The Ethics of Fandom

Hello Book People. Today I wanted to talk about what happens when you're so excited about a franchise, but your excitement feels opposed to the message behind the book. Let me give an example. I love The Hunger Games. I read the original trilogy when I was in middle school and was hooked immediately. I had a Hunger Games birthday party, wore shirt with Josh Hutcherson's face on it to the movie premiere, and all-around was crazy about it. Fast forward to being in my twenties. I read The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. I was fortunate enough to attend an early screening for the movie, for which I dressed up on theme in rose-petal earrings and a rainbow necklace that reminded me of Lucy Gray. Of course when the movie came out, so did all of the young Snow edits with endless jokes about Snow landing on top. With Sunrise on the Reaping's release and the imminent movie release, I've been thinking about all of the hype around the books again. We celebrate these books for good reasons because they teach us about corruption and the danger of propaganda and war, but we also celebrate them in odd ways. We make thirst edits for a villain. We talk about merch opportunities (my sister wants shorts that say "Courtesy of the Capital" on the butt after reading about Haymitch's flour sack pants). Are we behaving in the wrong way?

I can laugh about how we talk about these books and say, "This is so Capital", but there's a truth to that. This series is dark and gritty and critical, but we want the next book right away (I know there's plenty of people who want Finnick's games). There is nothing wrong with wanting to read more; however, we should remember that under all the excitement and merch and edits, there is a reason these books are written. Suzanne Collins has said she only writes when she has something to say. So listen. Sunrise on the Reaping is a brilliant work demonstrating how the media and government are able to create an image that isn't true. Despite Haymitch, Maysilee, and other characters doing their best to show their rebellion, no one knows because the media edited the footage into a story that they wanted to tell. All of this happens in real life, requiring us to be very critical of the news we read or watch to parse out what the facts are from opinion.

Basically, I'm no one to say don't wear your merch or watch edits. But I want you to remember the books you are reading aren't just stories to read for fun. Whether it's The Hunger Games or some other book, there are always messages you can be taking into your life and a way to support the series without glorifying actions or characters that aren't good (cough cough, Coriolanus Snow).