Pitting human against human...
What is it in our nature that fascinates us about what happens when we pit one human against another?
Earlier today, I finished The Long Walk earlier today and have begun to listen to The Hunger Games (again; we're going to see the movie Saturday [!!!!]).
What strikes me as most interesting is that both of these tales are about surviving, past everyone. Granted, The Hunger Games is a bit more grisly, in that they are trying to kill each other to be the last standing Tribute, and in The Long Walk, the contestants walk, without stopping (yes, without even stopping when they have to use the bathroom), until there is one left standing. (The other piece to TLW is that contestents get warnings if they stop or slip below the 4 mph pace. After three warnings, which come 30 seconds apart, if they do not start going again after 30 seconds, they are killed.)
There is something deep in us, I know, that strives to survive. It's our human instincts and has gotten us this far. (We won't talk about the state of the Now, but we'll just say we've gotten this far.) There is something compelling about reading about another human being's will, to keep going, to keep on living. And one of the things that I appreciate about The Hunger Games is the aspect of humanity laced throughout. That the Tributes are trying to kill each other, but our main character, Katniss, is torn between killing so she can survive and get back to her family and not killing because it's not who she is. Perhaps it's that question that gets at the heart of our love of these kinds of stories - and the question of what would we do in the same circumstances?
What's also really interesting is that both stories are set in a dystopian future of sorts. That the go-for-the-throat lack of humanity is something that is televised, that is amped up to game show (or, ahem, reality television) status. People place bets, people egg on the contestants. It gets me wondering about our humanity, about what happens to it in these circumstances, and what - really - drives us to these extremes?
Is it something inevitable in our future? Is it something that we will have to face in ourselves, at some point?
This entry was originally posted at http://dancingwaves.dreamwidth.org/872585.html. Please comment there using OpenID.
Earlier today, I finished The Long Walk earlier today and have begun to listen to The Hunger Games (again; we're going to see the movie Saturday [!!!!]).
What strikes me as most interesting is that both of these tales are about surviving, past everyone. Granted, The Hunger Games is a bit more grisly, in that they are trying to kill each other to be the last standing Tribute, and in The Long Walk, the contestants walk, without stopping (yes, without even stopping when they have to use the bathroom), until there is one left standing. (The other piece to TLW is that contestents get warnings if they stop or slip below the 4 mph pace. After three warnings, which come 30 seconds apart, if they do not start going again after 30 seconds, they are killed.)
There is something deep in us, I know, that strives to survive. It's our human instincts and has gotten us this far. (We won't talk about the state of the Now, but we'll just say we've gotten this far.) There is something compelling about reading about another human being's will, to keep going, to keep on living. And one of the things that I appreciate about The Hunger Games is the aspect of humanity laced throughout. That the Tributes are trying to kill each other, but our main character, Katniss, is torn between killing so she can survive and get back to her family and not killing because it's not who she is. Perhaps it's that question that gets at the heart of our love of these kinds of stories - and the question of what would we do in the same circumstances?
What's also really interesting is that both stories are set in a dystopian future of sorts. That the go-for-the-throat lack of humanity is something that is televised, that is amped up to game show (or, ahem, reality television) status. People place bets, people egg on the contestants. It gets me wondering about our humanity, about what happens to it in these circumstances, and what - really - drives us to these extremes?
Is it something inevitable in our future? Is it something that we will have to face in ourselves, at some point?
This entry was originally posted at http://dancingwaves.dreamwidth.org/872585.html. Please comment there using OpenID.