Question:
One of the storylines driving the plot is the love triangle between Katniss, Peeta, and Gale. In this conflict, who are you rooting for? Do you like the romantic storyline? Why or why not?
My answer:
There are thousands of people with very strong opinions of which guy Katniss should hook up with. I’m going to explain why I would root for each one, so if you don’t want to read that, just skip ahead*. Gale and Katniss are best friends. Starvation and keeping their families alive brings them together. Early on in the first book, when Katniss is first reaped and taken to the Capitol, she doesn’t know what to do without Gale. They have always been a team, and suddenly she has another teammate who is not technically a teammate, but an enemy. When she is gone, he takes care of not only his family, but hers also, which shows compassion and loyalty. He doesn’t stop helping them even when Katniss and Peeta get up close and personal. And he doesn’t even know that Katniss is faking. But he will never understand what she went through and what conflicting emotions she has. But Peeta does, because he went through them two. I think Gale always thought that he and Katniss would end up together. Now for Peeta. He has always, from the moment he saw her, had a crush on her. When Katniss was starving, he gave her bread, even though his mother hurt him for it. And when they are both in the games, he is determined to let her live. When they get out of the first games, and Katniss tells him their love is all an act, he is crushed. But that doesn’t mean the act is over. They have to play it up for the Capitol and the District people. You never doubt his love for her. When they find out they’re going back in the games, he puts himself in to protect her. You have noticed that Katniss experienced slight twinges of attraction to Peeta, but can’t pick them out. But now, in the new Arena, when Peeta hits the forcefield and almost dies, you really see how much she loves him, and I think that is the moment she finds out she loves him too. When she is rescued from the games by District 13, but Peeta is not, she constantly worries about them torturing him. She finally convinces the officials of 13 to go get him, but when he turns up, and tries to hurt her, they realize he is hijacked. The struggle is now reversed. She loves him, but he does not love her. The line, “I must have loved you a lot.” And Katniss’s response, “You did.” Really shows how lost and gone the real Peeta is. In the end, Katniss helps Peeta find the lost bit of himself and he realizes he really does love her. This relationship is so intriguing because of the back and forth emotions going on. And it’s so comforting in the end when they both love each other and can be relatively happy. *I am rooting for Peeta.
