As I begin the process of building an online identity to promote my budding writing career, I find myself struggling to align my personal self-identity with the public image I will eventually portray. Between this website and my social media profiles I will give you glimpses into my life as a writer and will decide between what aspects of my life to include. This all reminds me of two unrelated novels in which the main characters dealt with the same concept, only under much more dire circumstances.
In The Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen must balance her self-identity with the need to create a public persona to impress the citizens that may sponsor her in the Hunger Games. Similarly, in Gone Girl Nick Dunne must overcome the negative impressions associated with his identity to be more likable in the court of public opinion. Both novels explore the theme of personal identity vs. public opinion. These are truly relevant themes today as social media creates the need to balance our personal lives with constant exposure to public opinion.
As we are introduced to Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games, we learn that she is an extremely practical person. She assumed the role of provider for her family at an early age, since her father died in a mining accident and her mother fell into a deep depression. Katniss is a skilled hunter, gatherer, and bargainer. Her life does not afford the typical considerations of fashion or social status other teens might pursue; her identity is strongly tied to survival. This is reflected in the way she dresses, “(I) slide into my hunting boots. Supple leather that has molded to my feet. I pull on trousers a shirt, tuck my long dark braid into a cap, and grab my forage bag.” (pg. 4) Once Katniss becomes a tribute in the Hunger Games, she quickly learns that she will have to reconsider her identity. She needs to present herself in a favorable light to gain favor from the citizens who may sponsor her and send her gifts and resources that will be crucial to her survival in the games. She realizes that the citizens of the Capitol are extremely superficial and often at odds with the values reflected in her home district, “They do surgery in the Capitol, to make people appear younger and thinner. In District 12, looking old is something of an achievement since so many people die early. You see an elderly person you want to congratulate them on their longevity.” (pg. 124-125) She also struggles with the lifestyle she is afforded as a tribute before the games begin. She eats lavish feasts for every meal, while realizing that people back home are starving. The contrast of practical vs. superficial and survival vs. overindulgence creates a paradox in Katniss's vision of herself. Katniss struggles with the opposite versions of herself she must present to gain favor. It is her stylist, Cenna, who finally helps her realize the appeal of her strong survivor image, this allows her to balance who she is with the need to impress the citizens of the Capitol. Cenna tells her, “Why don’t you just be yourself...the citizens of the Capitol, well, they can’t stop talking about you. No one can help but admire your spirit.” (Pg. 121)
In Gone Girl, Nick Dunne battles with a conflicting self-image vs. the public persona he needs to portray. He is the product of a broken mid-western family. His father was a verbally and emotionally abusive misogynist. After his mother left the father, she overcompensated by spoiling Nick. As a result, Nick seeks approval and love from the women in his life. He is also stoic and reclusive, as he describes himself “I don’t often say things out loud, even when I should. I contain and compartmentalize to a disturbing degree: in my belly-basement are hundreds of bottles of rage, despair, fear, but you would never guess it from looking at me.” (pg. 50) Nick struggles with his relationships with women due to his desire to reject his father's misogynistic tendencies, “I’d tried all my life to be a decent guy, a man who loved and respected women, a guy without hang-ups.” (pg. 478) This becomes increasingly difficult as he builds resentment to Amy and eventually to Andie and even his sister, Go. Nick struggles with his own likeability and displaying sincerity, after his introduction to Officer Riorden, he notes “his lips curled telling me he saw what everyone else did. I have a face you want to punch: I’m a working-class Irish kid trapped in the body of a total trust-fund douchebag.” (pg. 43) Nick realizes that not only to win in the court of public opinion but to also lure Amy back home, he needs to appear both likable and sincere. “Take control of the story, Nick. For both the capital-P public and the capital-C wife.” (pg. 400)
In both The Hunger Games and Gone Girl the authors create characters who have traits that are completely opposite from the personas they must portray. The paradox of true self-identity vs. public persona provides conflict and tension as well as opportunities for growth with these characters. Katniss Everdeen’s character is the product of a child facing dire and extreme circumstances to survive and protect her family, while Nick Dunne is the product of a dysfunctional family that ill-equipped him to deal with a healthy adult relationship.
Through the development of complex characters and the use of paradoxes, Collins and Flynn, create personalities whose self-identities are at conflict with the images they must portray in order to accomplish their goals. The theme of self-identity vs. public image is real and relevant today more than ever. Due to social media sites such as Facebook and Instagram, we feel the pressure to present ourselves to the public in ways that may not always agree with our true selves. While most people do not experience the extreme situations that Katniss and Nick are put in, we do often find ourselves at conflict with our true identities opposed to the public image we wish to portray. Although the theme of identity and the portrayal of self to the public are timeless, the rise of social media has only intensified this concept. Literature and specifically novels such as The Hunger Games and Gone Girl are instrumental in exploring topics that pertain to the discovery of identity.
Works Cited
Collins, Suzanne. The Hunger Games. New York, Scholastic Press. 2008. Print.
Flynn, Gillian. Gone Girl. New York, Random House. 2012. Print.