“A necklace of hope” : Musical Revolution in The Hunger Games

The television glows. On-screen, a girl in a rainbow of ruffles sings a familiar tune with unfamiliar words. 

It’s sooner than later that I’m six feet under. 

It’s sooner or later that you’ll be alone. 

So who will you turn to tomorrow, I wonder?

For when the bell rings, lover, you’re on your own.” (Collins 334)

A few weeks ago, I picked up the new Hunger Games prequel: Sunrise on the Reaping. This essay won’t contain any significant spoilers, but Haymitch's story reminds the reader of the profound importance of music in the franchise. I can’t help but notice how Collins entwines music with the overarching voice of the uprising. Although music plays a significantly larger role in The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes than any of the other novels, I have always been struck by the power of lyrics and song in the franchise. By intertwining the stories of the districts with the enduring melody of the revolution, The Hunger Games is unique in its ability to connect the readers or viewers with Panem’s system of control. The voice of suppression, violence, and, most importantly, hope, soars above the stories long after we have closed the books.

In this case, it is important to discuss Lucy Gray. Her brief presence in Sunrise on the Reaping (seen above) comes at a time of huge significance and turmoil for Haymitch. She is reduced to ‘a girl in a rainbow of ruffles,’ yet still manages to evoke a reaction, or a flickering of the revolution. Her song lives on:

“Too bad I’m the bet that you lost in the reaping.

Now what will you do when I go to my grave?”

(Collins 335)

Lucy Gray’s lyrics humanise her character, whilst also pushing the brutal, mortal reminder of Panem’s regime. Her spectacle, manufactured for Capitol viewers, is one of the first examples of this enduring sound of resistance. This music is the only enduring connection between the early Hunger Games and the events we see in the trilogy. By the “76th Hunger Games,” the music has become polyvocal. It is not just a matter of filling a background; the lyrics and music of the resistance are quite literally embedded into the books and the films. 

Indeed, when I first read the books, and then watched the films, I was always struck by the power of The Hanging Tree. It first appears in Mockingjay, with Katniss suggesting to the reader that the song was banned in District 12, at least by her family. The last stanza feels especially haunting:

Are you, are you

Coming to the tree?

Wear a necklace of rope

Side by side with me

Strange things did happen here, no stranger would it be

If we met at midnight in the hanging tree

(Collins 2014)

This song becomes integral to the revolution. It tells a story of mortality, fear, and resistance that haunts the reader - or viewer - long after the singer has taken their last breath. The Hanging Tree is completely unnerving as the ballad begins to unravel. It is here that the film departs slightly from the novel. Undeniably, there is already power in the song being used as a “propo” in the books, but Mockingjay - Part 1 develops the song into the overarching, stomp-like noise of the resistance. The first time I watched the scene where The Hanging Tree is chanted by the rebels as they walk towards their implied deaths, I remember having chills. In fact, I can still feel the enormous power of this moment every time I rewatch the film.  It is used to spur on the rebels, uniting them in the face of oppression. In many ways, this is not dissimilar to protest songs today. There is an overwhelming sense of resistance when voices are united for a common cause, making the diegesis of music in The Hunger Games so powerful.

The Hunger Games evidently uses music as a manifestation of the revolt. The songs are layered with meaning, becoming increasingly polyvocal over the huge timeframe of the series. Music and storytelling are vital to the franchise, with the resistant, enduring ballads ultimately transforming into a means of expressing anti-fascist sentiment, unifying the revolt. 

Works cited:

Collins, Suzanne. Mockingjay. Scholastic, 2014.

Collins, Suzanne. Sunrise on the Reaping. Scholastic, 2025.

Lawrence, Francis, dir. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1. Lionsgate, 2014. Film.

Lawrence, Jennifer. “The Hanging Tree.” Spotify. https://open.spotify.com/track/416MsJxvxSKY96DCmbJIRs?si=ab7b23c8545b4c42