Heroines of Captivity Then and Now: A Comparison of Mary Rowlandson's Narrative and Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games

Monzón García, Marta
Martínez Falquina, Silvia (dir.)

Universidad de Zaragoza, FFYL, 2017
Departamento de Filología Inglesa y Alemana, Área de Filología Inglesa

Graduado en Estudios Ingleses

Resumen: In spite of female invisibilization and silencing throughout history, women have often managed to remain present in one way or another. There are significant examples in literature of strong female characters who are the best models to inspire other women in order to make positive changes in the world. In many relevant American literary works, female characters embody the worthy values of American citizens, usually related to male heroes. These female voices can be considered heroines in their worlds and they show the importance of women’s actions to subvert the traditional image of fragility and dependence derived from patriarchy. In this essay the evolution of the American heroine is analyzed in two works that, at first sight, have few things in common: Mary Rowlandson’s A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson (1682), and Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games (2008). In spite of the obvious contextual and ideological distance between the two texts, it is my contention that both works can be examined under the scope of the captivity narrative genre, which became a very recognizable image of American literature about the problems of the first American settlers in the colonies, and whose influence continues to this day. This comparative analysis tries to prove the existence of the frontier heroine in American literature related to the archetypical frontier hero and the need for strong female voices for 21st century young readers. The essay also deals with the formal features of the genre which are present in both texts and the similarities that connect them. A key element of this analysis is the characterization of the heroines and the symbolism of the Bible in Rowlandson’s and the food in Collins’, both of which become essential elements of support for the heroines’ survival.

Tipo de Trabajo Académico: Trabajo Fin de Grado