Skip to main content

More unpopular thoughts about The Hunger Games

I am in the middle of Mockingjay so if you’ve already read it, PLEASE don’t spoil it for me. But for what it’s worth, here is a thought that came to me yesterday:

In The Hunger Games (book one), Peeta doesn’t actually know that much about Katniss because he never spoke to her much before the games, yet he said he’s in love with her. That’s not really love.

I know, all you bleeding romantics will be complaining. But it’s true. How can you love someone when you don’t know them? That’s not love, that’s attraction. Or infatuation, which starts going into stalker category. (Yes, I know Peeta’s not a stalker.)

Infatuation doesn’t live long in the real world when you realize how different the two of you are, or when you see him pick his nose while farting.

Infatuation can grow into love, but I don’t think someone should say they love you if they hardly KNOW you. If someone says they love you, it should mean they know you, your good side AND your faults, and they love you anyway. That’s the kind of love Jesus modeled for us.

I’ve just got to the point where they discover Peeta is … ahem, sick.
Labels:

Comments

Anonymous said…
I will give Peeta props for proving his words with actions. He certainly showed a sacrificial love throughout the books. Not that I'm comparing him to Jesus. I'm not a big fan of allegories that ascribed Christ-like virtues to the hero/heroine. I especially don't like when Christian media tries to make a secular book "Christian." Okay, I'm done with that random rant.
Back to your post, I'm also annoyed with characters become engaged and they have never been on a date. There are some Christian novels that are guilty of that.
Wed May 16, 10:22:00 AM 2012
Heather Day Gilbert said…
I agree w/the comment above. I've had some serious issues w/Christian bloggers/writers trying to prove that The Hunger Games has loads of Christian symbolism. I'm sure Collins had no intent to use that kind of symbolism--in fact, her worldview seems pretty bleak overall. That said, some of the greatest themes in books generally relate back to Christianity, because that's what Christianity is all about--realistic struggles/relationships on earth, with the hope of heaven.

I know what you mean about the Peeta/Katniss relationship (throw Gale in there, too). To me, it was very similar to the Bella/Jacob/Edward triangle. Triangles are popular. But in the end, a choice has to be made. In the case of The Hunger Games, I think Katniss made the right choice, based on the info we're given on the main dudes.
Wed May 16, 12:51:00 PM 2012
Camy Tang said…
Hey that's a good point! I know it's "wartime" and all but they entered into that engagement without a whole lot of angst over the fact they'd be MARRIED.
Wed May 16, 04:27:00 PM 2012
Camy Tang said…
I don't understand why teen girls love those love triangles. It's actually quite hurtful for at least one of the parties involved and who likes causing or feeling pain??? My husband says it's their romanticism and immaturity that likes those types of triangles, whereas when you get older and have been burned enough, you realize how much it sucks.
Wed May 16, 04:28:00 PM 2012
Susan F. said…
I don't believe in love at first sight either. My husband gets all offended and says that's how he felt. I say that's baloney as we first met 6 years before he ever asked me out!
Love triangles may be attractive because a girl likes the idea that she can be flattered by 2 guys and not need to make a committment to either of them when she is really too young. Skewed romance.
Fri May 18, 08:23:00 PM 2012
Camy Tang said…
That's a good way of putting it!
Sat May 19, 04:28:00 PM 2012
Post a Comment

Popular Posts

Lavender hand lotion

Captain's Log, Stardate 11.05.2009 I have to tell you, I LOVE Etsy.com ! Etsy is dedicated to providing a marketplace for people who like to make handmade products and people who appreciate them (and buy them). It has everything from handmade gifts (like my mom’s Bucilla Christmas stockings and ornaments and tree skirts and wall hangings and … well, just click here to see what she has! ) to soaps and lotions and jewelry and knitted items and hand-painted yarn and ... I could surf that website for DAYS. Anyway, lately I’ve been concerned about the lead content in my lotions, especially since I’m using them more now that it’s turned colder and drier here in California. I have to use lotion on my hands everytime after I wash them. So I went onto Etsy and searched for organic hand lotions, and bought this lavender lotion from Lue Cosmetics . What was really nice is that the owner, Jane, sent me a direct message via Etsy right after I made the purchase to ask if I’d received it yet and ...
2 comments
Read more

Tabi socks, part deux

Captain's Log, Stardate 07.25.2008 (If you're on Ravelry, friend me! I'm camytang.) I made tabi socks again! (At the bottom of the pattern is the calculation for the toe split if you're not using the same weight yarn that I did for this pattern (fingering). I also give an example from when I used worsted weight yarn with this pattern.) I used Opal yarn, Petticoat colorway. It’s a finer yarn than my last pair of tabi socks, so I altered the pattern a bit. Okay, so here’s my first foray into giving a knitting pattern. Camy’s top-down Tabi Socks I’m assuming you already know the basics of knitting socks. If you’re a beginner, here are some great tutorials: Socks 101 How to Knit Socks The Sock Knitter’s Companion A video of turning the heel Sock Knitting Tips Yarn: I have used both fingering weight and worsted weight yarn with this pattern. You just change the number of cast on stitches according to your gauge and the circumference of your ankle. Th...
18 comments
Read more

Grace Livingston Hill romances free to read online

I wanted to update my old post on Grace Livingston Hill romances because now there are tons more options for you to be able to read her books for free online! I’m a huge Grace Livingston Hill fan. Granted, not all her books resonate with me, but there are a few that I absolutely love, like The Enchanted Barn and Crimson Roses . And the best part is that she wrote over 100 books and I haven’t yet read them all! When I have time, I like to dive into a new GLH novel. I like the fact that most of them are romances, and I especially appreciate that they all have strong Christian themes. Occasionally the Christian content is a little heavy-handed for my taste, but it’s so interesting to see what the Christian faith was like in the early part of the 20th century. These books are often Cinderella-type stories or A Little Princess (Frances Hodgson Burnett) type stories, which I love. And the best part is that they’re all set in the early 1900s, so the time period is absolutely fasci...
2 comments
Read more

I’m a Book of the Year winner!

Captain's Log, Stardate 09.22.2008 I won first place in the Debut Author category of the American Christian Fiction Writers Book of the Year awards! Here are all the winners! Debut Author Sushi for One? (Camy Tang) Zondervan, editor Sue Brower Bayou Justice (Robin Miller writing as Robin Caroll) In Between (Jenny B. Jones) Contemporary Novella Finally Home in Missouri Memories anthology (Deborah Raney) Barbour Publishing, editor Susan Downs Moonlight & Mistletoe in A Big Apple Christmas anthology (Carrie Turansky) Remaking of Moe McKenna in Race to the Altar anthology (Gloria Clover) Historical Novella Love Notes in Love Letters Anthology (Mary Davis) Barbour Publishing, editor Rebecca Germany Beyond the Memories in Missouri Memories anthology (DiAnn Mills) The Spinster & The Tycoon in The Spinster Brides of Cactus Corner anthology (Vickie McDonough) Lits Splitting Harriet (Tamara Leigh) Multnomah Books, editor Julee Schwarzb...
31 comments
Read more

Sourdough Treacle Buns recipe from Lady Wynwood's Spies

If you read my Christian Regency Romantic Suspense novel, Lady Wynwood’s Spies, volume 2: Berserker , you will have noticed that Miss Tolberton brings humble treacle buns to eat with tea at the church. Not only that, but the treacle bun appears in a surprising way in Lady Wynwood’s Spies, volume 3: Aggressor . I got the idea for treacle buns from looking through old cookbooks from the 1800s. Commercial dry yeast cakes for making breads were not available until 1825, which is 15 years after the date of my book, so most breads during the Regency period were made with sourdough starters. “Black treacle” is the same thing as molasses, and was mentioned in cookbooks published during the Regency period, but in those books, I couldn’t find a recipe for treacle bread or treacle buns or brown bread. This seemed a bit strange to me since brown bread (made with whole wheat and black treacle) has been around since before the Regency period, but I am guessing that it was such a common food, m...
Post a Comment
Read more