The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

The social contract is generally defined as the cooperation of members within a society for a common good. How is this concept subverted by the Capitol?

Throughout the book, Dr. Gaul urges Coriolanus to consider what the fundamental purpose of the Hunger Games is. He answers the question in several ways. What purpose does the reader think the Games serve?

What triggers Coriolanus’s hatred of the jabberjays and mockingjays? Why does he want them killed?

Describe Lucy Gray’s relationship to snakes: From the day of reaping to her experience in the arena to the final confrontation with Coriolanus, Lucy Gray has a connection to snakes. What do snakes signify in these contexts?

Both Coriolanus and Lucy Gray express love for each other, but their relationship is complicated not only by the latter’s enforced participation in the Hunger Games but also by their radically different backgrounds. Does the reader think that their love is mutual? Or even genuine?

Given the cruel and unusual nature of the Hunger Games, do Coriolanus’s actions (i.e., giving Lucy Gray the compact, or dropping the handkerchief with her scent on it into the snake tank) constitute cheating? That is, in an unethical arena, should there be ethical standards? What’s at stake?

Compare and contrast Coriolanus and Sejanus: How do each of them view their friendship? The Capitol and the districts? Their role as Peacekeepers?

Coriolanus never finds Lucy Gray’s body. Does the reader think he killed her? Or, has she escaped, never to be heard from again? Why would the author leave this detail ambiguous?