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Hunger games book snow12/10/2023 ![]() It’s interesting that when looking further beyond the movie, the artistic element that Snow’s words have taken. ![]() ![]() The ultimate punishment for something Snow considers the worst element against the power structure he resides over. There is the fact, that as Seneca Crane does not contain the spark to the liking of Snow, he is forced to take his life. There is the fear that it will spread through the districts. Snow instructs his head Gamemaker to contain the spark of hope that Katniss has managed to produce. He fears organization, he warns against too much hope. Important to seem secure in his rule, Snow recognizes that his fortress is not without spaces of weakness. Warnings through peacekeepers, the avow characters (those who have come out of line and been silences forever), and of course, through The Games. He wields this power by controlling the districts, separating them, dictating their knowledge, injecting them with fear and boundaries. He leans on his power and his influence to protect what he has – the opulence, the freedom, the opportunities. President Snow represents the wealth and the insecurities of the Capitol. President Snow is the character who represents the power in this narrative. He is there, rather than just mentioned and thought about, as he is in the first book. The Capitol has more of a presence in the movie, we understand the thinkings of President Snow in a more explicit way. The lone victor, bathed in riches, would serve as a reminder of our generosity and our forgiveness. And so it was decreed, that each year, the various districts of Panem would offer up in tribute, one young man and woman, to fight to the death in a pageant of honor, courage and sacrifice. When the traitors were defeated, we swore as a nation we would never know this treason again. A people rose up from the ashes and a new era was born. And then came the peace, hard fought, sorely won. Brother turned on brother until nothing remained. Thirteen districts rebelled against the country that fed them, loved them, protected them. This was the uprising that rocked our land. ![]() We hear his (Sutherland’s) voice in the movie as it provides the background noise for the propaganda promoting The Games: It is less up to the audience to imagine, as it is in the text, and more apparent as we see it on screen. The movie gives us more of Snow’s actual voice, his power, his ruthlessness. The change, coming in the form of the movie, is that the audience has the opportunity to connect with other characters and, through camera angles, expressions and directorial techniques, elements outside of Katniss’ feelings can be illustrated with feeling, with compassion with understanding. It is more difficult to hear him in the novel because it is told from Katniss’ point of view. He is the symbol of violence and of fear. President Snow is the face behind the message of oppression. We hear him more, while in contrast, we get more of him in the following books of the trilogy. The symbolism of him and what he wields is similar, but there is more of his influence, more of his voice in the movie portrayal by Sutherland. The book handles this character differently than he is handled on screen. On page 71, ” The president, a small, thin man with paper-white hair, gives the official welcome from a balcony above us” – noting his positioning is important. In the book, President Snow is not described as Donald Sutherland looks. How little chance we would stand of surviving another rebellion” (Collins, 18) “Taking the kids from our districts, forcing them to kill one another while we watch – this is the Capitol’s way of reminding us how totally we are at their mercy.
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