The Hunger Games

Katniss is the novel’s reluctant heroine and narrator. She primarily fits the hero archetype but also displays traits of the caregiver. While she demonstrates the courage, perseverance, and honor often associated with the hero archetype, she generally lacks the hubris that usually comes with it. Instead, she continually sacrifices to protect others, particularly those who fit the archetype of the innocent, namely Prim and Rue.

While she is an inherently pragmatic character, Katniss cannot help but be won over by kindness—a tendency that could leave her vulnerable. As much as she pretends to focus on her own self-interests, she genuinely cares about others and often prioritizes them over her own safety. Katniss is driven by the need to keep herself and her loved ones alive at any cost. This motivation endures throughout the book, as she often sacrifices herself for the sake of her younger sister, going so far as to volunteer for the Hunger Games in Prim’s stead. Even within the games, when Katniss might be better served by thinking of herself, it is the idea of protecting her sister from the trauma of watching her die that pushes her to action: “not only will I face death, it’s sure to be a long and painful one at Cato’s hand. The thought of Prim having to watch that keeps me doggedly inching my way toward the hideout” (223).

Over the course of the book, Katniss’s sense of self-perception changes. While she is a skilled hunter, her confidence in herself and her abilities is initially lacking. Her low self-image drives a wedge between herself and Peeta on numerous occasions, as she cannot believe others view her as capable, desirable, or otherwise worthy. Ultimately, while she uses her skills, perseverance, and ruthlessness to survive, Katniss’s focus is always on others.

As the games develop, so does her confidence, though it is born of external forces. It is her anger at the Capitol’s treatment of others that strengthens her resolve and allows her to overcome her pessimism and believe that she may yet survive out of spite if not worth:

I really think I stand a chance of doing it now. Winning. It’s not just having the arrows or outsmarting the Careers a few times, although those things help. Something happened when I was holding Rue’s hand, watching the life drain out of her. Now I am determined to avenge her, to make her loss unforgettable, and I can only do that by winning and thereby making myself unforgettable (242).