The Hunger Games and Battle Royale

Both Suzanne Collins's The Hunger Games (2008) and Koushun Takami's Battle Royale (1999) are overflowing with ultra-violence as their characters engage in a pastime that seems to be both an American and Japanese favorite: kids slaughtering kids for the entertainment of others. Talk about killer ratings.

What better way for a totalitarian government to unwind after a hard week of stomping down its people's hopes, dreams, and basic human rights, than to put a few undesired citizens into a giant arena, give them some weapons, and let them duke it out to the death? Ah, it really takes the edge off all the oppressing that's happening during the week.

The Hunger Games and Battle Royale are very similar, indeed. Each tells the tale of dystopian society that uses violent spectacles as a means to suppress and dehumanize all their citizens—especially the young adults among them. But by considering a few factors—the competitors, the spectators, and the social purpose for the macabre melee—we might just find that these seemingly identical stories feature dystopias unique to their country of origin.

After tackling intros, readings, and interactive activities, you should be able to

• distinguish post-apocalyptic and dystopian fiction, knowing whether you should get the heck out of town or if it's already too late.
• define "allegory" and see that The Hunger Games and Battle Royale are allegories for... well, something. It's up to you to decide.
• understand how cultural differences help create different dystopian visions—and different movie adaptation of popular books.
• put your best face forward if you're ever on reality TV (and maybe be able to tell when these "reality" stars are actually acting).
• tell the 42 seemingly identical characters in Battle Royale apart.
• appreciate not wearing a uniform to school, or if you do wear a uniform, appreciate not having it get splattered with your classmates' blood in a gory battle.
• survive* if the government orders you to fight your friends and classmates to the death (*survival not guaranteed).

Oh, and fair warning: don't read these books for at least thirty minutes after eating.

Unit Breakdown