Panem’s Pitfalls: Reading The Hunger Games as a Critique of Noncritical Media Consumption

Author

Madison Phipps, South Dakota State UniversityFollow

Document Type

Thesis - Open Access

Award Date

2025

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department / School

English and Interdisciplinary Studies

First Advisor

Paul Baggett

Abstract

In this thesis, I utilize Collins’ YA dystopian series The Hunger Games to demonstrate that YA literature merits our attention as a valuable jumping point from which young adults can develop critical reading and thinking skills as well as develop enhanced media literacy. My first two chapters, in addition to situating Collins’ works within a long history of dystopian fiction, demonstrate how these works engage with the potential pitfalls of noncritical consumption in our media-saturated world. And in the third and final chapter, I examine how the series provides pathways to resistance and the potential for revolution.

Library of Congress Subject Headings

Collins, Suzanne. Hunger Games (Series)
Young adult fiction, American -- History and criticism.
Dystopias in literature.
Media literacy.
Critical thinking.

Publisher

South Dakota State University

Recommended Citation

Phipps, Madison, "Panem’s Pitfalls: Reading The Hunger Games as a Critique of Noncritical Media Consumption" (2025). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 1755.
https://openprairie.sdstate.edu/etd2/1755