The Similarities Between Suzanne Collins'"The Hunger Games" & Veronica Roth's "Divergent"

Have you ever read a book and thought to yourself, “this book seems oddly familiar.” If so, you aren’t wrong. In chapter 5 of Fosters How to Read Literature Like a Professor, he implicates the fact that no piece of literature is authentic. Infact his exact words are, “there’s no such thing as a wholly original work of literature (Foster 29).”

Suzanne Collins’ "The Hunger Games" book and Veronica Roth’s "Divergent" series illustrate a perfect example for this element of literature. The abundance of similarities between these novels are astounding and may make you feel as if you’ve read them before. Some of the more visible correlations between these novels include the fact that both protagonists are young women, and that they both become romantically involved with a male at some point within the storyline. Also there is a huge separation factor in society. In The Hunger Games there are 12 Districts, and in Divergent there are 5 factions. Each Faction and each District hold a responsibility to society, and rarely communicate with one another unless necessary.

Another similarity between these novels is the protagonists rebellion against the government. In The Hunger Games Katniss fights against the government to end the Games, while in Divergent Tris fights to stop their government from killing thousands of people, and later on rebels against them, leaving their protected boundaries. Lastly both novels are dystopian. Divergent takes place in Chicago, although it is completely destroyed and in horrific condition, while The Hunger Games mostly takes place in an extremely worn down town in the mountains. This is similar to Fosters statement which reads “Sometimes influence is direct and obvious…Other times it’s less direct and more subtle (Foster 33).” One of the less direct correlations between these novels is the fact that both protagonist struggle to fit in and survive in their so called “wars”.

The geography in a piece of literary work is identified as the setting, but is often forgotten as an element that is vital to the story’s plot, characters, and even the story’s theme and symbolic meaning. Foster informs us in chapter 10 of his book How to Read Literature Like a Professor that “Geography in literature can also be more. It can be revoletory of virtually any element in the work. Theme? Sure. Symbol? No problem. Plot? Without a doubt (Foster 166).” In Veronica Roth’s Divergent series, it is identified as more of the setting than anything else. One significant aspect of geography in the Divergent series is where Tris starts, and where she will end up. As Fosters states “Geography can also define or even develop character (Foster 167).” Tris grows up in the faction Abnegation. She lives humbly, and follows strict rules set in stone by the Faction leaders. The geography of Abnegation is quiet, plain, and every house is identical. This develops a humble heart in the people of Abnegation, giving them generous and loving characteristics. Although when Tris chooses to leave Abnegation and join Dauntless the geography completely shifts and her characteristics change drastically.

The geography of Dauntless is very different than Abnegation. Instead of humble hearted people, they are violent and defensive. While in Abnegation there are identical homes, and limited options for food, Dauntless carry any and all food, and everyone’s homes are unique. Abnegation never party, drink, or do anything that could be considered vain, but Dauntless are the exact opposite. Due to this major shift in geography, Tris goes from once humble hearted, to a strong independent leader. Just as Foster said, geography defines character. If the Dauntless Faction were to be held in a field of flowers, the outcomes of both the people and their actions would be completely different. Suzanne Collins chose the setting for the Dauntless with their characteristics in mind, just as every other author would do.