The first part of the book introduces some of the book's main characters, such as Katniss Everdeen, the novel's protagonist. We also learn all the fundamental facts about the world where the story occurs. Katniss is a sixteen-year-old girl living in a dystopia, a made-up political state in which life is awful. The book is set at some unnamed time in the future, by which point the North American governments as we currently know them have disbanded. The cause of this dissolution isn't thoroughly elaborated, but Katniss does talk about the natural disasters that led to it. Rising sea levels and extreme storms indicate global warming played a role, as those are two of the most severe influences scientists predict global warming will cause. We also know there are worldwide food shortages. The state of Panem, the country that rose up after North America's destruction, is autocratic. It watches the speech and actions of its residents and ruthlessly punishes anything it construes as a dispute. The Hunger Games, which gives the book its title, expresses its pitilessness and control over its citizens.

But life is also awful for the people of District 12 for more direct reasons. Few people can learn and have enough to eat. Many are undernourished, and death by famine is common. Moreover, the primary industry in the region is coal mining, which is notoriously dangerous and challenging work. Katniss describes the miners, both men, and women, heading to work with hunched shoulders and swollen knuckles, signifying how physically hard the job is. The book also tells us that both Katniss's and Gale's fathers died from an explosion in the mine. District 12 is presently known as Appalachia, among the poorest regions in the modern United States. From Katniss's description, it seems the district is undoubtedly the poorest area of Panem.

The state's wealth stands in explicit contrast with the poverty of the people of District 12, and this unfairness between rich and poor is a theme that continues throughout the novel. Most obvious, the poorest of every district have an added hardship in that it is commonly their children who become tributes in the Hunger Games.

In conclusion, when I read the book, I couldn't help but feel a sense of sorrow. The depiction of poverty in this book somehow reflects the poverty problem we have in our society. In addition, Katniss's courteous spirit is truly inspiring, it urges us to be alike with her. To be brave and help those who are in need, like how she volunteered for tribute for her litter sister.