Mockingjay
question
Did anyone else find themselves detesting Katniss Everdeen by the end of this series?
Emma
Sep 03, 2012 06:24AM
I found her increasingly more childish, irritating and selfish. I believe I was supposed to be irritated by her but I wonder if anyone else found her so dislikeable? I found myself quite angry that she got a fairly honest and happy life after her behaviour during the uprising.
So you take a teenage girl who knows primarily hunger/starvation, a mentally/emotionally absent mother, dead father and a cruel rule at the hands of the Capitol. She's running on pure survival - keep herself alive, keep her sister & mom alive. She lives with the fear and dread of these games all her life until the one person she knows she loves - her sister - is named for the games. On impulse, she sacrifices herself in her sister's stead, knowing she will likely die.
She sees how they are pawns in this game of death. The name of the game is once again survival. Whatever it takes - knowing however, you are likely to fail. You watch others die horrendously, kill a few yourself. You have to play to the audience to increase your chances of survival. Imagine surviving all the horrors, they mind-screw you thinking you can both get out, then they change their mind. You pull a "berry" stunt and manage to live. You've been traumatized but should be able to live out your days providing food for your starving family and district. Instead, you're a threat to the powers that be and your life is still on the line, along with the lives of those you love.
Next thing you know, you're being thrown back into the horrors you survived in round one and you're going to relive all that and more. You will likely die as you're now on the president's #1 hate hit list - good luck winning favors.
She's a teenager fighting just to survive. You're an emotion wreck and being manipulated at every turn. Who to date is hardly at the top of your to do list. How do you do a relationship when all you can think is "don't die, don't die." You form bonds and have feelings for people (Rue), kisses are but stolen moments of your "teen stage" but are you really going to be let out to go live a happy life? You're in survival mode. Dream all you want, but all you've known is hunger and the struggle to live. Even before the first games, she doesn't plan on kids or dream of happily ever after.
When in district 13, it turns out the "good guys" want to use her as a pawn in their game too. And she's just as disposable if she doesn't play her role there.
What a shake to your foundation of good and bad, right and wrong. How hopeless is that? What are you fighting for? Cling to something...
In Mockingjay, Like Peeta, I think she is having a hard time herself with "real or not real". And then by the time Prim dies, all that she suffered, endured, friends dead, love used against her, all the people she cared for pay a price, the torment and loss it too much. Her personal efforts seem to be for nothing and she is a shattered shell. It was a constant struggle through trauma and stress, all the way through. Everyone around her suffers then dies. She constantly sees it's because of her, somehow.
I did want her to validate Peeta's love better. To somehow be worthy of it and amply return it. I have to keep remembering - teenager, life bordered on starvation, thrown into trauma and intense manipulation and mind games and war, all she's believed in shaken to the core. It's hard to feel romantic and touchy-feely under those terms, so I give her a little grace on this.
My biggest complaints at the end: a bit more descriptive tenderness b/n Peeta & Katniss to leave me a bit less emotionally raw at the very end, a better summarization of Gale's choice/departure - so long being best friends surely something - but I guess the war has changed them both, Finnick's death was totally unnecessary and he was quickly discarded by the author, and what about the pearl? Ending was chopped too short and everyone disposed of.
I'm feeling a little traumatized myself after taking that journey with Katniss...
She sees how they are pawns in this game of death. The name of the game is once again survival. Whatever it takes - knowing however, you are likely to fail. You watch others die horrendously, kill a few yourself. You have to play to the audience to increase your chances of survival. Imagine surviving all the horrors, they mind-screw you thinking you can both get out, then they change their mind. You pull a "berry" stunt and manage to live. You've been traumatized but should be able to live out your days providing food for your starving family and district. Instead, you're a threat to the powers that be and your life is still on the line, along with the lives of those you love.
Next thing you know, you're being thrown back into the horrors you survived in round one and you're going to relive all that and more. You will likely die as you're now on the president's #1 hate hit list - good luck winning favors.
She's a teenager fighting just to survive. You're an emotion wreck and being manipulated at every turn. Who to date is hardly at the top of your to do list. How do you do a relationship when all you can think is "don't die, don't die." You form bonds and have feelings for people (Rue), kisses are but stolen moments of your "teen stage" but are you really going to be let out to go live a happy life? You're in survival mode. Dream all you want, but all you've known is hunger and the struggle to live. Even before the first games, she doesn't plan on kids or dream of happily ever after.
When in district 13, it turns out the "good guys" want to use her as a pawn in their game too. And she's just as disposable if she doesn't play her role there.
What a shake to your foundation of good and bad, right and wrong. How hopeless is that? What are you fighting for? Cling to something...
In Mockingjay, Like Peeta, I think she is having a hard time herself with "real or not real". And then by the time Prim dies, all that she suffered, endured, friends dead, love used against her, all the people she cared for pay a price, the torment and loss it too much. Her personal efforts seem to be for nothing and she is a shattered shell. It was a constant struggle through trauma and stress, all the way through. Everyone around her suffers then dies. She constantly sees it's because of her, somehow.
I did want her to validate Peeta's love better. To somehow be worthy of it and amply return it. I have to keep remembering - teenager, life bordered on starvation, thrown into trauma and intense manipulation and mind games and war, all she's believed in shaken to the core. It's hard to feel romantic and touchy-feely under those terms, so I give her a little grace on this.
My biggest complaints at the end: a bit more descriptive tenderness b/n Peeta & Katniss to leave me a bit less emotionally raw at the very end, a better summarization of Gale's choice/departure - so long being best friends surely something - but I guess the war has changed them both, Finnick's death was totally unnecessary and he was quickly discarded by the author, and what about the pearl? Ending was chopped too short and everyone disposed of.
I'm feeling a little traumatized myself after taking that journey with Katniss...
I found her very human. She was not the kindest character nor the worst. I think her flaws and unlikability are used to serve a point. It would be easy to detest the Capitol if they were only punishing likeable angelic creatures like Prim. However, her failings allow us to see that what the Capitol does is wrong no matter who they do it to.
Much like the other victors even the horrible one's that were careers, still did not deserve to be treated the inhumane way that they were being treated.
Much like the other victors even the horrible one's that were careers, still did not deserve to be treated the inhumane way that they were being treated.
Same here. I actually didn't like her from the beginning to the end of this series.
I think people who found themselves disliking Katniss after "Mockingjay" were missing the point. She's a realistic, flawed character, not a cartoon superhero. Throughout the books, she came across as a girl who was sullen, neurotic, and naive, but also brave, ethical and witty. Sure you might have wanted to shake sense into her at times, but at others you wanted to hug her or high-five her.
It's this beautiful complexity that makes her so interesting, that makes you care about her and what happens to her.
try this experiment - make a list of what happens to our poor little Mockingjay. Start with being born into poverty, losing her father, go through having to support her crazy mother (by illegal means punishable by being avox-ed), having to go to the games twice, fight in a war, seeing her lovers both mistreated, seeing her sister die, being exploited by the very people she thought might save the world, losing her spleen - and I haven't listed everything.
Would anyone be happy-happy-joy-joy after a life like that. It's a wonder she managed to come out of her nervous breakdown at all. I love and admire her, and I don;t care who knows it :^)
It's this beautiful complexity that makes her so interesting, that makes you care about her and what happens to her.
try this experiment - make a list of what happens to our poor little Mockingjay. Start with being born into poverty, losing her father, go through having to support her crazy mother (by illegal means punishable by being avox-ed), having to go to the games twice, fight in a war, seeing her lovers both mistreated, seeing her sister die, being exploited by the very people she thought might save the world, losing her spleen - and I haven't listed everything.
Would anyone be happy-happy-joy-joy after a life like that. It's a wonder she managed to come out of her nervous breakdown at all. I love and admire her, and I don;t care who knows it :^)
I thought I was the only one who tought like that. At first I loved Katniss, at the second book I was like *meh*, but in the third book! Wow! I couldn't stand her.
I didn't dislike her, I just think Mockingjay was to big for her POV. I mean this world changing war is going on, and where are we? Hiding in the closet as a unstable 18 year old. Uh...
Katniss doesn't have a high opinion of herself. The only thing she really takes pride in is her archery skills. Haymitch doesn't help by telling her she doesn't deserve Peeta -'you could live a thousand lifetimes and not deserve him.'
She idolises Peeta for his goodness and skill with words. But she's actually no slouch in either department. She does as many kind acts as Peeta does. And although she's not good at manipulating words as Peeta (ie lying), she's very effective when it's spontaneous.
Trouble is Katniss is doing the narrating and it's easy for the reader to have the same opinion of Katniss as Katniss does herself - and it's not high.
Katniss's indecisiveness when it comes to which boy is frustrating. But then this is a situation that Katniss didn't want. It was imposed on her. So why should she 'choose' before she's ready to? Plus, she's got a lot more pressing things to think about - her survival and the survival of her loved ones, whether to appease Snow or rebel against him.
She makes the ultimate sacrifice in the end - her own life to save Panem from another tyrant.
The girl is a hero. Give her a break.
She idolises Peeta for his goodness and skill with words. But she's actually no slouch in either department. She does as many kind acts as Peeta does. And although she's not good at manipulating words as Peeta (ie lying), she's very effective when it's spontaneous.
Trouble is Katniss is doing the narrating and it's easy for the reader to have the same opinion of Katniss as Katniss does herself - and it's not high.
Katniss's indecisiveness when it comes to which boy is frustrating. But then this is a situation that Katniss didn't want. It was imposed on her. So why should she 'choose' before she's ready to? Plus, she's got a lot more pressing things to think about - her survival and the survival of her loved ones, whether to appease Snow or rebel against him.
She makes the ultimate sacrifice in the end - her own life to save Panem from another tyrant.
The girl is a hero. Give her a break.
Katniss might have changed. But it's normal, she's a human being. Not a robot. Suzanne's just being realistic as to how someone would act after undergoing those things. She didn't write Katniss as this tough girl throughout the series. Situations have changed her. Circumstances. Death. Happenings. It's normal.
She wants to present a realistic heroine. Not a superheroine. If you were to put on her shoe, I'm sure you'll be like her. Or maybe worse.
Katniss is not perfect. But she's real.
She wants to present a realistic heroine. Not a superheroine. If you were to put on her shoe, I'm sure you'll be like her. Or maybe worse.
Katniss is not perfect. But she's real.
I didn't like Katniss Everdeen from Page 1 of The Hunger Games, & disliked her more through the series... But then again I don't like any of the female hero characters in any of the dystopian/sci-fi/supernatural books... The boys on the other hand are dreamy, strong, clever, solid as a rock, patient, heartthrobs... Maybe I'm just jealous...
YES! Totally. I liked her in the first, and she was okay in the second, but in the third she was totally crazy and had a completely different attitude than the first two books, which made absolutely no sense. I liked the ending of the series, but she was hard to like for the majority of Mockingjay.
To be honest, I found Katniss grating on my nerves. The things she said, the decisions she made... And yet, I think she is one of the most remarkable characters in YA fiction. The fact that she's not perfect is what I love the most about her, even though her personality I rather dislike. And I'm proud of Collins for daring to create a character who is flawed, who does make mistakes, and unlike a lot, feels the consequences for those mistakes. She's a fantastic character. The fact that she's not soppy and fragile and perfect only makes the story that much better.
I'm happy to find this conversation. Why? I also did not warm up to the character of Katniss Everdeen and wanted to analyze why her character fell under the "too flawed" category and why first person narrative contributed to her dislike, especially with the story's end.
As others have pointed out, Katniss is much like her mother, a dysfunctional escapist. When she is not escaping her boundaries physically, she exhibits anti-social behavior and carries a low sense of worth. Her only sense of value comes from others, and in Mocking Jay, when she becomes estranged from Peeta and the others, it leaves her with questionable worth. The last chapter, written from Katniss's fragmented, drug-riddled first-person narrative, is consumed with her desire to crawl into a closet and disappear or die. Could this be why the end feels so unsatisfying?
Which brings me to the question: Does the functional-addict, characterized by escapism and dysfunctional relationships, go too far as a character flaw in someone we're supposed to look up to as a heroine? Or at least, as readers, do we not want to see the first-person narrative of this character, bearing their inadequacies of fulfilling that role?
Modern readership loves first-person narrative. But does that work against a heroine as inwardly flawed as Katniss Everdeen?
As others have pointed out, Katniss is much like her mother, a dysfunctional escapist. When she is not escaping her boundaries physically, she exhibits anti-social behavior and carries a low sense of worth. Her only sense of value comes from others, and in Mocking Jay, when she becomes estranged from Peeta and the others, it leaves her with questionable worth. The last chapter, written from Katniss's fragmented, drug-riddled first-person narrative, is consumed with her desire to crawl into a closet and disappear or die. Could this be why the end feels so unsatisfying?
Which brings me to the question: Does the functional-addict, characterized by escapism and dysfunctional relationships, go too far as a character flaw in someone we're supposed to look up to as a heroine? Or at least, as readers, do we not want to see the first-person narrative of this character, bearing their inadequacies of fulfilling that role?
Modern readership loves first-person narrative. But does that work against a heroine as inwardly flawed as Katniss Everdeen?
Maybe I shouldn't speak up here as I'm only halfway through Catching Fire, but I just can't believe how annoying Katniss has become. It's like she's an entirely different person to the completely focused, strategically- thinking Katniss from Hunger Games. I remember I was in complete awe of her after the first book, and thought we finally had a female role model who was sharp and positively kicked-ass. Then in Catching Fire she began constantly analysing the boy situation, the emphasis placed on that aspect was wayyy too much for me - even the jealous remarks supposedly made by Gale and Peeta, one would have thought they had more pressing issues on their minds considering their environment. Plus Peeta slept in the same bed as her on the train and he didn't even get an awkward hard-on? I know this is a sci-fi novel but that's really pushing the genre's boundaries! And her indecisiveness as to which one she wanted was just so lame, "I don't know how I feel" - what are you, retarded? Well, anyway - just my 2 cents!
+1
Very agree. After she voted for new Hunger games for Capitol children, she TOTALLY LOST my (even at this point very little) sympathy. I loathe her for this.
Very agree. After she voted for new Hunger games for Capitol children, she TOTALLY LOST my (even at this point very little) sympathy. I loathe her for this.
I liked her less and less because I thought she should have treated Peeta better. Everything he did was for her. Gale had his own agenda.
Emma wrote: "I found her increasingly more childish, irritating and selfish. I believe I was supposed to be irritated by her but I wonder if anyone else found her so dislikeable? I found myself quite angry tha..."
Was it a happy ending? I must have lost something in translation!
Yes, I didn't understand her way of behaving sometimes...but I always go back to all the things she has been through, how young she is, and kind of understand her. I'm sorry but I would be the same kind of crazy that she's in her situation.
The only thing that really bothers me is that going from Peeta to Gale and Peeta aaand Gale again. But i think that it's just a valid deficiency on her personality, her need to help the helpless, suffering ones or some kind of selfishness that leads her to USE those boys just to feel better herself.
Was it a happy ending? I must have lost something in translation!
Yes, I didn't understand her way of behaving sometimes...but I always go back to all the things she has been through, how young she is, and kind of understand her. I'm sorry but I would be the same kind of crazy that she's in her situation.
The only thing that really bothers me is that going from Peeta to Gale and Peeta aaand Gale again. But i think that it's just a valid deficiency on her personality, her need to help the helpless, suffering ones or some kind of selfishness that leads her to USE those boys just to feel better herself.
No Emma, I know a lot of people that don't like Katniss at the end of Mockingjay. Ms Collins really failed her character in that book. She decided her anti-war message was more important than her characters or the plot.
Was frustrated at times but I dont detest her. After all the trauma, she just wants to crawl under a rock and be left alone not have to be dragged on camera to make speeches. She was turned into a symbol. it was like she wasn't a person anymore. It goes back to what Peeta said in Book 1 that he doesnt want to lose who he is. Katniss was kinda losing herself to the cause, that she became a pawn and struggled maintaining her humanity.
I don't like her either. She was okay in book 1 when we're just starting to get to know her but after really getting know her in book 2 and 3, she's exasperating. She's just so so so passive. Most of her achievements are through other people/characters and not really her own. I doubt that she would make it through the first hunger game without Peeta. She was a Mockingjay because she was forced to be by Plutarch, Coin, circumstances. She went through the whole ordeal for Prim but we don't really see how "close" she and Prim are. Honestly I think that if not for the people around her, she would just sit in the corner and wallow. She probably wouldn't be doing anything much. It made me laughed when she said that she needed Peeta more than she needed Gale's fire because she has enough fire.....What FIRE?
I have two parts: the before reread and the after reread.
Before reread, I hated her in all the books. I finished the books (didn't even bother to read the second..I just read the wikipedia summary) only because I wanted to know what happened to Peeta.
After re-read: I guess I'm the opposite. I somewhat detested her at first, was mildly annoyed in the second and quickly climbed just below Peeta on my most favorite character in the series list.
A lot of people here already listed why I love her but that is not to say that I don't understand why people disliked her because I've also been in the boat. But I guess the more that I thought about it, the more that I read critical comments against her, the more that I've tried to put myself in Katniss' shoes... the more I realize how complex and interesting she is. And it helps that I remember her as someone always human, prone to mistakes and headdesk worthy decisions but at the same time incredibly believable.
Before reread, I hated her in all the books. I finished the books (didn't even bother to read the second..I just read the wikipedia summary) only because I wanted to know what happened to Peeta.
After re-read: I guess I'm the opposite. I somewhat detested her at first, was mildly annoyed in the second and quickly climbed just below Peeta on my most favorite character in the series list.
A lot of people here already listed why I love her but that is not to say that I don't understand why people disliked her because I've also been in the boat. But I guess the more that I thought about it, the more that I read critical comments against her, the more that I've tried to put myself in Katniss' shoes... the more I realize how complex and interesting she is. And it helps that I remember her as someone always human, prone to mistakes and headdesk worthy decisions but at the same time incredibly believable.
Emma wrote: "I found her increasingly more childish, irritating and selfish. I believe I was supposed to be irritated by her but I wonder if anyone else found her so dislikeable? I found myself quite angry that..."
I liked her in the first book. I tolerated her in the second book. Towards the end of the third book, I was wondering why so many people went out of their way to protect her. In the second movie, people continually said, "Remember who the real enemy is."
Yes, people were trying to kill her in the Hunger Games. What she didn't realize was that all of the other tributes and victors were in the same exact position. She wasn't the only one fighting for survival. She was self-righteous and didn't even realize it; probably because every one kept telling her she was special and treating her as such. ( 70+ years of the Hunger Games, and we're supposed to believe she is the first person to EVER stand up against The Capitol.)
It took almost 3 books for her to realize that everyone else was suffering. The only reason she was put in the spotlight was because Snow had a sick fascination with her.
With the exception of Tris and Ruby Daly, Katniss has to be the worst fictional heroine I've read about. At the same time, I do feel for Katniss. It takes her awhile to realize that Peeta and Haymitch may be the only ones who never used her to further some type of agenda.
Having said that, the movies and actress did an excellent job in their portrayal of her. Peeta, Haymitch, and Johanna were my favorite characters in the whole series. And Gale, IMO, was a jerk throughout the entire series that thought he was the only one who was allowed to protect Katniss, talk to Katniss, breathe the same air as she, etc. He didn't ever NOT annoy me.
I liked her in the first book. I tolerated her in the second book. Towards the end of the third book, I was wondering why so many people went out of their way to protect her. In the second movie, people continually said, "Remember who the real enemy is."
Yes, people were trying to kill her in the Hunger Games. What she didn't realize was that all of the other tributes and victors were in the same exact position. She wasn't the only one fighting for survival. She was self-righteous and didn't even realize it; probably because every one kept telling her she was special and treating her as such. ( 70+ years of the Hunger Games, and we're supposed to believe she is the first person to EVER stand up against The Capitol.)
It took almost 3 books for her to realize that everyone else was suffering. The only reason she was put in the spotlight was because Snow had a sick fascination with her.
With the exception of Tris and Ruby Daly, Katniss has to be the worst fictional heroine I've read about. At the same time, I do feel for Katniss. It takes her awhile to realize that Peeta and Haymitch may be the only ones who never used her to further some type of agenda.
Having said that, the movies and actress did an excellent job in their portrayal of her. Peeta, Haymitch, and Johanna were my favorite characters in the whole series. And Gale, IMO, was a jerk throughout the entire series that thought he was the only one who was allowed to protect Katniss, talk to Katniss, breathe the same air as she, etc. He didn't ever NOT annoy me.
I found Her very dislikable by the end of the series, many of the other characters had gone through nearly the same and even more suffering than Katniss, yet they were still decent people.
I pretty much detested her from the beginning. She's supposed to be street smart, but she falls flat and is oblivious to those around her.
I viewed her as being on the verge of a mental breakdown in the first book by her deep rooted anger at the government then as the books unfold I just saw her crumbling more and more. Kind of like holding a pile of ceramic dishes and being asked to run faster and faster without dropping them. To me she fell apart and was constantly trying to reassemble herself and just fell apart more as she did. I will say, the movies were NOT as good as the books in portraying her.
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YEAAH!!! She just felt really annoying and whiny by the end 😖 it started in catching fire and just escalated from there.
Emma wrote: "I found her increasingly more childish, irritating and selfish. I believe I was supposed to be irritated by her but I wonder if anyone else found her so dislikeable? I found myself quite angry that..."
Me! To be honest, this book was probably my LEAST FAVORITE in the whole trilogy. The ending just made me mad.
Me! To be honest, this book was probably my LEAST FAVORITE in the whole trilogy. The ending just made me mad.
Honestly, no. She was written to be that way. She wasn't supposed to be someone that was always happy and kind and all that. She needed to be strong, and able to do the ugly things. If she wasn't the way she was she may not have been able to be the mockingjay. I don't think she was written so that everyone would love her, more relate and understand her. Probably the way she was portrayed as the mockingjay. And also, to be completely honest, I think she had the right to be insufferable at times. Any victor sort of has the right to not be completely perfect. And while Peeta may not act like her or Finnick, that's their choosing and their original personalities.
Yes!!! Honestly I was re-reading the series a little while ago and during my first read (in, like, the 4th grade) I loved the series as a whole and found the ending to be meh. But when I read it a lot more recently I just felt like she was acting really childish, kind of like a bratty teen, y'know? It seemed odd that someone like that was the "face of the rebellion". It seemed unrealistic. It got to the point where I just had to put the book down because her character got really annoying to me :/
I'm pretty late, but: I read the series right before my teens, picking it up from my school library, liked it and hardly thought much about 'The Girl on Fire/The Mockingjay' from then on. But I've never resented her. Now, I find her interesting. She feels real. Gritty, and real. Not perfect. I don't worship her, and I've disagreed with her thoughts throughout the books. But I've come to grips with her mentality as the story progresses. She's cool for me...
I think that having to become the family breadwinner (and having to do it illegally at that) at such a young age probably arrested her emotional development at the age of 11. She's focused entirely on survival for so long.
Mrs. Everdeen was suffering from clinical depression. Just as Katniss had done in "Mockingjay". Neither of them were "crazy".
I like Katniss. She is not perfect. In fact, I believe that her lack of perfection is what makes her such an interesting character. I never understood this desire for fictional protagonists to be perfect or ideal.
I like Katniss. She is not perfect. In fact, I believe that her lack of perfection is what makes her such an interesting character. I never understood this desire for fictional protagonists to be perfect or ideal.
Oh thank goodness I found this. I actually reread the series recently and thought I was the only one. Katniss starts off as amazing but in Mockingjay, when she throws Peeta away after he returns tortured and hijacked, it really soured her character for me. Although, realistically I can't blame her. If someone I loved suddenly hated me and I had already lost so many people like Katniss then I would have felt something similar. But Katniss shows complete disregard for Peeta, even makes out with Gale in district 2 while Peeta is being treated. She doesn't even try to get him back before she's dumped him. This is the very reason I hate love triangles, especially when the girl keeps toggling between the boys. And the boys, do they have nothing on their mind except Katniss? It's a war! Have your romance later!
Emma wrote: "I found her increasingly more childish, irritating and selfish. I believe I was supposed to be irritated by her but I wonder if anyone else found her so dislikeable? I found myself quite angry that..."
Yes, I thought it was just me. I just finished reading the series and she is an arrogant b**ch, she's always being selfish and acts like she's the best option for Peeta and a hero. On top of that she makes impulsive decisions and her thinking is like a freaking 12 year old's. I also don't get why she didn't tell Gale she had a crush on him before the first Hunger games or even from the beginning, even though given his age he probably already knew that. I get that she's protective of her family but she acts like her family is the only thing that matters. Even when Peeta was mind-jacked I thought he was healthy and just pissed off at Katniss for starting the rebellion that literally blew up his family and friends from 12. I used to know a girl like her IRL and it annoyed me soo much remembering her as I read the books. She's certainly no Harry Potter, even at 16.
Yes, I thought it was just me. I just finished reading the series and she is an arrogant b**ch, she's always being selfish and acts like she's the best option for Peeta and a hero. On top of that she makes impulsive decisions and her thinking is like a freaking 12 year old's. I also don't get why she didn't tell Gale she had a crush on him before the first Hunger games or even from the beginning, even though given his age he probably already knew that. I get that she's protective of her family but she acts like her family is the only thing that matters. Even when Peeta was mind-jacked I thought he was healthy and just pissed off at Katniss for starting the rebellion that literally blew up his family and friends from 12. I used to know a girl like her IRL and it annoyed me soo much remembering her as I read the books. She's certainly no Harry Potter, even at 16.
So many critics. She suffers from mental instability and your telling me she wasn't supposed to come out of everything shes been through un broken. She is a strong female lead. She struggles to see her worth something that would happen to anyone thrown to your death for survival. I guess some people won't be able to relate, the way she can look at herself so critically. The one person she loved with all of Her broken heart became a torch in front of Her eyes. She slowly felt herself slipping away knowing every step she was closer to a mental breakdown.
Anyone who can claim Katniss is selfish by the end of the last book just has no idea what they're talking about. I just have a few questions for the OP and anyone who thinks that way: why was Katniss so horrified about the capitol Hunger Games and why did she decide to kill Coin instead of Snow?
I also don't see how Collins could find reading a whiny, delusional mess of a book a good finale at all. Having them all die would've been better than ruining the characters for me.
The only person she loves most in the world, her sister Prim, gets called on reaping day. She sacrifices herself, even though she knows she will likely die in Prim's place. Of course she has mental flaws, I think we all would after what happened to her: a) Her sister gets reaped b) she is forced to go to a death match c) she has MULTIPLE close calls (almost taking her life) d) she watches a 12 year old die in her lap, and there is nothing she can do e) the love of her life does't love her f) she has to go BACK to the games a second time
g) her sister dies in front of her. Yes, Katniss is a flawed character, but aren't we all?
g) her sister dies in front of her. Yes, Katniss is a flawed character, but aren't we all?
Emma wrote: "I found her increasingly more childish, irritating and selfish. I believe I was supposed to be irritated by her but I wonder if anyone else found her so dislikeable? I found myself quite angry tha..."
Same here. I'm very irritated with her especially that part that she became soooo premadonna in district 13 despite the fact that district 13 housed all her people in their base. They woudnt survive in the woods if left alone.
I just find her cool for her strategies to stay alive and for saving Peeta. We also have to give Peeta the credit for saving Katniss.
Same here. I'm very irritated with her especially that part that she became soooo premadonna in district 13 despite the fact that district 13 housed all her people in their base. They woudnt survive in the woods if left alone.
I just find her cool for her strategies to stay alive and for saving Peeta. We also have to give Peeta the credit for saving Katniss.
I liked her in the first and second novels, but by the middle of the third I couldn't stand her. I only finished to see what would have to the others. Mainly Peeta. I am a huge fan of Peeta.
Emma wrote: "I found her increasingly more childish, irritating and selfish. I believe I was supposed to be irritated by her but I wonder if anyone else found her so dislikeable? I found myself quite angry tha..."
I was pretty furious about the ending in mockinjay too. I mean, Peeta goes through hell for her, and only because she starts to feel bad and needs a "quick fix" so to speak she ends up with him. It was like she was doing him a favour! and I was very irritated by that. She was totally undecided the whole journey through. She is probably one of the most ...irksome reluctant heroes to date.
I was pretty furious about the ending in mockinjay too. I mean, Peeta goes through hell for her, and only because she starts to feel bad and needs a "quick fix" so to speak she ends up with him. It was like she was doing him a favour! and I was very irritated by that. She was totally undecided the whole journey through. She is probably one of the most ...irksome reluctant heroes to date.
I liked her the first two books but the third one I didn't like her at maybe. I kinda felt like she was a whole different person. But maybe that was the point. Its reasonable that she changed because in reality she went through a lot and her character grew and changed with the story.
I partially agree on Katniss' degradation for the reader in Mockingjay, particularly. However, even though I found her to be incredibly whiny when it came to her suffering and trial I attempted to remember that she is only 18 years old and beyond that, not everyone can carry the compelling stability and poise that Peeta has in the face of adversity.
I think she deserved a happy ending just as much as any who suffered during the uprising and subsequent revolution against the Capitol and I do NOT believe that she settled for Peeta at all. I think even if (spoiler alert) Prim hadn't died, Katniss and Gale would not have been able to find a happy ending together. Like she says, when the dust settled, she needed Peeta's persevering hope and optimism to get her through the days of rebuilding- not Gale's destructive fire.
I think the hardest thing to swallow as a reader is the fact that Suzanne Collins wrote these books as close to real experience as possible. Anyone who suffers the multitude and vastness of tragedies that these characters suffer would not be happy, pleasant, or likeable. Was it delightful to read? Absolutely not. But I cannot necessarily criticize Katniss so harshly when I have never been so thoroughly manipulated in my life.
I think she deserved a happy ending just as much as any who suffered during the uprising and subsequent revolution against the Capitol and I do NOT believe that she settled for Peeta at all. I think even if (spoiler alert) Prim hadn't died, Katniss and Gale would not have been able to find a happy ending together. Like she says, when the dust settled, she needed Peeta's persevering hope and optimism to get her through the days of rebuilding- not Gale's destructive fire.
I think the hardest thing to swallow as a reader is the fact that Suzanne Collins wrote these books as close to real experience as possible. Anyone who suffers the multitude and vastness of tragedies that these characters suffer would not be happy, pleasant, or likeable. Was it delightful to read? Absolutely not. But I cannot necessarily criticize Katniss so harshly when I have never been so thoroughly manipulated in my life.
She really got on my nerves too. It took her forever to fall for Peta even though he loved her enough to try and protect her and endangering his own life. She kept going back and forth between him and Gail and she was just selfish in general. When Peta had been made to think she was trying to kill him and he was terrified of her, she was not sensitive to him at all. He would have stood by her and helped her through it, but she just ignored him and hated him for how he treated her even though it wasn't his fault.
I never liked Katniss. I mean, yes, she was very selfless in giving up herself to save her sister, but EVERYTHING else she does, it just...it's like she has no idea what she's doing. She doesn't start a revolution, she's just going step by step, and I don't know. I don't see her as inspirational at all.
I Loved Katniss in the first book. But for some reason by the middle of Mockingjay I didn't really care what happened to her. Sometimes I pretend the last book is one of her nightmares.
deleted member
Sep 20, 2012 02:13AM
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Yeah, she got a bit 'cold and calculating' for a while, but i think she came to her senses. She had a crap time and she acted crappy toward the people around her because of that. But she's only a human with a survival instinct, it's not like she's an Abnegation from Divergent! I find I can understand her decisions, not necessarily agree with all of them, but I can understand where she's coming from.
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Maybe it's because she reminds me so much of myself, but I absolutely LOVED Katniss the entire way through.
Having been to the edge of survival myself, I found her reactions and, yes, selfishness, completely understandable and warranted. When she reacts harshly to Peeta after his return from the Capitol I found myself annoyed with the other characters for not understanding her position. Peeta was the one obsessively in love with her-- she didn't know how she felt, and being in her head throughout the series, we knew that. She had a few other slightly more important things on her mind than the feelings of the boy who had just tried to strangle her with his bare hands. At the beginning of the first book Katniss wasn't even sure if she loved her MOTHER. Maybe I'm a bad person, but I'd be wary of anyone who I wasn't certain about in the first place after they tried to kill me.
And you're right. Katniss wasn't ready for everything her role as the Mockingjay meant for her to be. That's the point. Few people would be! A clear, real-life example would be the way authors/musicians have so much trouble making something new after their first HUGE success. Harper Lee springs to mind. Sara Gruen. Dan Brown. Maroon 5. *N Sync.
It's way too early for me to come up with like, actually respectable artists. I'm less erudite before noon.
Katniss is one of the best-written characters in modern literature. She's Scarlett O'Hara with better aim.But I love Scarlett, too...so maybe I just like characters that are tough to swallow?
...I've been known to grate a few nerves...haha
Having been to the edge of survival myself, I found her reactions and, yes, selfishness, completely understandable and warranted. When she reacts harshly to Peeta after his return from the Capitol I found myself annoyed with the other characters for not understanding her position. Peeta was the one obsessively in love with her-- she didn't know how she felt, and being in her head throughout the series, we knew that. She had a few other slightly more important things on her mind than the feelings of the boy who had just tried to strangle her with his bare hands. At the beginning of the first book Katniss wasn't even sure if she loved her MOTHER. Maybe I'm a bad person, but I'd be wary of anyone who I wasn't certain about in the first place after they tried to kill me.
And you're right. Katniss wasn't ready for everything her role as the Mockingjay meant for her to be. That's the point. Few people would be! A clear, real-life example would be the way authors/musicians have so much trouble making something new after their first HUGE success. Harper Lee springs to mind. Sara Gruen. Dan Brown. Maroon 5. *N Sync.
It's way too early for me to come up with like, actually respectable artists. I'm less erudite before noon.
Katniss is one of the best-written characters in modern literature. She's Scarlett O'Hara with better aim.But I love Scarlett, too...so maybe I just like characters that are tough to swallow?
...I've been known to grate a few nerves...haha
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