The Hunger Games Survival Guide                                  Name: _________________________________

Continued...

______ 7. (p. 18) “He tells the history of Panem, the country that rose up out of the ashes of a
         place that was once called North America.”


______ 8. (p. 18) “He lists the disasters, the droughts, the storms, the fires, the encroaching
              seas that swallowed up so much of the land....”


______ 9. (p. 19) “...right now District 12 is the laughingstock of Panem, and he knows it.”


______ 10. (p. 21) “That’s how I feel now...totally stunned as the name bounces around the
              inside of my skull.”


______ 11. (p. 27) “The community home would crush her like a bug.”


______ 12. (p. 27) “But the money ran out and we were slowly starving to death.”


➵Digging Deeper: Finding Meaning in Similes & Metaphors
Identify the simile or metaphor in each of these examples by underlining it. Then write its meaning.
Remember that figurative language is not meant to be taken literally.
Example: (p. 37) “We always wait to trade with him when his witch of a wife isn’t around
because he’s so much nicer.”
          The baker’s wife is not actually a witch, but she is not very nice.
13. (p. 44) “‘At least you two have decent manners,’ says Effie as we’re finishing the main
           course. ‘The pair last year ate everything with their hands like a couple of savages.’”

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14. (p. 46) “You know your mentor is your lifeline to the world in these Games.”
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15. (p. 51) “The woods became our savior, and each day I went a bit farther into its arms.”

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16. (p. 52) “...I was washing up in a pond when I noticed the plants growing around me. Tall
           with leaves like arrowheads.”

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   ! 18    Standard(s) practiced: CCRA.L.4, CCRA.L.5, CCRA.R.4                                  ©2010 Tracee Orman


The Hunger Games Survival Guide                                 Name: _________________________________
Figurative Language in The Hunger Games
➵More Practice: Circle whether you think the underlined example is a simile (S) or a metaphor (M).
S M 1. “My legs, arms, torso, underarms, and parts of my eyebrows have been stripped of
the stuff, leaving me like a plucked bird, ready for roasting.” (p. 61)
S M 2. “I’m glad now I have Peeta to clutch for balance, he is so steady, solid as a rock.” (p. 70)
S M 3. “He is luring you in to make you easy prey.” (p. 72)
S M 4. “But that’s a dark and creaky thing that moves like a snail....” (p. 73)
S M 5. “The walls of this elevator are made of crystal so that you can watch people on the
ground floor shrink to ants as you shoot up into the air.” (p. 73)

➵IRONY: Suzanne Collins uses irony (in the form of hypocrisy) so the reader can reflect upon
Katniss’s predicament and the treatment of her situation by the Capitol citizens. The use of irony in
chapter 6 also reinforces the theme of desensitization.

    irony: the use of words to convey a meaning                   hypocrisy: claiming to have moral standards
    that is the opposite of its literal meaning.                  or beliefs, but not practicing those beliefs or
                                                                  standards.
    desensitization: to become less sensitive or
    insensitive due to repeated exposure.

➵Read the passage from chapter 6 (p. 74) and reflect upon its meaning (in writing) in terms of
irony and desensitization. Effie Trinket is speaking in the quotation to Peeta and Katniss about their
potential for sponsors:
          “‘...I’ve done my best with what I have to work with. How Katniss sacrificed
          herself for her sister. How you’ve both successfully struggled to overcome the
          barbarism of your district.’
             Barbarism? That’s ironic coming from a woman helping to prepare us for
          slaughter.”
What makes Effie’s statement “ironic” or hypocritical? Discuss how the Capitol citizens have
become desensitized regarding the tributes and the Games.

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   ! 22   Standard(s) practiced: CCRA.L.4, CCRA.L.5, CCRA.R.4                                        ©2010 Tracee Orman


The Hunger Games Survival Guide                                  Name: _________________________________

Continued...

______ 7. (p. 18) “He tells the history of Panem, the country that rose up out of the ashes of a
         place that was once called North America.”


______ 8. (p. 18) “He lists the disasters, the droughts, the storms, the fires, the encroaching