Mockingjay: Please tell me this is going to get better.

[alexandral]

I am through about 40% of "Mockingjay", and dear friends list, I am getting seriously annoyed. Katniss is undergoing what is probably the worst ever character development in the history of fiction.

Where is Katniss that was a strong survivor? Where? When was she replaced by this whiny clueless mess:

- "No-one is telling me anything! My life is a woooooooooe!" Me: no-one is telling her anything because she is naïve beyond any belief (to the point where her naivety has become brain-deficiency) and throws tantrums all the time?

- "EVERYONE IS EVIL! Capitol is EVIL! Rebels ARE EVIL! Everyone is evil! Even Haymitch! How dares he to try to keep me alive! Even cats are evil!". Me: I am eye-rolling so hard my eyes are in danger.

- "Everyone died because of Meeeeeeeeee! I should have died! Died!" . Me: Katniss, get a grip on yourself. Please get a grip.

- "Oh no! Look at poor me suffering so much when watching Peeta tortured on TV! I passed out! And I raged! " Me: Peeta is tortured. PEETA. How come it is all about YOU?

Leaving my "I am so annoyed at this" feelings aside and trying to be rational: the character development of Katniss is that of Sansa Stark (A Song of Ice and Fire) in reverse. Sansa starts as young and terribly naïve and grows into a survivor. Katniss starts as a survivor and disintegrates into a puddle of jelly with no brains.

Please tell me this is going to get better. As it stands now, I think Katniss is as good a role model to young girls as Bella (Twilight), just in a different way (no brains, tantrums, "me me me" attitude)! I am so horrified that this is supposed to be "a feminist book for young adults".

PS: Shall I keep listening? There are 6.5 more hours of this! Or shall I give up, find the spoilers, and move on to some better books?

Comments

[lydzi.livejournal.com]

Oh oh you hit those parts.

I think Katniss just has a meltdown since her return from the second Hunger Games. While she could manage at the beginning, she can't anymore. I know she might be annoying on some point but in the end she is just a teenager trying to manage and asking her to be a role-model, a symbol for an entire revolution might be too much. Sansa isn't a good paralell in this case. Take more Robb. Because he was the one to be asked to fulfill a new place. To enbody a huge symbol: King of the North, rebel against King's Landing. And in the end, it's too much for him too somehow. He makes a bad decision out of what might be considered as an egoist choice.

I don't really had trouble with Katniss because I could see where it was coming from. She always has been quite egoist. The only person she finally truly cares for is not even her mother but her sister Prim. Peeta is second. And then Gale. This is her direct world. Rest is not relevant and yet she has to become something she is not in order for everyone to just be free. It's gigantic. It's a very heavy responsability even more when it's unwanted. In the end, she never truly chooses anything. But she tries. She keeps telling everyone she is not fited for the role and as a matter of fact: she isn't. It's a truth everyone also in direct contact with her aknowledges.
And I do like that thematic about what is real, what isn't, and what appears. What the people wants to see is a girl in fire when really, all is left is a girl in ashes.

Yes you need to finish it ^^. Only because my only real complain about the plot is coming and I want to discuss it with you XD.

[alexandral.livejournal.com]

Oh, I meant she is Sansa in reverse, not Sansa proper. :D I like your comparison with Robb , it is quite fitting! Love it actually. but I don't like Robb (well, I don't hate him but he is such a silly boy).

I don't mind her not wanting to be some silly banner for revolution. But what I DO mind is her total "me me me" attitude, and her not noticing anyone around her. Things like her whining : "Haymitch, I hate him. Why did Haymitch rescue meeeeeeeeee? Why didn't he tell me the plans?" . I mean - SHOW A BIT OF GRATITUDE! You are alive and Peeta is alive, and you could have been dead!

It is clear that no-one is telling her any plans because she has no brains to understand? And everyone is manipulating her because she is so easy to manipulate?

Oh, and the lack of brains. It is subjective dislike, but I do dislike the "brainless girl" stereotype. i hate it much more than I hate "damsel in distress" stereotype. People, there is no evidence that girls are less brainy than boys. NO EVIDENCE AT ALL.

GRGRGRGRGR. I am so angry lydzi, I am not ever fair, I know, but at the same time - this is not a feminist book, not by a long shot, not even when I calm down. I feel as if I was looking forward to a nice chocolate in a nice wrapping and when I unwrapped it.. it was something else. I am glad now that some actress I don't particular like is playing Katniss.

[lydzi.livejournal.com]

Katniss has huge flaws that's very true ^^. She's very moody and it shows a lot more now. Somehow Peeta had a very good influence on her in this part. Even if she doesn't aknowledge or say it, she replicates a tiny bit her behaviour/decisions on his. That's why what comes has such impact (you must not be very far from it now).

Oh Katniss was never bright to begin with. She's ressourceful but intelligence actually goes to Prim and, with some extension to Gale (even if he is so abrasive and violent you don't see it right away).

It's important to also take in account that everything we see is through Katniss's eyes. She's not very tender with herself. If she is also so violent towards Haymitch it's also because he is a lot like her. And that's probably why Peeta is also so idealized ( I've seen people call him boring and too perfect when really it's only because we see him through her filter) and Prim appears like an angel.
But I can understand your frustration with those books. When I read them I was actually being negative at first because of the all comparison with Battle Royale (doesn't help that I read the book Battle Royale and it's fantastic) but then, I really fancy the overall thematic of those books. Sometimes it's easy in the plot (too easy) but the all direction of the thematics isn't. But since you have been approaching the books with words attached to them, the disappointment... well... it's comprehensive ^^'.

I don't think you will like the ending now :/.

[alexandral.livejournal.com]

Oh, don't remind me about Battle Royale! :D I thought that the first book of HG was way WAY better , both in the character development and in the world building sense, and now I suspect that the credit here should go to "Battle Royale" and other books Collins took the ideas from. Both second and third books of HG (the books where Collins moves away from the ideas she has taken from other books and tries to write her own stuff) are so so much weaker than the first.

yes, sometimes it is really "the worst" when you have big expectations. I have seen "hunger Games" being called a feminist book too many times!

[lydzi.livejournal.com]

Totally agreeing with you on this. Obviously the first book is the best, I think so too.

Well I really like Katniss. But then again you know how weak I can be with a girl and a crossbow :p.

[alexandral.livejournal.com]

Take me right, i don't dislike Katniss. And crossbows ? OH YES! I have gulped all up-to-date episodes of "The walking Dead" season 2 (thanks goes to you here, with your picture of older Rickon :D) - AND OH MY.

You see, I have "on principle" disagreement with "hunger Games", and when I have one of those, no amount of crossbows can distract me, I am idealistic like that. :D I am really REALLY unhappy that one single young female character that most definitely had a potential to be non-stereotypical, non-cliche and feminist was "spoiled" at the end. For me, the cluelesness (oh, teenage girls are so naive!) and self-engrossment (oh, teenage girls are like this!) and weepiness/tantrums (teenage girls are like this!) are terrible stereotypes that often are applied to teenage girls. And I object here. STRONGLY.