Media Theories

My notes on how the four different theories were incorporated into the film The Huger Games:

1. Propps Character Roles

This theory states that each character will fall into 1 of 8 different characters.

Katniss Everdeen- The Hero
Peter Mellark- The Donor
Primrose- The Helper
Captain Snow- The Villain

2. Levi-Strauss' Binary Oppositions

This theory uses opposites to show the contrast.

The Capital - The Districts / Rich-Poor
Peter - Katniss / Boy-Girl

3. Todorovs's Equilibrium Theory

Katniss lives her everyday life- Equilibrium
Her sister gets nominated to fight into the hunger games - A disruption of that order by an event
Katniss volunteers as tribute and fights in the games - A recognition that the disorder has occurred
Katniss tries to win the games- Attempt to repair the damage of the disruption
She wins and goes back to her district safely - A return or restoration of an equilibrium

4. Uses and Gratification Theory 

 Social Interaction/Entertainment

Uses and gratifications theory is an approach to understanding why and how people actively seek out specific media to satisfy specific needs. It looks at what audiences want when watching a film. The audience want to see a problem be resolved which in the hunger games Katniss over came the problem and won the games.