From the Capitol to Capitol Hill: Panem and the United States Compared

Image via PanemPropaganda

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The Hunger Games is a dystopian book series written by Suzanne Collins, with five books and five movies. The government of Panem is a dictatorship composed of 12 districts and the Capitol, led by President Snow. America functions as a representative Democracy, composed of 50 states, with 3 branches of government on the federal level. The 47th president, serving his second and final term, is Donald J. Trump. 

The authoritarianism the citizens of Panem live under is a clear parallel to the current government efforts to curtail citizens’ ability to speak freely. For example, Donald J. Trump, in mid-March, was caught in an outburst against a federal judge who made a judicial decision to halt deportations of Venezuelan immigrants. Donald Trump publicly ordered the well-respected judge to be impeached. In the United States, there is a judicial appeals process for a reason, but jumping to impeachment is not usually a president’s first choice. In The Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen (the main character) is under surveillance and subjected to physical attacks for speaking out publicly against President Snow and his actions.  

Moving further into a narrative of fascism, the entirety of fascist movements often rely on scapegoats and “us vs them” myths. The United States Government is currently reliant on an extremist left-vs.-right narrative within the media it controls to integrate fear into society as best as possible. Within Panem, it’s the Capitol vs. the Districts. In the prequel, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, in which young President Snow mentors a tribute—a citizen selected for the districts to fight to the death against citizens from other districts—from District Twelve, his classmate mocks her tribute with food. This ends with the brutal murder of the Capitol student by the selected tribute. As Lucy Gray Baird explains, “hunger is a weapon.” The government ensures that low- and working-class citizens have no influence over policy and government. In a Princeton study, politics professor Martin Gilens found that the more high earners support a policy, the more likely it is to be enacted. Just as in Panem, in America, the elite rise to the top and rule, and use the necessities of the poor against them. 

Finally, the painfully obvious comparison: Both the Government of the United States and the Government of Panem have no issue taking their own citizens’ lives in broad daylight. In America, the most recent victims are Alex Pretti and Renee Good, two strangers trying to love their neighbors. 

In Pretti’s case, he approached a Federal officer, and 10 shots were fired in less than five seconds. The agency stated that Pretti was attempting to approach an agent with a gun. The footage of the scene contradicts this scenario. Alex Pretti was a 37-year-old ICU nurse, attempting to stand up for what he vehemently believed in; a federal agent of the United States government punished him. Renee Good faced a similar situation while trying to help her neighbor. Renee Good was also 37. Good was titled a “deranged leftist” by the American government. 

In Panem, killing citizens, whether in the Capitol or the districts, is not uncommon nor frowned upon by President Snow. In the Hunger Games: Catching Fire movie, President Snow is talking to Plutarch Heavensbee, the head gamemaker. Plutarch understands that President Snow demands Katniss’ death. President Snow says, “This is what you predicted?” and Plutarch states, “Moves and counter moves …” Snow replies, “We’ll toast when it’s done.” This demonstrates the intentionality of the United States government and the government of Panem in regard to taking the lives of its citizens.

It is important to note that the United States government and the government of Panem are supposed to represent every citizen who resides in their respective jurisdictions. The United States is mandated to protect the right to speech, religion, assembly, press, and petition under the First Amendment of the Constitution. This is whether the current administration agrees with the right to speech, religion, assembly, press, and petition. Sejanus Plynth, a student at the Capitol, states in the movie  Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes , “The Capitol is supposed to be everyone’s government now.” 

Both the United States government and the government of Panem in The Hunger Games series publicly celebrate “freedom,” yet their actions often reveal the opposite. In each case, the language of liberty is used as a shield, framing control as protection and obedience as patriotism. Ultimately, the contrast between what these governments claim and what they actually do exposes how easily “freedom” can be turned into a slogan that disguises coercion.

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This article was edited by Emma Zadrima and Margot Sleeman.