In district 12 their mentor for the hunger games is Haymitch Abernathy, as he had won the hunger games for district 12 in the past and is helping in supporting and managing the tributes. At the reaping for district 12 this year, as he was giving a congratulatory speech to Katniss, he was so drunk that he fell off the stage and knocked himself unconscious.
If i was one of the tributes for district 12 I would be very upset with the fact that our mentor that is suppose to be teaching us about how to win the games is always drunk. Also the fact that his first impression on the tributes was him knocking himself unconscious was kind of ridiculous.
Not only does Haymitch appear to be useless at the beginning of the novel but he also appears to be a bad influence. As later on in the novel, the night before the hunger games begin Peeta says "i don't want them to change me in there. Turn me into some kind of monster that I'm not." (page 141) I believe that reason Peeta had said this was from the way that he had seen Haymitch act. Haymitch going through the hunger games and winning them, was probably what lead him to his alcoholism.
Although that's only one way of looking at how Haymitch had acted at the reaping. In another way, could him being so drunk and knocking himself unconscious be a strategy of making district 12 look weak and have a bad trainer ?
Marie, wonderful analysis of that situation. I agree with the last part of your opinion. I feel the reason Haymitch is always drunk is due to the fact he won the games. To win the Hunger Games he must have had to kill a lot of people, kids his own age. The traumatic scenes must have changed the way he thinks. Everyday he must try to wash the blood off his hands. Unable to do this mental thought, he resorts to drinking. The only time Haymitch can feel at peace is when he is drunk. I felt this signified a lot about how the human mind can change in reality from any experience.
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