Who Wore it Best: Katniss v. Early Believers

Hubs and I had a super fun night with friends on Friday going to see The Hunger Games.  It wasn’t just for leisure either.  We were a part of history, and added our $20 to the $155 million historical opening.

Having read the books TWICE, you could say I was as excited as a little boy at his first t-ball game.

When I woke up on Friday, I realized that all of my excitement had come to screeching halt and turned to sadness. It was the same kind of sadness that overtakes me on Christmas morning, knowing that the moments are fleeting and soon all the magic will end. I love the anticipation, the questioning, the hoping, the wonderment and the surprise of Christmas. Once all the presents have been opened and the meal devoured, there is grey melancholy that settles in my heart.

I knew this same melancholy would arrive once the credits rolled. So, before the movie started, I decided I wasn’t going to search for any pop parables. I was going to enjoy every minute of the show. I had a few pop parables up my sleeve already, and given the mass popularity of The Hunger Games, I knew that all that could be said would be said by other people who are smarter, funnier, or deeper thinkers than myself.

What I offer you today, my friends, is something I doubt you’ll find on any other blog or write up about The Hunger Games.

Rather than adding to the noise, I’m creating a totally different conversation.

The last Young Adult Fiction phenomenon brought you Who Wore It Best: Edward v. Moses. We studied the sparkly luminescence of the face that was the result of Edward’s vampire roots and Moses’ reflection of God. {Moses won by 1 vote!}

In this edition of Who Wore it Best, we see Katniss and the Early Believers duke it out.

Who Wore it Best: Tongues of Fire

Photo Courtesy of Jo Naylor

Before casting your vote in my live poll, please consider each contestant’s origination of tongues of fire. Since I can’t provide actual images of either manifestation, you’ll have to use your own imagination based upon the narration below.

Cinna {played by Lenny Kravitz}, Katniss’ stylist, dresses her in a gown that breathes fire when she twirls on stage in front of the people of the Capitol. Katniss has no idea how she can be “The Girl on Fire” who isn’t actually on fire or burnt to a crisp like the bacon I forgot about while folding laundry. The fire of her dress is a representation of her life, which becomes a symbol of rebellion, a spark that breeds a fire.

In the book, Collins describe the scene in the words of Katniss:

The creature standing before me in the full-length mirror has come from another world. Where skin shimmers and eyes flash and apparently they make their clothes from jewels. Because, my dress, oh, my dress is entirely covered in reflective precious gems, red and yellow and white with bits of blue that accent the tips of the flame design. The slightest movement gives the impression that I am engulfed in tongues of fire. I am not pretty. I am not beautiful. I am as radiant as the sun.

 In Acts 2, we are told that the early believers gathered together in a house on the Day of Pentecost. It was at this time, that they all became filled with the Holy Spirit. The text reads that they saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

::

In both situations, the witnesses were dumbfounded by the tongues of fire. The people of the Capitol ooh and ahh over Katniss’ magical dress. The Jews were bewildered, and accused the early believers of drunkenness. Peter quickly rebukes that lie, saying, People, people. Can’t you read the sun dial?! I know it’s 5 o clock somewhere, but it’s only 9 am here. The only explanation for this is that God is da hoooouse! {emphasis and interpretation mine.}  The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is also a spark that breeds fire, the beginning of the church as we know it.

Now that you’re edumacated, be a part of history! Cast your vote now!

::

Have you read The Hunger Games or seen the movie?

What pop parables have you seen in this story?

H/T to Angela from The Coupon Project for helping me out with this one.  Read her Hunger Games inspired post here.