If The Hunger Games is not classified as a part of the pop culture movement then I do not know what is. My personal opinion of something to be able to have the label as “pop culture” is simply a piece of work that is attractive to the modern culture that might not be as attractive to the high culture era. In addition, I also believe that popularity and number of views has a lot to do with the classifying something as pop culture.
The Hunger Games is predominantly aimed towards the young adult population and they do a fantastic job of doing so if I do say so myself. They include a disturbing but intriguing plot based on kids killing other kids if they wish to survive. I believe this type of plot line is what interests all of the young adults in today’s society because it allows them to use their imagination by thinking, “Wow. What if I lived in a world like that?” Or maybe they might think, “Wow. What would I do if I had to kill someone I knew just to survive?” This book’s plotline would most definitely not be accepted in a high culture type atmosphere due to the whole ‘kids killing kids’ concept.
Another reason as to why this book is attractive to today’s modern culture is because of its relevance to some of the struggles we face today. Oftentimes today, especially with the 2012 Presidential election approaching, we see the dramatic tension and interaction between the rich and the poor. In the book, it portrays that people without money have an incredible disadvantage in life, yet those who are wealthy are generally bystanders and don’t give a crap about the poor’s struggles or survival.
On a different note, I would also label this book as far on the pop culture spectrum as possible because of its popularity in general. I have never seen so much hype about a book/movie. It seemed more popular than Twilight because both guys and girls went and saw it, while Twilight generally seemed to be seen by mostly girls. It lead the box office for a substantial amount of time to show the number of views just kept increasing and increasing. The popularity and incredible amount of buzz the book and movie produced has a lot to do with its classification as a pop culture piece of work.
When it comes to classifying The Hunger Games as either high culture or pop culture, it is without a doubt a member of pop culture. The way it attracts itself to today’s modern society can easily back that statement up. It allows viewers to imagine themselves in a fictional world yet conveying certain themes that are present in today’s world.
popculturenotguns 
Leave a comment