Learning lessons??
What is the purpose of reading fiction? Is it strictly for pleasure? Or, perhaps, is it done only to complete an assignment or AR quiz? Does the story ever make you think about why this or that occurred? Do you as a reader identify with the characters that the author creates? Does the word “theme” enter your mind if a teacher has not reminded you to identify one? Are stories meant to teach the reader lessons?
I read The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins over spring break. This is a story that makes a reader pause to consider absolute control through both physical hunger and the psychological drives of fear and survival. This is a story that teaches on many levels of respect (or lack of) for human life and dignity. For many readers it will be primarily a game like the title suggests, a question of which one has the best weapon or stategy. Others if they choose can ponder some of life’s lessons–fairness, friendship, and choices. It begs us to look deeply at ourselves and ask which character we see as a reflection of our own personality and actions.
