names like "Finnick O'dair"). And, the District 10 residents are descendants of Mexican cattle ranchers.
- And you think that's accidental? The founders/organizers of Panem and the districts were inhumane enough to make a spectacle out of almost two dozen children being killed every year, and canny enough to do it in a way that will mostly pit the districts against one another. Why wouldn't they divide up people into districts by pre-disaster stereotypes, reinforcing xenophobia and divisions among them?
- Sounds like a classic founder effect to me. EG, the descendants of a few families of coal miners way back in the hills of West Virginia (maybe they hid in the mines when the bombs fell) survived the apocalypse and were later annexed by the Capitol. A genetic bottleneck gives most of district 12 the similar, limited set of genes.
- Well, with all the other stuff in the Capitol, I wouldn't be surprised.
- I'd think it would be specifically a Capitol thing. Remember how squeamish Katniss is when she thinks about being naked in front of everyone, or when she has to see Peeta in his underwear to clean his leg wound? Nudity is definitely a big deal for her.
- Johanna, Finnick and Peeta are all decidedly not squeamish about being naked (or half-naked) and Glimmer’s interview dress was see-through, so I think nudity is mostly a big deal just for Katniss and it’s meant to showcase how out of place she is in the Capitol and around other people. Either that or Values Dissonance between 12 and the other Districts and the Capitol and Peeta was too sick/worried about dying to care about what people saw.
- Well, Johanna's a Shameless Fanservice Girl, Glimmer was going for the same thing, Peeta is mostly The Stoic, and Finnick was from the fishing district (where, presumably, people spend a lot of time in the water and thus in various states of undress) - not to mention he's spent the last several years of his life as a sex slave, so it would follow that none of them are all that concerned about nudity.
- Though Katniss doesn't seem especially bothered about stripping off for her prep team, even initially.
- It's just one way to showcase how different Katniss is to the people of the Capitol, and to the other victors. When she strips down for the prep team, she's not given much of a choice, plus Haymitch had already told her to do what they say. On top of that, it seems like Katniss is more uncomfortable with other people's nudity than her own.
- Not to mention she pretty much states outright that themakeup and strange hair colors sported by the Capitol stylists pushed them so far into the Uncanny Valley that she had a hard time even thinking of them as human, and compared them instead to "oddly-colored birds".
- Johanna, Finnick and Peeta are all decidedly not squeamish about being naked (or half-naked) and Glimmer’s interview dress was see-through, so I think nudity is mostly a big deal just for Katniss and it’s meant to showcase how out of place she is in the Capitol and around other people. Either that or Values Dissonance between 12 and the other Districts and the Capitol and Peeta was too sick/worried about dying to care about what people saw.
- Only further backed up by Mockingjay, wherein most of the movement throughout the Capitol occurs via service shafts and the like. Anyone who has played Mirror's Edge knows just how much time you spend in ventilation ducts and gritty unseen areas.
- Actually, while the Capitol is described as colourful, Mirror's Edge is about lack of vivid colours by game design (the colour red is seen almost exclusively using runner vision and developers actually said things about cold/warm colour contrast). Although, the trigger-happy blues of Mirror's Edge and the peacekeepers of Mockingjay bear striking similarities. And both cities are brought down (though only implied in ME) by a girl trying to save her sister.
- The fashion of coloring one's skin in fantastic shades is deliberately imitating the appearance of Scriven, while at the same time the slang term "Mutt" for "mutant" or "mutation" may indicate prejudice against the actual Scriven. North America may even be considered the "Dead Continent" because America specialized in biological warfare and genetics (see all the mutant species), and during the Sixty Minutes War unleashed biological weapons on the rest of the world, which could explain why President Snow believes that everyone outside Panem is dead.
- The The Mutts at the end are clearly Stalkers, technologically reanimated corpses, which may or may not retain their original personalities, but can be programmed to hunt and kill specific people. The Mutts are just biological rather than mechanical in their reanimation, but otherwise the same principle: take a corpse, stuff it full of technology in and around it, and send it back to kill its friends/killers for psychological shock and horror value.
- There's death in Survivor?
- This was part of the point of the series- to show how sick those shows really are.
I mean think about it: the islands were the original arenas, and those shows already had massive helpings of borderline-lethal challenges, actually lethal intern working conditions, arena manipulation (see Revenge of the Island, or even more so Pahkitew Island, which was revealed to be largely artificial), and a sadistic host to boot. It's not farfetched to imagine that, soon after the Rebellion, when the Capitol first consolidates control, its media department went out researching effective propaganda methods to keep the districts in line, but nothing was clicking … until one of the would-be Gamemakers stumbles upon a broadcast of old Total Drama reruns.
Alternatively, the Total Drama franchise itself is running well into the future, even surviving the Dark Days, and quite possibly tolerating greater and greater abuse and violence with each annual iteration; by the time of the Dark Days, it's common for contestants to die on the show, just not at their competitors' hands (at least, not by show mandate). Sensing an opportunity, the Capitol's media producers strike a deal with the TD producers to buy out the franchise. Once Total Drama's been nationalised and included into the lineup of Capitol propaganda, the new producers add a newer, deadlier twist: why not require the contestants to actually kill each other?
- Adding onto this, Danganronpa was an intermediary form between Total Drama and the Hunger Games. The format wasn’t perfected until the first Hunger Games. Further, the Hunger Games eventually devolved into The Running Man, thanks to The Remnant of Coin’s ideology and ways taking over and using killing games for “good” purposes, killing Capitol citizens at first before targeting anyone they didn’t like. Battle Royale and Your Turn to Die are both intermediary forms between Danganronpa and The Hunger Games. Effectively, a series of Happy Ending Override after Happy Ending Override, turning killing games into a constant threat to be overcome again and again by the forces of good.
- All we need to do now is incorporate SAW into this.
- It's seen throughout the series (made most obvious in Mockingjay) that President Snow toys with his victors for fun and profit, especially in their relations with other characters. This fits perfectly with his hiring out Finnick to Capitol girls to keep him from Annie, and the slaughter of Haymitch's loved ones
- Confirmed in the third book, as he thought that by having Katniss actually fall in love with Peeta, she will have a weakness with which he can break her. And he almost succeeds.
- The etymology fits remarkably well, although the truth probably lies somewhere between this and the WMG that he's named after the type of bread.
- When I read the books I made this assumption, Peeta = Peter, Haymitch = Hamish
- Actually Peeta be refering to rock or stone, he's often described as being big strong and sturdy, and for Katniss he is the reliable sturdy choice.
- And then there's Haymitch, who was a liability to the Capitol's stability from the beginning, yet somehow got drawn?
- That's why he was reaped during a Quarter Quell. They figured that, with 47 other kids against him, including (presumably) a Career pack of 12, he wouldn't have a chance. Not only was the timing convenient, they wanted to use the Quell to kill him off as opposed to a random accident back in D12. More entertainment for the masses.
- I actually wondered at that myself, especially during the first book. I think somehow Katniss's little excursions were known about and they decided the games would be her punishment and her sister's name coming up would be the dramatic icing on the cake.
- This is completely defeated by the twist of the first Quarter Quell, where the Districts voted on which tributes to send into the arena. At least one game is exempt.
- Or they could have just rigged the votes. Kinda defeats the purpose of the punishment, though...
- Well, Katniss did mention that it would have have been much worse to be voted into the games than picked randomly, so maybe they did this for a sort of psychological thing to mess with the kids' heads, make them less happy to go home if they win, stuff like that.
- Oh, like they made the kids think that they had been chosen as tributes by the people of their districts even though the tributes in the games might not have necessarily been the ones with the most votes? That'd certainly make the Victor more willing to bend to the Capitol's will (because whatever district loyalty they had would be at least tarnished in most cases and the Capitol would be providing for their every want and need) and less likely to stir up trouble and they could still cherry pick the most appropriate children to be in the Games.
- I think that even if the games ARE rigged, forcing the districts to vote instead of making it "the luck of the draw" would have a heavy psychological impact on both the tributes and the populace. The people will be forced to send two of their citizens to their potential deaths (considering the impracticalities of going through 8000 people, it will likely be chosen from those that they know personally), while the tributes will be angered at the apparent betrayal of being forced into The Hunger Games.
- To tie this in with another theory about the rebellion beginning before the 74th Games, it could be the rebels, somehow armed with knowledge that Katniss is a skilled hunter, the object of Peeta's affections, and completely devoted to protecting Prim, that they rigged the box so Prim would be selected in order to get Katniss to volunteer, thus creating the Mockingjay. Admittedly, that does rely on a bit of Gambit Roulette, but this is WMG, after all.
- Back to the original theory that Prim was reaped as punishment for Katniss's hunting. Then why didn't they wait a year to have Prim selected when Katniss couldn't volunteer?
- Getting Prim killed would have pushed Katniss into rebelling since nothing would be holding her back. Pushing Katniss into becoming a Victor by having her volunteer for Prim lets the Capitol put a leash on her and keep an eye. Plus there are rebel insiders in the Capitol and they probably manipulated things to help Katniss become the figurehead she was in Mockingjay.
- Confirmed in Mockingjay.
- Updated to give Word of God exports, pursuant to the new viral site.
- The Capitol: Mountainous city.
- West of or lying in the Rockies, cold in winter with substantial snowfall. Probably Montana/southern Alberta, judging by climate.
- Quite possibly founded by the survivors from a government hidey-hole in Cheyenne mountain (or something similar)
- Denver. Considered to be the backup capital of the US (should anything ever happen to DC).
- The problem with Denver as the capitol is that the Capitol is described as "ringed by mountains," and while Denver has some pretty impressive mountains to the west, it's flat as the proverbial pancake to the north, south, and east.
- Aspen. It's mountainous on all sides, cold and snowy, in the center of the country, and already home to a fairly decadent culture.
- Reno. It snows there in the winter and people go there to be entertained. If it is Reno, then I have a feeling that the arena in Katniss and Peeta's Games was in Lake Tahoe. Add to that, there's a part of Reno that is called the Tessera District (Tessera, as we know, is the singluar form of Tesserae, which equals more grain and oil in exchange for more entries for the Games).
- Vancouver, British Columbia — assuming the author hasn't gone with the "absurd sea level rise" angle.
- Los Angeles.
- Can't be Los Angeles - even though there's the San Gabriel Mountains nearby - because the Capitol was stated to be in a snowy area where the Rockies would be. This Troper is a Los Angelino, and she's only seen snow in the Los Angeles area three times (and, it usually doesn't stick).
- If global warming has left some or other layer of the atmosphere "too thin for airplanes to fly in," I think it'd be a safe bet that it has affected the climate quite massively.
- Jackson Hole, Wyoming. It's already a rich area in real life, and fits the description of the Capitol perfectly.
- District 1: Luxury goods.
- Could be anywhere, probably a former metropolitan center like New York City.
- Can't be NYC. Districts 1-4 were mentioned as being closer to the Capitol, and partially because of that, more their favorites. 2 was the closest, but no one knows how big the Seam is.
- Districts 3 & 4 aren't distinctly mentioned to be close by, especially considering 3 isn't a career district. 1 is probably California.
- I support the theory that 1 is in California. I would also like to add on to this theory - I believe that District 1 would include the areas of Los Angeles and Las Vegas, since both cities are world-famous centers of luxury and decedance.
- California and Nevada. They already have luxury good and service industries, and produce a lot of gold and gemstones.
- District 2: Masonry
- Colorado and environs, without dispute. Marble is mentioned as an export, and Colorado is the only mountainous producer of marble on the continent.
- Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming. It's mentioned to be close to the capital, but if my theory about the Capitol being in Colorado, it's unlikely to be Colorado, since it's not all that plausible that Colorado rebelled if the centre of authority is there (see my theory about Loyalist Regions below).
- Doesn't District 2 include the "Nut"? Sounds like Cheyenne Mountain to me.
- Northeastern California/Northwestern Nevada, including Lake Tahoe, Carson City, and maybe Reno. The entire time I read the Nut scene in Mockingjay, I kept picturing Heavenly Mountain in Lake Tahoe as the Nut.
- District 3: Electronics.
- Somewhere where steel and petroleum products are readily available, or possibly near the ocean where goods can be shipped from other areas. Judging by the fact that their seal seems to contain the space needle in it, Washington is a good bet.
- New England. New England is up and coming in the technology and electronics sectors, especially around Boston. It's America's main rival to Silicon Valley.
- Or just Silicon Valley itself, given that low-numbered Districts are supposed to be close to the Capitol.
- I'd say somewhere between Northern California and the Washington-Canadian border, with San Fransisco/San Jose/Cupertino or Seattle as the most likely contenders, given that Google, Apple, and Microsoft have offices there.
- The Hunger Games Adventures map places it in the Kentucky, Indiana, and Ohio area (Americans please help this non-American troper check this, thanks).
- District 4: Fishing (Finnick's district).
- Finnick seems to know something about tropical plants. Somewhere on the Gulf Coast?
- Finnick wasn't too familiar with tropical plants: Mags ate some nuts based on knowledge from previous games. However, there's some cultural implications that it's in New England/Maritime Canada, given the blatantly Gaelic nature of some of the names (Fionn = "fair", Odair(e) = "pale/dun"), the nature of their industry, and their wedding ceremony procedures. This would put 4 awfully far away from the Capitol, however.
- It would make sense, though — the Grand Banks of Newfoundland were once renowned for the abundance of fish in the area.
- My guess is the Pacific Northwest.
- Confirmed in the Hunger Games Adventures map.
- Southern California and possibly Baja California as well. The Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are vital trading/fishing spots in the world today, and it's hinted somewhere in the book that District 4 does some overseas trading with other nations.
- Cascadia (Washington and Oregon). Fishing, especially salmon, is very important to the region's culture and economy today.
- Finnick seems to know something about tropical plants. Somewhere on the Gulf Coast?
- District 5: Power.
- Florida. It produces the greatest amount of electricity of any state in the Union (including California).
- Northern Quebec is the centre for a lot of hydroelectric power generation, to the point where hydro accounts for almost all of Quebec's generating capacity. This would conflict with the likely location of District 13 though (see below).
- The Dakota's and Minnesota are high prospects. Given that there are 4 sources for power (oil in North Dakota, plenty of flat-lands to get winds across, not a lot of trees for lot of sun, and the Mississippi river for water), it would work well.
- Possibly the Southwestern US. There's a lot of hydroelectric (Hoover Dam etc) and nuclear (where fallout/waste wouldn't disturb plants and crops) power there. Also seen in the movie, District 5 provides energy for the Capitol. With the capitol in the Rockies, this is possible.
- District 6: Transportation.
- Presumably dead center of the country, possibly leaning slightly closer to the major production centers of Panem (electronics and luxuries are produced in limited quantities, and are less likely need dedicated transport links than lumber or masonry). District 6 could well be in Nebraska, roughly in the middle of North America (ignoring the largely uninhabited areas of Northern Canada and Alaska) and home to Union Pacific and the largest railway yard in the world.
- Somewhere near Detroit might be thematically fitting as well.
- Texas. It has the most transport infrastructure of any state in the Union today.
- The Chicago/St. Louis area? Famous for being the gateway to the West.
- District 7: Lumber.
- IIRC, this included redwoods. Pacific northwest?
- Not redwood. Predominantly softwoods. Must be in between 12 and the Capitol, as Katniss guesses the train is passing through it on her way to the 74th Games.
- I guess for that matter, there's no guarantee there haven't been major climate changes since present time that reforested any region of the US.
- This Tropette thinks that District Seven could be somewhere around Minnesota, Wisconsin, and maybe the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, given the climate there.
- Alaska. 12% of the country's forests are located in Alaska. No other state even comes close to the sheer amount of trees in Alaska.
- A lot of Alaska is bare tundra though.
- My guess is northern and central Ontario, probably stretching into Quebec and Manitoba. The softwood forests there are vast.
- The Hunger Games Adventures map has District 7 in the Seattle and Vancouver area. It's the top left hand district in the link in the last point here.
- District 8: Textiles.
- North and South Carolina. It's really the only place left in the US with a textile industry.
- On the Hunger Games Adventures map, North and South Carolina are submerged due to rising sea levels, or in District 12. We'll have to wait and see which of the currently locked districts is 8.
- Lots of factories too. Could possibly be in the "rust belt" of Michigan/Ohio.
- Chicago and the surrounding area. There were a lot of factories (especially clothing factories) during the Industrial Revolution in the late 1800's.
- It could also possibly be in NYC, there were a lot of those factories there during the late 19th-early 20th century.
- North and South Carolina. It's really the only place left in the US with a textile industry.
- District 9: Grain
- Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. These three states are the centre of the US' Corn Belt. Might also include the UP for aesthetics.
- District 10: Livestock/husbandry. Likely Great Plains states/provinces, since it along with 7 are mentioned as necessary to pass through to get to the Capitol.
- Kansas, Nebraska, and the Dakotas. Kansas is currently the second largest producer of cattle in the US (Texas is already used up with District 6). The High Plains in the other three states are likely to be used for it as well.
- District 11: Agricultural (Rue's district). Hinted to be the Deep South, and the train heads that way on the victory tour.
- Arkansas, Louisiana, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia. The location of the Cotton Belt (cotton is mentioned to be one of the district's exports). It's also the most likely district demographically to send two black children as tribute (as shown in the film at least).
- Confirmed in the Hunger Games Adventures map. Not sure if it goes as far north as Tennessee though.
- Arkansas, Louisiana, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia. The location of the Cotton Belt (cotton is mentioned to be one of the district's exports). It's also the most likely district demographically to send two black children as tribute (as shown in the film at least).
- District 12: Coal (Katniss's district).
- Given the fact that it's stated to be a week's walk from District 13, which is stuck in Quebec or Ontario, it's either Pennsylvania or possibly West Virginia. West Virginia has the largest coal output of all the states, which makes it a front runner.
- In a book reading somewhere on YouTube, Collins gives Katniss a Southern accent, further supporting the West Virginia theory.
- There's also the rich Kentucky coal mining fields.
- As someone from Kentucky, I think Kentucky is the best possibility. There are a lot of woods in Kentucky, and the lake mentioned in my opinion is Cave Run because when I went there it was surrounded by woodlands. The same could also be said about the Kentucky River. Though I've never hunted there are places that I assume would be good hunting. And if we could no longer produce horses its not a long shot that we'd go back to coal mining.
- Considering that before Daniel Boone, Kentucky was HUNTING grounds...
- There are woodland-surrounded lakes throughout the continent. Besides, Cave Run Lake isn't even a natural lake, and given the obvious disintegration most relics of our time have suffered, the dam would probably be gone as would the lake itself.
- IIRC The lake was never specified as being natural or artificial, and depending on when it was made, and how well it was made, theres a decent chance a dam could survive. That being said, Trout Pond in West Virginia would fit the bill decently enough I think. It's a natural lake in West Virginia, though not a huge one. It is located in an area with a large coal deposit, and a great deal of potential forest area. Plus it's closer to Canada, where district 13 would have to be if the info further down is accurate.
- Also, there's nothing to suggest that district 12 doesn't run through both Kentucky and West Virginia.
- Didn't Katniss state that District 12 was near Appalachia at some point?
- That probably cuts W.Va. then. West Virginia isn't near Appalachia, it's the only state to exist entirely in Appalachia.
- The precise quote states that it is located "in a region once known as Appalachia". West Virginia is still in.
- It really makes sense to be in West Virginia, if the folks are Mediterranean descent. A friend of mine's family are coal miners and Italian and that's where they hail from, and she says a lot of folks there are like that.
- If not for some evidence pointing otherwise (the Appalachia reference, the southern accent in the book reading, etc), it could also be in Atlantic Canada. 6.5 days walk from the Laurentian area to Halifax, Nova Scotia, according to Google Maps. I personally choose to believe this despite any evidence to the contrary, because I like to think that I live in/near District 12.
- I'm an expy Nova Scotian and think this is a crock, you can walk a day and see the ocean no matter where you are, and it's the ass end of the Appalachians. Look into District 4 instead, given the fishing industry and Gaelic ties. Also there's the fact that Nova Scotia is doomed to be an island in very short order so it seems odd that nobody mentioned having to swim to get out of the District. 12 is clearly in the Cumberland Gap, especially given that the Seam's physical descriptions almost certainly indicate its residents are Melungeon.
- I'm with the above. I'm from East Tennessee, which happens to be very mountainous (Great Smoky Mountains, anyone?), so I'd say it could be anywhere around the Smokies, either East Tennessee or North Carolina. The area also has rich coal deposits and, unfortunately, a high rate of poverty. The wildlife is also very similar, practically identical. And you can't tell me this doesn't evoke District 12's forests.◊
- West Virginia and Kentucky. These regions are the kings of coal production in the US. Pennsylvania would also be part of this district, except that it's anchored to Philadelphia and the East Coast power structure (see my theory below on Loyalist Regions).
- Pittsburgh. Yes, we're out of coal, but the book says we just have to dig deeper.
- Hunger Games Adventures places District 12 in western North and South Carolina, with the east coast being submerged due to global warming.
- Given the fact that it's stated to be a week's walk from District 13, which is stuck in Quebec or Ontario, it's either Pennsylvania or possibly West Virginia. West Virginia has the largest coal output of all the states, which makes it a front runner.
- District 13: Graphite (revealed in newscasts from second book), and also a major strategic/nuclear location.
- District 13 can't be anywhere except the Laurentian mountains in Canada. No other place on the continent produces graphite.
- But, then it is located in Quebec and it was never mentioned that they speak French in District 13 (to bad actually as a francophone District 13 looks cool to me). Though it might have been resettled with Anglo-saxons by the Capitol before the Dark Days.
- For a Francophone District 13, see here.
- District 13 process graphite. It would make sense for it to be in New England, as it's specialty is specifically nuclear technology and innovation, and between MIT's high-energy labs, Boston's already-existence (although mostly covered) underground areas, and District 12 being the first place someone from District 13 off the edge of Panem's map would encounter, it has to be somewhere northeast, and why not New England. Also, because it would be an Ironic Echo: New England is part of an empire it dislike, so it rebels and breaks free, only to have its own problems with governing, equality, and freedom almost four score years later.
- District 13 can't be anywhere except the Laurentian mountains in Canada. No other place on the continent produces graphite.
- Here are some maps from DeviantArt, it's not perfect but it's better than nothing.
- The districts aren't regions: they are small outposts. District 12 is basically a mining company town in the woods (and a small town at that). District 11 is essentially a plantation. The very biggest agricultural districts might not cover more than several hundred square miles, the smaller ones are the size of small towns and cities.
- But in Catching Fire, Katniss describes District 11 as being massive to the point of endlessness, with a population so large that even a portion of it can successfully rebel and in Mockingjay, she says District 2 is made up of many villages spread throughout the mountains. Those don't exactly sound like outposts.
- Given the scale of North America, and that it's unlikely that Katniss has any concept of a car, it's quite conceivable that District 11 would be, to her eyes, endlessly wide, but on an actual map of the continent would only show up as a relatively small area. Likewise, the villages of District 2 could be scattered across a single range.
- The map from the Hunger Games Adventures Facebook game seems to make some sort of sense, seeing as it resembles America somewhat. Only the Capitol, District 2 , District 11 and District 12 have been revealed, however; we'll have to wait and see the others.
- District 4 is pretty much California.
- Does anybody think that lower-numbered Districts would be closer to the Capitol, with the Districts numbers getting higher the further you get, up to 11, 12, and 13 the furthest out (east)? Otherwise, what would the reason for numbering the Districts the way they are be?
- C'mon, you know it will.
- The entire movie can only be Oscar Bait or a shitshow, really.
- Songs nominated for the Academy Awards must be written for the film. I'm not sure if using pre-existing lyrics and setting them to a new melody counts. There'll be an Oscar Bait song anyway, though.
- Jossed. Rue's Lullaby will be in the film (break our hearts, Jennifer!), but not the official soundtrack. It does have an Award-Bait Song performed by Taylor Swift seen here. Since Whitney's dead and Celine's largely retired, Taylor will probably be the go-to girl for Award Bait Songs. It would be nice to see her win something without some jackass ruining everything.
- Look at him compared to the other residents: he's calm, quiet, down to earth, and seems to lack their accent. My guess is he was made to live in the Capitol after his talent with fashion came out; and chances are, he’s not the only one. Given what we know about them, it’s not so hard to believe the Capitol wouldn’t have a problem removing someone from their home and forcing them to adapt to their lifestyle so it can make use of that person's abilities.
- Cinna is described as olive skinned and cropped dark hair, and has an amazing ability with electronics (he stated he and his designing partner created the Ember effect etc), I assumed he came from where Nuts and Volts did (District 3, I think)
- District 8 (Textiles) perhaps? Does any one remember what the District 8 tributes looked like?
- I don't think they ever say, but yeah, I think 8 is a strong possibility.
- Paylor was from district 8 and was black. However, on the Hunger Games wiki most of the victors from 8 are fair-skinned, so according to the ethnic division theory it's possible but not fully supported. Also, district 8 was one of the most rebellious districts - I believe they were the first or among the first to revolt in the second rebellion, and it's highly possible the underground resistance group that orchestrated the rebel plot in Catching Fire originated there if not 13. All this supports why Cinna would be the only (shown) anti-Snow Capitol resident until the revelations at the start of Mockingjay.
- However, Cinna's name is of Graeco-Roman origin, like those of Capitol and District 2 residents.
- He could have changed his name after moving to the Capitol so he could fit in better.
- In the movie he's played by Lenny Kravitz, who is mixed race. So at least Film!Cinna could be the result of a Capitol resident's visit to a District 11 Tribute turned Sex Slave (in the film both Thresh and Rue are black instead of Ambiguously Brown) who was possibly kept around as a curiosity.
- Thresh and Rue were black in the books too as well, though, weren't they? I feel like Suzanne Collins said as much in an interview or something.
- They were called "dark skinned" in the books, and indeed, after the whole racist twitter debacle, Collins has stated that this definitely meant "black". The tweeters probably read around it, or took it to mean "well-tanned."
- My guess would be that he was either an immigrant from District 3 who made enough of an impression on a higher-up from the Capitol to be transferred over to work for him and changed his name to fit in, or his parents consisted of a Capitol parent and an outer district parent, either through the Capitol one falling in love while on a trip and taking the child (either by force, law, or after the death of the poorer parent) or had the child with a sex slave and brought it back to raise as their own.
- He's fairly ordinary-looking compared to other Capitol residents, for starters. Then there's the fact that his favoritism towards District 12 was ultimately what got him killed. In the movie, he makes the rule change to allow two tributes from the same district to win in response to Haymitch's request, and is later seen defending it to President Snow. Why would he make such a significant change in the rules if he wasn't benefiting from it in some way? Because he's doing it for his home district. It's also possible that he and Haymitch have known each other for longer than the movie (or book) lets on. Think about it: It wouldn't be too far-fetched for a child born in District 12 to try and run away, especially if the child was orphaned or abused, both of which are likely in such a desolate district. The boy flees to the Capitol before his first Reaping (that way he wouldn't be registered in the district), changes his name to Seneca Crane, and goes about making a name for himself. Many years later, Haymitch gets involved with the Games, recognizes Seneca, and is able to procure favors either because of some old friendship or by threatening to reveal Seneca's birthplace.
- Katniss is self-centered, and could easily have an affair.
- She doesn't really blame Gale for Prim's death, and after time passes she may come to terms with what he did.
- She never really resolved her feelings for Gale, and she certainly still has feelings for him.
- She does however say that because she couldn't be sure if Coin or Snow ordered the bombing, Gale would forever be linked in her mind with Prim's death. Although she may choose to forgive him, she's never going to forget that fact.
- Plus, when she hears that Gale is in district 2 and won't return to 12; "I dig around inside myself, trying to register anger, hatred, longing. I find only relief". She's definitely done with him. Throughout the whole books I thought that she never ever loved Gale, she's always seen him as a friend, an ally, and everything romantic is initiated by him.
- She does however say that because she couldn't be sure if Coin or Snow ordered the bombing, Gale would forever be linked in her mind with Prim's death. Although she may choose to forgive him, she's never going to forget that fact.
- CONFIRMED!
- The film will likely have mostly implied violence in order to secure the age rating that will maximise the audience capabilities. For example, Rue's death, either the spear will come out or there won't be any blood.
- Or they'll keep the violence and take out all the nudity. Extreme violence is okay but not nudity.
- CONFIRMED.
- While she doesn't outright say there's a second dress, Katniss does notice that the wedding dress is way heavier than she remembered. As for the fire she wears, there are fireworks (usually meant for indoors) which burn at a cold enough temperature to at least put a hand through without fear.
Taken all in all, the Hunger Games were just radical enough, perhaps, to serve as entertainment for a bored deity or an immensely powerful extraterrestrial with no concept of human morality - but of course, plans of that magnitude would have to include provisions for their eventual conclusion. That being picked Cinna, the innocuous clothing designer, as a persona for the last, most important, and most exciting event of the plan; the entire series is simply one big, all-encompassing Hunger Games, and Cinna is its Gamemaker.
- Maybe Cinna (or, frankly, Snow) is actually Q, still bent on screwing with humanity.
- Superior technology, knowing the future, and stuff that's Bigger on the Inside? It's obvious that Cinna is the Doctor. Therefore, given how he's not trying to fix the problems with Panem personally, the ending of Mockingjay is a fixed point in time.
- I'm pretty certain that the books say that Mrs Everdeen came from the merchant class, and that in marrying Katniss's father, married beneath herself. So that's where Prim's genes came from.
- But Prim's father would still need to have the genes for blond hair in order for his daughter to have that hair color. So either he had merchant blood in him too or Mr. Mellark actually did get the daughter Peeta says he wanted...
- I'm pretty certain that the books say that Mrs Everdeen came from the merchant class, and that in marrying Katniss's father, married beneath herself. So that's where Prim's genes came from.
- You, sir or madam, win the Internet.
- Peeta: Oh my God, they killed Cato!Katniss: You bastards!
- District 3 is Japan and maybe China, to go with the theories of Asian and Nerdy on the main page.
- District 4 is the refugees of Ireland — look at their names, and the unintelligible patois Mags speaks — Gaelic, perhaps?
- District 7 is Canada.
- District 10 is Mexico
- District 11 is the remnants of all the African nations, put together into the South because Panem didn't mind history repeating itself.
- Wouldn't Africa be District 9? (Har-har)
- District 12, whose residents are olive-skinned with dark hair, is the remnant of the Arab nations, and possibly Israel as well. Panem's aristocracy blames the Middle East wars for the disaster, and so punishes them with the poorest district and the deadliest job.
- Shame the film casting doesn't bear this idea out.
- How would you explain the blondes in district twelve then? They are probably just the surviving North American population, The olive skinned seam residents could have been olive skinned before the catastrophe, or their skin darkened due to being in a warmer climate than their ancestors lived in.
- The descendants of blonde Jews from Israel?
- I was thinking Italian because from southern Italy a lot of people have olive skin and dark hair, but in northern Italy, a lot of people have blonde hair and blue eyes.
- ...Maybe they're Celts who didn't make it to D4? Seriously you thought all Celts are red-headed? Actually, quite many of 'em are slightly dark-skinned brunets (so-called Black Irish), perfectly matching the description of D12's inhabitants.
- While this is all very interesting, it's HIGHLY unlikely. It would be too hard to keep everyone under thumb when they're that spread out from each other. Even under the watchful eye of the capital, revolt would be too hard to keep control over.
- So when does each district give up on the Tributes idea and instead build and battle giant themed robots a la Robot Jox or Mobile Fighter G Gundam''?
- And the characters: the main heroine (a no-nonsense tough woman who appears almost emotionless) is struggling to save her sister, failing this task (Serah is crystallized, though gets better until Final Fantasy XIII-2, that is, while Prim is killed off for good. The black-haired tanned hunter who always has a snidy remark and is fiercely protective of his/her loved ones (and remember that in early stages of development, Fang was male!). The fan-favourite male characters (Finnick and Cid Raines) who help the main characters and both die in the finale of the story And both casts have a character named Snow (one as first name, one as surname).
- And Final Fantasy XIII-2: this time, the hunter character (Noel) is male and still resembles Gale, while the main heroine wields a bow (and her motives also have to do with her sister, though this time, the protagonist's the younger one), and is still engaged to Snow, while he barely has any screen-time in the game (and Peeta is Brainwashed and Crazy for the greater part of Mockingjay. And at the end of XIII-2, the younger sister still dies
- I don't think so. Cato focused and obsessed on Katniss for one of two reasons: 1- He felt threatened: Here's a girl from an underlying district which had only had 2 victors in the 74 years of the Games, who outshoned him in both the interview and the opening ceremonies, has a drive and determination to win for her sister, and then gets a score of 11! He barely knows her and what her fighting style is, and that puts him at a disavantage. In short, he saw her as the only true competition he had and wanted to take her out as early on in the Games as possible. Or 2- He falls in love with Katniss. Maybe not love, but is attracted enough to her to cause him to obsess about her. Having been raised with the sole goal of participating in the Games, he's been brainwashed into being a killing machine, and is unable to deal with the emotions Katniss is stirring in him. It makes him nuts, and the only way he knows to deal with it is to kill. And so he focuses on her.
- I thought it was implied that Haymitch drinks whatever booze he can get his hands on. It probably was vodka on the train, but I think he'll drink anything just as long as it gives him a buzz.
- His drinks are normally described as being white in colour. Unless in the future they sell White Russians in bottles, it's unlikely to be vodka he drinks.
- Considering the region he is from I would assume his usual drink is actually White Dog. White Dog is Bourbon before it is aged and is usually clear to a translucent white in color.
- Clearly y'all stick too close to the straight and narrow to have ever seen moonshine. I have this theory: Ripper will ferment whatever is available. And Haymitch is dumb enough to drink it.
Also, Castor, Pollux and Lavinia might be from the same class. I don't think it's ever explicitly stated where any of them are from, but Katniss says Lavinia has the "Capitol look" and I can't think of any other reason whatever Pollux did to become an Avox would lead him to become an Avox instead of being executed and none of them seem to fit into Capitol stereotypes.
- Maybe President Snow is a bastard from the North?
- Also, in The Movie, part of the reason the fire the Gamemakers used to corral Katniss is set off is because she was too close to the edge of the arena, so maybe they at least have less drastic versions of this that don't completely destroy the arena.
- Only because the publicity machine had been cranking for months and had just shifted into total-saturation high gear, has nobody called it too soon.
- Unlikely, as the only similarity between the movie and the Trayvon Martin case are that both involve the death of minors. The Neighborhood Watch movie, which was considerably more topical to the case, was only renamed, not shelved.
- The resemblance in the movie is uncanny.
- ... and cracks up laughing about seeing "KatPee" and "Peeniss" all over the internet...
- On the flip-flop, "Everlark" is really quite beautiful.
- "Patniss" doesn't sound too bad either. Not too sure about "Keeta" though.
- I saw one person on Facebook who called it 'Toast' , you know, coz the boy with the bread plus the girl on fire equals toast.
- The whole world itself is a Randian paradise where the teaming masses are ruled over by an inherently superior elite, whose primary form of transportation outside of their capitol is a super-efficient high-speed train system.
- Additionally, most of the people living in The Capitol appear to be the long-term products of a system that encourages people to view others only in terms of how they are of use to them personally and to view altruism and self-sacrifice as deviant behavior.
- There has to be a way to get Rapture into this WMG
- Considering that the Gamemakers control everything on their computers (at least in the movie) it would be easier to have everything directly broadcast into the Tribute's brains and over television, instead of wasting resources building a new arena each time. The tubes the tributes go into are actually sensory chambers that make them see and feel everything in the arena, and kill them if needed. This explains why most every winner heals completely, dogs pop out of the ground, and wounds can shrink to nothing from simple creams. It would also make the muttations a hell of a lot easier to do, and why Katniss's hallucinations are so perfectly tailored to her worst fears- the Gamemakers designed them.
- What about Chaff's hand and Peeta's leg? And Katniss had a history of really specifically frightening nightmares and since tracker jacker venom was described as being able to drive people mad, maybe there's something in it that targets fears anyway because they were genetically engineered to be weapons. That's not even mentioning how impossible the escape from the arena in Catching Fire would be if this were true. Also, how would you explain why the gamemakers would need to use fire to get Katniss away from the edge in The Movie (Suzanne Collins was involved with writing the screenplay) or how Haymitch used the barrier to win his games? If it were a Matrix-style machine, they could just create more arena.
- Deserted arenas are used as tourist attractions for Capitol citizens. While this may be a lie, I think it's safe to assume that arenas actually do exist.
- It works for the movie, maybe even makes more sense for the movie, but doesn't work for the books.
- On the plus side, it could make for a good "Cinna is actually Morpheus trying to unplug Katniss so she can become Trinity" plot.
- We know that it causes massive hallucinations and that Peeta's perception of reality is distorted beyond complete repair after being hijacked. Even though Katniss is only stung by four tracker jackers or so, there's no saying if maybe the entire story from the incident on is just a dream she has during her black-out.
- I would argue that Katniss dies from a combination of tracker jacker venom and exposure. Everything that follows (including the second and third books) is 100% halucination cooked up by her mind. That's why the seventy fifth Hunger Games pulled only victors, because Katniss knew them from "watching" the games. It also helps explain Prim's inexplicable death and the "Seventy Sixth Hunger Games" (weaponized residential areas?). She dies, Peeta dies of blood poisoning. Life in Panem continues to suck.
- So Tracker Jackers are Space Wasps?
I'm going out on a limb here a bit, but it's WMG, it's allowed. The "Kingdom" that got destroyed was a secluded part of District Twelve, which was allowed to have it's little monarchy for sentimental reasons. After the Baker's wife died and he was left alone with his son, Cinderella, Little Red, and Jack, they wandered through the woods until they reached the Seam. Cinderella and Little Red went to live on their own when they got old enough, but Jack stayed with the Baker. The heartbroken Baker soon realized that he couldn't raise his young son Peeta on his own, so he married a woman with a young son of her own. She soon proved a bitter and cruel, jealous of the dead wife the Baker son clearly preferred. She took it out on Peeta, who after all wasn't her son, and doted on her own son. The brother that was too old to sacrifice himself for Peeta was Jack, and the other boy had grown up thinking being cruel to Peeta was acceptable.
- Assuming both Prim and Peeta lived that long, which is unfortunately unlikely, I think it'd be more likely for him to kill himself, no joint-suicide plan. Anyway, I doubt either of them would have made it for more than a couple days.
- You're probably right about Prim dying soon (I can't imagine Haymitch saying sober long enough to help her because she wasn't a fighter like Katniss, unless maybe she reminded him of Maysilee, but there were probably other girls from the merchant class that he mentored) but Peeta was still strong and good at camouflage. If he allied himself with the Careers he probably could have lived long enough to have one of them kill him in his sleep after they picked off the weaker tributes. Alternatively, he could have spent a good deal time at the plant identification station and gotten enough knowledge to feed himself like that (he would have stood a decent chance against the Careers in a confrontation) and, on the off chance Prim survived, find and defend/ally himself with her.
- And probably some of The Security moved to Panem and became peacekeepers.
- Hawaii
- Utah
- Arizona
- Colorado
- New Mexico
- Oklahoma
- Missouri
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Michigan
- Ohio
- Pennsylvania
- Maryland
- Delaware
- Virginia
- Washington, DC
- New York
- In the Hunger Games Adventures game, nearly all of continental US (and Canada and part of Mexico) is divided into districts. So the only possibility for this theory is Hawaii.
- Panem was stated to have been divided into 13 districts before the rebellion which resulted in the Hunger Games being imposed. That said, I think there is a lot of empty land between Districts, and there could perhaps be some people living in some of the remoter places who have managed to escape the Capitol's notice.
- Almost a given, IMO! Consider who else was reaped or in the 75th Games — this wasn't some by-the-seat-of-our-pants shindig. Beetee, Finnick and Annie were both reaped (Mags volunteered in Annie's place), Johanna, Cecelia, Chaff, and Haymitch got pulled, with Peeta volunteering for him. Considering this it's possible to probable that Snow knew something was afoot. What better way to stomp out a rebellion than get rid of its leaders in one fell swoop?
- No "almost" about it. The least belieavable part of this series is that the Capitol lasted as long as it did. Seventy-five years of government-mandated child slaughter? This would have happened decades sooner. Or maybe this is just the story of the one that worked and all the failed ones just got sent down the memory hole...
- All the mutts would more likeley be genetically engineered by Lex Luthor, and the different districts could have been so isolated by a failed attempt at Braniac bottleing the cities. And if so The capitol is probably Metropolis, Lex would have been the first president perhaps directly stemming from when he was president of the U.S.A. and the hunger games would have initially been an attempt at training new super villans through H.I.V.E. However this failed by the time the current Super-villans died of old age, leaving normall villans in control and the hunger games in place as a matter of tradition. pehaps the death trap designs were adapted from the creations of The Joker or The Riddler but they wouldnt have come directly from either as they would both Retire/kill themselves once Batman was defeated.
As for the timing, between the end of Catching Fire and the rest of the revolution, there's a very high bodycount. Perhaps not a huge amount of souls in the absolute sense, but certainly a relatively intense surge of the dead, enough to cause the flower incident, especially considering the underlying reasons. If Komachi's lazy about the already forgiving trickle of souls coming from such a small human population, an entire district and war's worth at once would flood her inbox without a doubt.
- Jossed by later games which reveal a contemporary setting, such as Touhou Shinpiroku ~ Urban Legend in Limbo. That being said, it's still possible for the series to take place in Touhou's far future, since the setting of the Hifuu stories implies things are headed toward being a Crapsack World, setting up the wars and disasters which led to The Hunger Game's After the End setting.
- On the main page under Meaningful Name, it's explained that "Katniss" is another name for a plant called Arrowhead. In the first book, Katniss explains that her parents specificially named her after the plant, which grew near the area where they lived. If she knows the common name for the Katniss plant, she may well have chosen to be Archer for that reason.
- The Capitol is said to be somewhere in the Rocky Mountains. Also, in order to have such an advanced level of technology available, it would make sense that they would have originated from somewhere that was largely spared from the Cataclysms that plagued that destroyed most of our world. Since Cheyenne mountain meets both criteria. It would be a good place for the Capitol to emerge from.
When whatever happened first started to happen, the NORAD personnel, probably following standard protocol for a nuclear attack, brought their dependents and even perhaps a few local civilians, and experts in important sciences and technology inside the base and rode out the disaster. Once things stabilized the went out into the outside world and sought the help rebuild and restore order over the wasteland through military conquest. Thus was born the nation of Panem. With conquered areas and people forming the Districts.
- Panem rules North America while the Vatican and Methuselahs fight over Europe/Middle East/North Africa. In the latter conflict Panem is officially neutral. The lack of organized religion on Panem might be the result of an agreement with the Vatican to stay out of North America out of respect for the Capitol's sphere of influence and to respect its neutrality. Besides, the lack of reliable transportation technology and the need for the Methuselahs to protect themselves from the sun over such distances, means they would have trouble exerting influence on the other side of the Atlantic anyway.
- Because everything needs this as a WMG. SO here we go: In an attempt to breed a better class of Space Marine, the Imperium created an imitation world of Holy Terra, designed to be a massive ferral world. Everything is trying to kill you, from the government to the animals in the wild. However, this world was cut off from the Imperium by the Tyranid hivefleet. But why didn't the Hunger Games world get overrun? Necron Tomb. It's been stated that the Tyranids are afraid of the Necrons, and somewhere on the Hunger Games world, there exists a MASSIVE Necron tomb. So while the Tyranids wiped out every system around that world, Panem grew without influence from Holy Terra or the God Emperor. Centuries after its establishment, their bloodthirsty nature got the better of them, leading to the revolt of District 13 and the establishment of the Hunger Games.
- This may not be accurate as the members of the Imperium speak in a British-like accent, unlike most of the citizens of Panem. Since Chaos gods exist in the 40k universe, wouldn't some people be psykers and/or corrupted by Chaos?
- This WMG makes this Troper wonder if this is the past of Brin's The Postman as well, since that's the reason given for lack of aircraft or highly advanced tech in that world.
- Or, possibly, he was a once-efficient dictator whose judgement is starting to fail due to age and illness. Nobody dares comment on Snow's decline because they could get their heads chopped off. This could explain why the Games system lasted for decades but started to come apart in Katniss's time.
Like Stalin and Lysenko, he seriously believes that acquired characteristics can be passed on genetically. So by conditioning people to fear him, he expects their offspring to be born genetically easier for him to intimidate. This is why actions that, to us, merely look like gratuitous moustache-twirling villainy guaranteed to cause an uprising... actually make sense to him as a practical longterm investment.
- The people in Divergent III seem to be Lamarkians — they somehow thought that creating the factions would stress out the system and cause the Divergents to evolve.
The world outside of Panem, across the oceans, isn't nearly as bleak as the Capitol's propaganda machine has people believing - in fact, it's modern and very comfortable for its several nations and their numerous inhabitants. The two civilizations are segregated by their defense measures - the Strangereal nations don't care to trigger Panem's nuclear option over a single continent in the middle of nowhere with minimal useful resources, and the only ocean-crossing military power Panem has is low-altitude bombers and big, lumbering hovercraft. You know, the kind of things that, say, Garuda flight would tear apart for breakfast.
He's very enlightened, and we need one of these.
The first book is a true account of Katniss and Peta's involvement in the games. The second book is true up to when the game begins, at which point Katniss starts mixing in fantasy elements because she can't face the truth - that Peta was killed and she went on to win by cutting down the other contestants. The third book is pure wish-fulfilment revenge and rescue fantasy, written while Katniss sits alone in the Victor's Village, her life now completely controlled by President Snow and his goons.
Alternatively there's the even darker version. All the above is true, with the added fact that Katniss killed Peta herself in their second games.
- Did you even read Mockingjay? Katniss doesn't end up as the "heroic, beautiful symbol of the revolution." She ends up as the "deeply traumatized figurehead of the revolution with ugly skin grafts covering up her horrible burn scars." If the third book is Katniss' attempt to lie to herself to make herself feel better, she would give herself a much happier ending. One where she isn't a burnt out shell of her former self and, more importantly, where Prim doesn't die.
A combination of the above WMG about the memory book and all of the Headscratchers about how positive Peeta is portrayed. In "reality" Katniss is nothing more but a crazy lady living under an extended, life-long house arrest with her equally crazy husband for killing the President of District 13 and the political leader of the rebellion. Some might even remember her as a cold-blooded killer who survived two Hunger Games and was all too willing to keep killing for the rebellion. Katniss wanted someone to remember her and Peeta in a more positive light, so she started writing a journal - except this "journal" twisted nearly everything; the Careers from the 74th Games and Snow were almost irrevocably evil, Coin showed her true colors to be no better, Peeta was the victim of PTSD and torture, Rue and Prim were just innocent helpless youths caught up in the violence, Haymitch was just understood in the end, Cinna and the rest of the prep team were infallibly good despite being Capitol citizens, etc.
She guessed that Thresh was nearby and decided to provoke him by saying all those taunting things about poor little Rue whilst trying to kill Katniss; after all, she's hardly portrayed as a stupid character, and the amount of time she spends just gloating rather than getting on with the kill could be a sign of something other than arrogance. Maybe she genuinely wanted Thresh to hear and attack her.
My guess is that she saw Cato and Glimmer snuggling up in the movie and was heartbroken due to her own feelings for Cato; when Glimmer died, she still felt resentful of her and realised, in her resentment and jealousy of the dead, what a terrible person she was, and how terrible the games were. At that point, she lost the will to live...but changed her mind at the last moment, crying out for Cato as Thresh attacked.
She's pretty young; it's likely that she'd be immature enough to make such a decision without really thinking about it, especially under the pressure the Games put all the kids under.Alternatively...
Of course, she could have just left Katniss to survive and preserved both of their lives...but that's not as dignified as a Heroic Sacrifice, and she comes across as pretty arrogant. She still had an image to maintain, after all.
- It's possible Clove wanted to die on her own terms, wanted Katniss to kill her, just end it and be quick about it (I mean, some of the Tributes go in the worst ways... Glimmer and Clove to name two), and hadn't counted on Thresh being there. Like Peeta, she may have wanted to die as herself. It may have had nothing to do with Katniss or Cato, and why she called out was because she really didn't want to die the slow and painful way of being smashed to death. She may have been trying to provoke Katniss into killing her, while still looking the part of a Tribute.
She's a twentysomething, Deadpan Snarker Action Girl who develops a vitriolic friendship with the main character. Described in Mockingjay as being "a sick greenish color."
- Then tell me this: Why do we never hear of Cinna's brother, Poke?
- To say nothing of their sister, Wo, and cousin Hu.
Prim's true birth was paralleled by the death of Katniss's father. With his loss, Katniss did not lose one parent but two. Her mother retreated from the material world and from her responsibilities. Friends were rare in Districts, it was easy for citizens to betray one another because food was always scarce; people could only trust those whom they had strong bonds, with blood being one of the least conditional. Unfortunately, for young Katniss her mother unintentionally switched the roles with her daughter. Katniss was now the caretaker, a child tasked with feeding a full grown adult in ruthless world. So she invented a sister to ease her mindset into her new role. Prim was simple, she needed to be fed and loved; she allowed Katniss to feed her mother without thinking of the complex emotions she was facing or secret hatred Katniss held for being forced to grow up. Mrs. Everdeen never denied Prim's existence, it was easier to agree than argue, and she was barely in touch with reality to begin with.
The lottery never picked out Prim's name. The odd's of Prim being chosen astronomically low but Katniss's wasn't so lucky. As the announcer called out her name, a sea of emotions flowed through Katniss. She was scared, scared of dying, scared of killing, terrified that her life would change forever. So like how mother dealt with depression, Katniss retreated into her own mind; she made herself volunteer, she was a hero because she saved her sister from certain death, she was powerful and not afraid.
Prim's existence saved Katniss's life because she gave her purpose. Katniss could not kill to save her own life, her life was brimmed with tragedy and anger. She couldn't kill for mother, for she had abandoned her child when Katniss needed her. But Prim was a constant, a fairy tale of her own creation, as long as Katniss could go to Prim, she would survive. Not killing Peeta could be seen as Character Development, as he proved that real people could be trusted and selfless. It's why Katniss put her life on the line, in spite of dying meant never seeing Prim again.
With her faith in real people restored, Katniss started thinking of thoughts outside of survival. She saw people wanted to rebel and saw her refusal to follow the code of the Hunger Games as a symbol to lead them. So she started a revolution, but that did not mean she abandoned her illusions. Prim was still Katniss's sanctuary and Katniss was going need her now more than ever for the acts of war the revolution would commit.
Prim's non-existence is further proven by the Revolution's determination to save Peeta. They thought he was Katniss's motivation to survive because he existed to them and was the one person in their reality that to whom Katniss showed affection. They never thought of Prim because Prim was solely Katniss's creation for only her to love.
Prim's death was caused by the loss of Katniss's sense of purpose. By caring for real people, Katniss lost her impenetrable armor as feelings like sympathy and empathy returned to her and were turned against her. When children were killed in the bombing, Katniss's mind snapped. She was no longer a care taker, she was a murderer. Someone as a pure and beautiful as Prim could not exist with someone so evil. So she died and a part of Katniss died with her. It's why she got away with being mentally unstable, because she always was. Dr. Aurelius knew it would be eaiser for Katniss to live with this then try to convince her otherwise. So Katniss lived the rest of her life mourning the death of a girl that never lived.
- In-universe there are people outside the Everdeen family acknowleding Prim's existance - Peeta's dad saying he would not let her starve, and Johanna talking about how the whole country loves Prim, and how there will be riots even in the Capitol (movie quote) if Snow's government kills her. The revolution didn't need to save Prim when they went to save Peeta, because at that point in the story she already had been accounted for.
Came up with this to amuse myself mostly.
- Glad I'm not the only person to have this theory. As an extension to this, the apes were driven out of the USA in the war foreshadowed at the end of Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. Apes dominate everything north and south of Panem.
...And then came out a small (at first) far-right political party, essentially willing to orchestrate an American remake of the British "Reclamation". Their program was quite similar to Norsefire... except for one lil' thing: they wanted to cosplay Romans rather than Nazis (y'know, 'cos a big country like the US would need to take an example of another big, brutal, epic Empire — but Nazis were way too overdone). The rest of their rhetoric was roughly similar ("The democrats drove our country into crap, we've lost international influence and respect", blah-blah-blah, "Our economy is crippling 'cause of thousands of lazybone immigrants that prefer welfare to getting a job, and those demotwits do nothing but chat about it on live TV", blah-blah-blah, "Are we tired of being openly mocked and insulted by everyone? (YEEEAAAH!!!) So let's show 'em we're capable to recover and come back more powerful!").
They gathered power quickly, promising the country to return to its highest glory (possibly even secretly backed by Norsefire at some point, after all they're not so different). Progressively they gained more votes and more states to support them, more seats in the Congress. And finally there came a day that after that election there could remain only one party — most likely, of the two, as this party would've assimilated all of the closest far-right, semi-fascist parties, and the leftists gathered round all the socialist or liberal-leaning parties in kinda "#Alliance 4 Democracy". The rest became completely minor and negligible by then.
So there was an election and the two alliances got approximately equal percentage of votes (the other parties, as mentioned before, didn't matter). There was the re-election to be arranged to decide which of the two gets into office. But... suddenly, a few days (or hell, even hours) before the second round, some kind of... a terrible horrible bad thing happens (a terrorist attack, a shootout, a mass fighting/riot with a few dozens of corpses...) and yes you got it right, our far-right party blames it on their opponents. The election ends with far-rights getting a majority — even a slightest one would do, let alone landslide...
And the first thing they do is to ban all the other parties from parliament. Their opponents, definitely not amused by this, start war against them. Police, military, and other force organizations divide between the two (those rooting for the far-rights would later become Peacekeepers, whereas those who've chosen to side with democrats eventually defect to District 13). They rename the country to Panem (1. Panem is Latin for "bread" — see Bread and Circuses, and 2. Panem = Pan Am = Pan-American, likely in the process they have taken control not only over US, but some parts of Canada and Mexico as well).
They reorganize the country's administrative division (13 provinces are easier to govern than 50, especially with your population significantly shortened by the war, diseases, famine and migration). Then they relocate the capital city (Washington is too damn close for all those enemies of our glorious nation based in <del>Quebec and likely New England</del> District 13, right?).
Finally, when our "putting on Rome" party gets a sort-of-win over the democratic alliance (or rather a peace treaty between them), they remember one more great thing from Rome: gladiator fights. Well, they decide, first it will provide the main amusement of the year, and second, it's a nice way to bully the districts so that they would obey (and if there are gonna be riots... there are gonna be Peacekeepers). And here comes a new "vicious and voracious violation of volition" named Panem — as it is.
P.S. At one moment, a thought glimpsed in my mind that some of their British counterparts from Norsefire fled to the US to join that far-right party, after their regime in the UK fell due to V's actions.
- The capitol: a rather idle group living off the surplus labor of others', clearly the Haute Bourgeoisie or the Finance Aristocracy. The lack of people 'promoting' into the capitol indicates a metaphor for a hypothetical 'advanced' capitalism, wherein all sectors have matured into being controlled by oligopolies, which crush any attempts of new entrepreneurs into reaching the top using their massive economics of scale.
- District 1: Workers who have a higher standard of living then the rest of the proletariat, by virtue of the sectors they work in, and have a better relationship with the ruling classes clearly the Labor Aristocracy.
- District 2: The Military Caste, as they provide the bulk of peacekeepers; they aren't a perfect analogue to the Prussian aristocratic officers as their status is below that of District 1 and they serve mostly as canon fodder but it comes close enough.
- District 3: Engineers and programmers, probably the 'Bourgeois specialists'.
- District 4: Fishermen, they come the closest to the Petite Bourgeois as they own their own means of production (their boats).
- Districts 5,6,7 and 8: (Electricity, transportation, wood and textiles) the Proletariat.
- District 9 and 11: (grain and agriculture) the Peasantry obviously.
- District 12: Low and poor enough to be beneath notice, clearly the Lumpenproleteriat. The fact that the protagonist comes from this place despite Marxists ussually looking down on the lumpenproleteriat suggests An Aesop towards other Dirty Commies about even degraded and degenerated elements being capable of achieving class consciousness.
- District 13: Plotting to overthrow the Capitol from the shadows, clearly the Professional Revolutionaries and the vanguard of the proletariat.
Lastly the assassination of President Coin at the end of the story symbolizes the necessity to the workers to prevent any Bonapartist elements from taking over after the establishment of the Dictatorship of the Proletariat.
Those were made for more than giving the location for the tributes, they also act as a sort of life detector for the players. Once inserted into the body, the tracker can check heart rate, or lack thereof, changes in temperature, body chemicals, etc and would notify the Gamemakers when a tribute dies.