Date of Award

8-17-2023

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

English

First Advisor

Michelle Beissel Heath

Committee Members

Todd T Holm, Megan Hartman, Susan E Honeyman, Kirklin J Bateman

Keywords

Battle Royale, Hunger Games, Koushun Takami, Neal Shusterman, Scythe, Suzanne Collins

Abstract/Description

The works of Suzanne Collins, Koushun Takami, and Neal Shusterman present a unique subset of young adult literature in which young adults are forced to kill one another. My thesis argues that the presentation of child gladiators in these stories is a form of weaponization conducted by the fictional governments as deterrent weapons against the parents of these fictional dystopias. This weaponization is accomplished through the creation of spectacular events that are meant to draw the attention to the power of the government, also as a form of deterrence against rebellion. Next, my thesis demonstrates how the human body is devalued and transformed into a weapon in various ways. Finally, my thesis focuses on how the characters in these stories are stripped of their individual personalities and reassociated with weapons as a final step in their weaponization. This dehumanization culminates in the loss of human identity and the creation of an identity that is based on their usefulness as a tool and not their value as a human being. I will argue that these acts should be read as warnings of the dangers of exploitation of childhood by adulthood, and these novels challenge readers to use these fictional examples as ways to identify potential real-world exploitative threats to children.

Share

COinS
 
 

To view the content in your browser, please download Adobe Reader or, alternately,
you may Download the file to your hard drive.

NOTE: The latest versions of Adobe Reader do not support viewing PDF files within Firefox on Mac OS and if you are using a modern (Intel) Mac, there is no official plugin for viewing PDF files within the browser window.