Alterity and Innocence: "The Hunger Games," Rue, and Black Girl Adultification

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Autor/in	Toliver, S. R.
Titel	Alterity and Innocence: "The Hunger Games," Rue, and Black Girl Adultification
Quelle	In: Journal of Children's Literature, 44 (2018) 2, S.4-15 (12 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1521-7779
Schlagwörter	Fiction; Literary Genres; Futures (of Society); Socialization; Concept Formation; Beliefs; Social Media; Adolescent Literature; Films; Race; Whites; Blacks; Critical Thinking; Discourse Analysis; Computer Mediated Communication; Females; Stereotypes + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Fiktion; Literarische Form; Future; Society; Zukunft; Socialisation; Sozialisation; Concept learning; Begriffsbildung; Belief; Glaube; Soziale Medien; Adolescent; Adolescents; Literature; Jugend; Jugendalter; Jugendlicher; literatur; Film; Rasse; Abstammung; White; Weißer; Black person; Schwarzer; Kritisches Denken; Diskursanalyse; Computerkonferenz; Weibliches Geschlecht; Klischee
Abstract	"The Hunger Games" (S. Collins, 2008) is one of the best-selling fiction books for young people in the United States (Calta, 2014). Although classified as dystopian literature, "The Hunger Games" is situated within the larger literary category of science fiction, a genre often defined by the presence of strange, yet plausible, innovations; the manifestation of extrapolative and realistic possibilities; and the interpretation of themes and issues in modern society through a futuristic lens. Each of these elements creates a space for readers to challenge their conceptions of normalcy and to confront dominant modes of thought to which they have grown accustomed (McKitterick, 2015). However, readers often reach a point where the challenge becomes too great, a point where they cannot move beyond their comfort zones because they have been socialized to embrace narrowed views of the world and the people who inhabit it. This juncture is the level of alterity. Alterity is created when texts ask readers to push beyond their comfort zones in order to understand concepts that require them to expand their beliefs. An example of a response to alterity is exemplified in several Twitter reactions written by young adolescents in response to Rue's casting in the film adaptation of "The Hunger Games." In the novel, S. Collins (2008) first describes Rue as having "dark brown skin and eyes" (p. 45), and she later writes that Rue has "bright, dark eyes and satiny brown skin" (p. 98). Both descriptions indicate that Rue could be a Black girl. However, even though the description of Rue's skin color is explicit, some readers envisioned a young, innocent White girl. Essentially, the characterization of Rue reached a level of alterity so great for some readers that they could not "see" her as Black when they read the novel. Upon the film's release, readers were forced to see Rue as Black because the actor Amandla Stenberg assumed the role of the young female character. With Stenberg functioning in the role of Rue, Collins's novel descriptions came to life; yet, some readers refused to accept her characterization, even with a visual from the film and a description from the book. They refused to embrace the challenge of understanding why they believed Rue to be White even though Collins provided obvious racial descriptions. Instead, they commented about the inaccuracy of the film adaptation and openly described how the character they imagined while reading was not the character that played the role in the film. Their responses to alterity were hindered by their inability to push past their comfort zones. They did not have the tools necessary to deconstruct their previous belief systems. Critically analyzing Rue's characterization in "The Hunger Games," S. R. Toliver investigates how societally embedded discourses can influence a reader's ability to perceive Black girls as young, childlike, and innocent. (ERIC).
Anmerkungen	Children's Literature Assembly. e-mail: info@childrensliteratureassembly.org; Web site: https://www.childrensliteratureassembly.org/journal.html
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2024/1/01