Hunger Games didn’t really eat holes in my brain the way that it did for some other people but god the opening lines. The opening lines. Katniss wakes up in bed and immediately, instinctively reaches beside her, only to find the bed empty and cold. Before we even know her name – before we know literally anything about her or this world or her place in that world – we know that she loves someone. We know that she is reaching for where Prim should be, sleeping safe and warm beside her, but Prim is not there. She is not there, and her half of the bed is cold and empty.
People talk about characters being “doomed by the narrative” when most of the time the character was literally just a well-foreshadowed death, but Prim WAS doomed by the narrative. It’s the very first thing we learned. It’s the most key, integral, important piece of information we’re given about everything that is about to happen: Every single choice Katniss makes is to protect her little sister, and it isn’t enough. In the end, Prim still dies. Prim was dead before the story even started.
Katniss, reaching. Prim’s side of the bed was cold and empty. There is no version of this story where Prim could have been saved.
Katniss, reaching. The very first thing she does in the series. She wakes, and she reaches, but Prim is already gone.
THAT is how you do Doomed By The Narrative.
Edit: Also it is key that there was literally nothing Katniss could have done differently. If she had not acted to save Prim, Prim would not have survived the Hunger Games. But by acting to save Prim, Katniss accidentally kicked off an entire rebellion and ultimately massively increased the amount of danger Prim was actually in. The key is that this is irrelevant. If Katniss had done literally anything differently, Prim still would have died. If Katniss had faltered or changed course at any point, Prim still would have died. There was never a point where Katniss could have changed Prim’s fate.
There’s no version of this story where Prim lives to see the end of it. She’s dead before the story begins. That’s doomed by the narrative.
Genuinely it is so funny that Laura and Marisha meant to have a completely platonic relationship and then they both tripped and faceplanted directly into romantic feelings. Roughly around the same time too. Well done ladies. Best failure I’ve ever seen.
Learn to articulate how you’re feeling without accusing anyone of having bad intentions. You can say “I’m afraid of being alone” without saying “you’re just going to leave me like everyone else.” You can say “I need some reassurance” without saying “you probably don’t love me anymore.” You can say “I’m afraid I’ve hurt your feelings and I’d like to talk it through” without saying “you don’t even like me anymore.” You can say “I want to spend more time with you” without saying “you’ve gotten tired of me.” You can say “I feel misunderstood” without saying “you always judge me.” Try not to let your emotions get the best of you. Have a conversation focused on finding solutions instead of escalating the conflict.
sometimes I randomly think about the time a girl posted in this girls only Facebook group I’m in telling everyone how she broke up with her boyfriend and he lied saying that he lost the spare key she gave him, only to then break into her apartment when she wasn’t home and steal the cat they’d adopted while they were together, but then he denied having done this and she didn’t really have proof that he took the cat since he wouldn’t let her come into his place and look for it. And then another girl saw this post and knew her ex-boyfriend, and she was like “girl. I used to hook up with your mans back in xxxx and I still have his number. If you want, I’ll hit him up and get him to invite me back to his place and see if your cat’s there.” And the OP was like “bet.”
So this woman hit up homie dog, asked him out for drinks, went home with him, slept with him, and then woke up in the middle of the night and TOOK THE CAT. Like she had only said that she would confirm if the cat was there but then she took it upon herself to steal this woman’s cat back. Like she full on Trojan horsed this man and then hit up homegirl like “I got the goods. Where you wanna meet.” And then the two of them posted a photo of them together with the cat to the group.
And I just think women supporting women is so beautiful.
me: “yeah I dated a guy in high school who came out as gay. it was before i knew i was a boy so needless to say it didn’t work out”
coworker: “damn dude was preordering”
other things this coworker (who is a cis guy) has done/said:
—got confused about why I’d never been a boy scout because he forgot i was trans
—told me he was gonna get top surgery scar tattoos to match me after i get mine
—laughs at all my trans jokes, even if they’re supremely unfunny
—calls me big dog (and him little dog) even though he is about as tall as two of me
— “I can’t believe she would say that transphobic thing to you. In June? Pride month?”
Once I said “My gender is whatever’s funniest at the time” and my coworker stops dead in his tracks, turns slowly and says “So are your pronouns honk/honk?” killing me instantly
