Mockingjay is the finale novel in dystopian fantasies of The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins. Once again Suzanne Collins has not let her readers down with the adventure of the 17-year-old protagonist, Katniss Everdeen, bringing a heart- wrenching conclusion to the tale of a country in chaos. You can’t stop reading, once begun… Mockingjay is not as impeccably plotted as The Hunger Games, but nonetheless retains its fierce, chilly fascination which offers every bit the pressure cooker of its forebears. Nevertheless, I find the book bloodier, more deaths on both sides, more twisted characters, and more grey areas that compel readers to think that ‘good’ and ‘evil’ is far too complicated, not just a distinguished color of black or white. More elaborate gadgets, gizmos, and creatures (mutations) are devised for means of torments or death, among others genetically altered wasps called tracker jackers that can hijack memories and distort them to change the very essence of who a person is, and mutts trained to track down and destroy enemies in horrifying graphic ways, creating a simultaneously disturbing and fun book to read. As always, it brings tears to read a sweet innocent child being killed and sacrificed to gain twisted victory, like Prue in Hunger Games. In the end, Katniss fails to save her sister (Prim) whom she intends to protect and safeguard from the start of her volunteering in the games, and learns the bitter truth that the rebels are just as morally ambiguous as Panem’s leaders. As Katniss herself says in “Mockingjay,” “There are much worse games to play.” Absolutely my fondness of Katniss, a headstrong nihilist grows more in this book. Unlike the common stereotyped heroine, she’ becomes a heroine not because she fights next to a male hero, but she fights on her own terms, and in fact she feels protective over the people she loves ad cares about including her male partners and strangers alike, particularly the helpless and weak. She can be a fatal nihilist and stubborn egoist, but her brighter sides always win. She is sharp and deadly as the arrows in her quiver, yet she has compassionate heart. Her heroism isn’t necessarily something that’s played up as sexy.
“Mockingjay” was a symbol for the rebel cause in Panem. During the Dark Days, the Capitol genetically engineered jabberjays, all-male spying birds that were capable of memorizing conversations and bringing the information back, able to repeat it in a human voice to crush down the rebels. However, once the rebels realized their conversations were being transmitted, they used the jabberjays against the Capitol, sending back false information to lead them astray and fooled. Knowing, they were used against it, the Capitol abandoned the breed and left them in the wild to die. Yet, it was commonly known that extraordinary wildlife almost never doing what we expect, male jabberjays bred with female mockingbirds, giving birth to the mockingjay. This new breeds could repeat both human melodies and birdsong and were thus better able to protect themselves. Mockingjay, then, was perceived as a symbol of hope and survival among the people of Panem. When Madge Undersee gave Katniss a mockingjay pin, she merely saw it as a symbol of solidarity across economic lines (she’s the District 12 Mayor’s daughter, Katniss is the daughter of a coal miner) in a thankless struggle. It’s what Katniss did with that image over the course of the three books that was important and elevated the mockingjay from passive to active symbol, and it’s Katniss herself as the Mockingjay that inspired people. From the moment, she held up the ‘berries’ (nightlock), President Snow saw her as really ‘the girl on fire’, a girl who could ignite fire who might inflame widespread inferno in the nation if not tamed and controlled.
"Mockingjay" begins with Katniss Everdeen rambling through the wreckage of her district 12 hometown during the dreary aftermath of "Catching Fire”, tripping over skulls and breathing in the ashes of the incinerated bodies that used to be her neighbors. More than 90% of those neighbors were dead; the rest have been relocated to district 13, an area that was thought to be abandoned but was very much alive led by President Coin. Katniss was in desperate need to revisit the place to hold on to something that made her intact after the grievous Quarter Quell. The Capitol had destroyed her life, carving endless nightmares and terrible ache in her soul. She was rescued from the arena of Hunger Games along with Finnick Odair under the instruction of President Coin because she wanted to use her as a human symbol for rebellion to unite the 12 districts with 13. For people in other districts, from the moment she sang the song for the dying Rue and defied the Gamemaker to have double winners, she became their mockingjay. Rue trusted her once she saw a mockingjay pin she wore. However, Katniss was sick of being constantly used as pawns in a chess game. Her only desire was to be left alone with her family, resuming her normal life. Meanwhile, Peeta was taken captive by President Snow along with other tributes in Quarter Quell. He was tortured and hijacked so that he looked at Katniss as his greatest nemesis. The uncertainty of his fate devastated her more that she thought. She was still torn by her feeling for Gale and Peeta. Unsure of her role and feelings, she kept weighing her options in district 13. Forced to live underground for 75 years, district 13's residents have spurred the present uprising. They see Katniss as symbol of their Mockingjay who had power to rile up the rest of the districts and overthrow the pale-skinned President Snow.
Desperate to save Peeta, Katniss willingly took on the role of Media Darling under the condition that all victors from the Hunger Games be granted immunity, and that she got to kill President Snow herself. As always, Katniss was not much of media type of a person. She came to life only after involving herself in real life actions, not just a mere human symbol who read texts/footages dictated by Coin. She showed no interest in being a poster girl. She simply wanted to be part of the work of rebellion in organizing and fighting. She came to life on camera once she resumed such real role in real action and continued to inspire rebel news footage because of her genuine care for others, and her desire to kill President Snow herself. Such media influence showed how accurate portrayal of how propaganda could be used by either (or both) sides of a conflict to further their cause, as well as the importance of a charismatic spokesperson, or a human symbol, to a movement.
As the story progressed, readers saw from Katniss’ eyes, that Coin’ rebel against Snow wasn’t as simple as Good v.s. Evil. There were always the shades of grey. Both sides of a conflict could use or misuse their symbols, and Katniss Everdeen was used. President Coin might have started out with Panem’s best interests at heart, but she was damaged and corrupted when her objectives outweigh humanity. Her methods of using any means necessary, including killing the innocents to secure greater victory, lost integrity along the way. Coin and Snow was two sides of a coin. Unlike them, Katniss always put humanity above others. It was the foundation that shaped her intentions, motivations, and actions. Any action she took based on her sound conscience. She wanted people to live in freedom, free of any coercion and fear. There would never be victory without humanity. When Prim was tragically killed, she was on the verge of madness and despair. It was a finale to decide of who her true nemesis was, Coin or Snow.
All in all, I absolutely love Mockingjay, love the three dystopian saga, and Suzanne Collins is really a genius. I love Katnis Everdeen, the memorable heroine struggling to do the right thing in the public gaze. I love Prim and Prue. The trilogy keeps me thinking of situation in my surroundings, including working place. Once, a leader is corrupted, weighing objectives more than humanity, taking any means necessary to gain his/her goal, then there will only be chaos.
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