Author Suzanne Collins on the Heavy Message of The Hunger Games

But “The Hunger Games” is much heavier than most young adult fare, and some people have complained that it is too violent for kids. But Collins, whose father served in Vietnam when she was a little girl, wants young people to think critically about the brutality of war and culture’s desensitization to violence.

“What do you think about choices your government past or present, or other governments around the world make?” Collins said in a video posted on YouTube. “What’s your relationship to reality TV versus your relationship to news? Was there anything that disturbed you because it reflected aspects of your own life, and what can you do about it?”

Collin’s views recall similar thoughts by Elizabeth Banks and Donald Sutherland, who play Effie Trinket and President Snow-

Elizabeth Banks, who plays Capitol-assigned chaperone Effie Trinket, echoed the sentiment. “There are oppressive regimes all over the world that are being toppled by young people using YouTube to start revolutions,” she said. “There is no greater connection. This book is happening right now.”
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Thankfully, here’s Donald Sutherland to put the Hunger Games potential for real world translation into relatable terms: “This has the possibility to change everything – to motivate, to catalyze, to activate, whatever revolutionary instincts there are in what is, essentially, from my point of view, a dormant generation.”
“I just hope that they see from this allegory that the future is unacceptable. But more than that, it’s unimaginable. If you look at the weather, if you look at fossil fuels, if you look at a political party that just says no only because they want to get elected – they have no concern for four years for the people… those people are our business managers!

[Meet the Woman Who Created 'The Hunger Games' via HGGirlonFire]

Category: Featured, Suzanne Collins