IPTAT: Symbol of Rebellion
Arrowsmiths - Part Three
I’m putting together a team… multiple teams, in fact.
Team 7: Arrowsmiths
Archers assembled
Hawkeye/Clint Barton (Marvel comics)
Green Arrow/Oliver Queen (DC Comics)
Katniss Everdeen (The Hunger Games)
Legolas (The Lord of the Rings)
The bow and arrow is a classic weapon used in mythology, containing its use to this day across fantasy, sci-fi, action, adventure, and just about every setting you can imagine where it’d be effective to shoot something pointy from a springy string tool thing. These are technical terms.
3. Katniss Everdeen (The Hunger Games)
First appearance: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, published 2008
Popular entertainment of 2008:
Iron Man - film starring Robert Downey, Jr.
Fringe - television series starring Anna Torv and Joshua Jackson
Breaking Dawn (The Twilight Saga #4) - novel written by Stephanie Meyer
Katniss Everdeen, the protagonist of Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games trilogy of books, begins as a resourceful 16-year-old from District 12 who volunteers to take her sister Prim’s place in the brutal, televised death match known as the Hunger Games. A skilled archer and hunter, Everdeen’s quick thinking and fierce independence make her both a survivor and an unexpected symbol of rebellion. Her defiant act of threatening suicide with Peeta Mellark during the 74th Games sparks a movement against the oppressive Capitol.
Over the following books, Catching Fire and Mockingjay, Everdeen evolves from reluctant hero to the face of the revolution—the “Mockingjay.” She endures immense trauma, manipulations by both the Capitol and the rebel leaders, and the loss of loved ones, but ultimately helps bring about the end of Panem’s dictatorship. After the war, she returns to District 12, seeking peace and rebuilding a quiet life with Peeta.
Author Suzanne Collins based Katniss’s name on the real plant sagittaria, also known as “arrowhead,” which fittingly ties into her archery skills. Jennifer Lawrence, who portrayed Katniss in the film adaptations, famously trained with an Olympic archer for the role—and once admitted she accidentally stabbed a dummy during practice. Also, Collins has said that Everdeen’s fiery defiance and media savvy were partly inspired by her experience writing for television reality shows.
Katniss Everdeen has survived several hardships in intense arenas, but she’ll have to learn to work with her eclectic teammates in order to win in an unpredictable scenario.
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