Originally posted by mrsMxyzptlk:
I find it sadly ironic that the farmers are starving. I suppose there must be measures in place to prevent them from skimming off the top and taking some of what they produce. This doesn't seem like a viable society. If the farmers' circumstances don't improve soon, the next few generations will have more health problems, decreased fertility, and higher maternal and infant death rates, which will lead to a labor shortage. Food will go unharvested, and not enough will get planted the next season. What will those rich Capitolites do when there just isn't enough food? Starve the other districts, too? Starve the miners? Then they'll run out of metals and coal for their power plants. They rely completely on the districts to provide for them, but they're not willing to let them have enough themselves to survive. I understand the Capitol wanting to exert its power and show the districts who's boss (not that I agree with that tactic), but the system they've got in place doesn't seem viable for the long term.
*puts on sociologist's cap* This sort of society is sadly well-rooted in reality. Where there are a handful of wealthy elites at the top and lots of hungry poorer people to exploit, this sort of system tends to thrive. After all, why should people be valued if they can easily be replaced? Throughout history, that's been a very common attitude -- at least until whatever fine balance made the exploitation possible tips, frequently in a very unpleasant manner (revolutions, large and small, have been fairly frequent over the last two and half centuries, all the way from the "shot heard round the world" of the American Revolution right up to the ongoing Arab Spring). So ... an exploitative society like the one seen in The Hunger Games is viable -- but only for a while. Eventually, either natural consequences such as famine and disease serve to break the balance of power, or people fight back (or both). What causes exploitative societies to rise is complex, and what causes them to fall is complex, but their reality is undeniable. *takes off sociologist's cap*
