subject: An Interview with Suzanne Collins [print this page] James Blasingame visited with Suzanne Collins at the 2008 National Council of Teachers of English Convention in San Antonio, Texas.
James: The Hunger Games is wildly popular with young readers (and older readers, too); in fact, today, it is the number four rated mystery thriller book for teens on amazon.com. Your career success originally came in writing for television, however. You worked on some wonderful shows for Nickelodeon, including Tag Heuer Replica more than one that was nominated for an Emmy Award, as well as the Christmas special, Santa Baby and most recently, Clifford's Puppy Days (Scholastic Entertainment). You then turned to young adult fiction and wrote the Over Lander series, which has won many of the top awards in fiction for young people, about a fantasy world under New York City. Did you grow up in New York
Suzanne: Actually, I grew up all over the world. My father was in the military, and we lived on or near military bases, both in the United States, and overseas, as well. We lived in Brussels for quite a while. My father was also a professor at West Point Academy although he was actually Air Force; the U.S. Army borrowed him to teach for them. Among other things, he had a doctorate in political science and was a military historian. He also held positions with NATO and the Pentagon and for the Air Command and Staff and the Air War College as a teacher and lecturer, each of which meant a family move. He was a very intelligent man and was extremely knowledgeable and aware of what was happening around the world. He did his best to pass his understanding of history, politics, and world events on to his children, and there is no doubt that we were influenced by his education and life experience.
James: That information could very well shed a lot of light on the setting and conflict of The Hunger Games. The brutal dictatorship of the Capitol over the 12 districts and the forms of social control and colonial oppression are always at the forefront of the story, with a thin veneer of popular culture from the Tag Heuer Replica Watches present, such as reality TV, and professional sports championships. Did you intend for social and political commentary to be as important to the meaning of this book as they seem
Suzanne: Yes. The sociopolitical overtones of The Hunger Games were very intentionally created to characterize current and past world events, including the use of hunger as a weapon to control populations. Tyrannical governments have also used the techniques of geographical containment of certain populations, as well as the nearly complete elimination of the rights of the individual. In the book, the annual Hunger Games themselves are a power tool used as a reminder of who is in charge and what will happen to citizens who don't capitulate.
