Economics of the Hunger Games
The Economics of the Hunger Games The Hunger Games portrays a North American dystopia, Panem : a totalitarian state, divided into 12 administrative ‘Districts’, governed by the ‘Capitol’, the country’s power-centre. This is an exploitative country, with most citizens living in oppression and poverty. In this article, I aim to provide a detailed understanding of the economic functioning of this dystopia, by examining its features and the implications of these. Note: The Hunger Games are an annual practice in Panem, wherein two ‘tributes’ (a boy and a girl of the ages 12-18) are selected (via lottery or voluntary participation) from each District, to engage in a televised fight to the death in an arena. Features Panem follows a Command Economy . This is an economic system where the Government decides what goods are to be produced, how much to be produced, and the price at which these are sold. (Chappelow) Further, no free trade is allowed in Panem. This is complemented by...