The Journey of Katniss
“Hard times don't create heroes. It is during the hard times when the 'hero' within us is revealed”(Bob Riley). Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games represents this statement because she undergoes life-threatening and daunting obstacles to stay alive throughout the movie. She displays true heroism by standing up to the weak and innocent and risking her life for her friends, family, and district. She shows many different signs of courageousness, determination, and integrity, as the movie continues. Katniss is a worthy example of a hero for having all these qualities and more through her departure, initiation, and return, thus representing the archetypal hero’s journey in The Hunger Games.
The journey begins with the “ordinary world,” or what happens before the hero is called on an adventure. In the movie, Katniss Everdeen’s ordinary world consists of being an average sixteen year old girl who lives with her mother and younger sister, Primrose. Since her father’s death, Katniss feels the urgency to sneak out of district boundaries and hunt to feed and keep her family alive. Her heroic “call to adventure” demonstrates the hero’s journey, that may have cost her life. In the movie, Katniss’s call is when her sister, Primrose, is chosen to be in the annual Hunger Games. The shocked Katniss speaks out of the crowd and volunteers herself as tribute, thus exemplifying her call to adventure. The next stage in the hero’s journey is when the hero meets with a mentor to gain insight and advice to overcome the future battle. Katniss and her partner, Peeta Mellark, are sent to prepare for the Capital when they meet their mentor, Haymitch. At first, Haymitch’s advice to both tributes is to make sure to stay alive and to find water as soon as they arrive; however, as the movie continues, Haymitch helps Katniss with much more physical than spoken help. The many similarities between Katniss’s departure from her district and a hero’s journey on a given quest illustrates how Katniss fulfills the definition of a hero.
The initiation of the hero’s journey includes stages much more complex. When the hero prepares to separate themselves from their ordinary world in order to enter the special one, this is called the “crossing the first threshold.” this takes place in the movie when Katniss enters the Capital for the first time. She left district twelve for a reason, and had to enter an unfamiliar world with judges, and many terrifying faces. The next stage in the initiation is when the hero faces “tests, allies, and enemies,” finding out who they should trust, and being aware of those who want to kill them. Shortly after Katniss arrives, she is put to the test. Not only does she have to show the judges her specific ability, but she also has to decide her feelings for Peeta. Similarly, once in the the games, Katniss’s main test is if she can stay alive. She has to find water, escape forest fires, deathly gas, and being cautious about the other tributes trying to murder her. The third stage in the hero’s journey is the “approach to the inmost cave,” which in this case, is when the hero develops a plan to attack the enemy. This is the part of the movie when Katniss gets the honor of meeting Rue, whom she makes an ally out of. They scheme up a plan to destroy all of their enemies supplies they have stacked up in the middle of the battle field. At first, it seems to have worked, until Katniss reveals that Rue has been shot with an arrow and died.
The last and final step in the hero’s journey is the return home. The hero has survived death, overcome their greatest fear, and earned a “reward” in doing so. Katniss’s reward, in this case, would be surviving the games and saving the one she loves. She overcomes her fears for death, gains the courage to do what needed to get done, and saves Peeta from his ultimate destruction. The second stage in the return home is “the road back.” This is when the hero feels it is difficult to return home after such success in the special world. The Capital unfortunately feels that they have been cheated for having the duo survive, together. This means that Katniss and Peeta’s lives are in danger when they come home, and until they die.