Troubled Contemporary Masculinities in The Hunger Games

Abstract

This paper explores representations of masculinities and the American makeover culture in the The Hunger Games series. Many analyses of The Hunger Games so far have mostly focused on and explored the female characters such as Katniss Everdeen. However, based on the assumption that The Hunger Games negotiates what it means being a man in the United States in the 21^st century, this paper provides an against the grain reading of the popular novels and movies of this series. This paper argues that The Hunger Games – while seemingly celebrating progressive gender roles – on another, deeper level expresses nostalgia and a desire for ’conventional’ masculinities such as the working class hero.