Avox vs Execution - Punishement in The Hunger Games

[@kilian-one-l]

I think it says a lot that the majority of disabilities and disabled characters were erased. Peeta didn't lose his leg in the movies, Katniss didn't lose her hearing in one ear, and most of the avoxes were left out

[@meadow392]

Peeta not losing his leg is literally such a disservice to viewers. They cut an entire part of the games and the reprecussions by doing that.

[@storytimewithyaz]

I actually wonder if the avoxes were for people who found out/knew information that could get out/be detrimental to the Capitol/Snow’s control to shut them up - like if they spoke up about something & if executions were for those who did the action of something rebellious.

[@Rebeccal450]

Political theory analysis (from someone who wrote an undergraduate thesis applying Hannah Arendt’s "The Origins of Totalitarianism" to the Hunger Games series): (1) The difference between the Capitol turning someone into an avox and executing someone represents the spectrum of repression. German political scientists Johannes Gerschewski and Seraphine F. Maerz conceptualize that the main tools that autocratic regimes use to maintain stability are legitimation, repression, and co-optation. For each of these elements, there are two dimensions to it. In the case of repression, there is both "high" repression (visible acts that are commonly a repression of physical integrity rights - e.g. attempted assassination or imprisonment of opposition leaders, violent actions against mass demonstrations, torture, etc.), and "low" repression (more subtle, less visible actions that are commonly a repression of civil and political rights - e.g. a mass surveillance apparatus, limiting freedom of assembly and association, denying certain job or educational opportunities to select individuals or groups, etc.). "High" and "low" repression may be viewed either as a spectrum, or as more distinct approaches that are interconnected. Autocratic regimes are more stable long-term using "low" repression (and totalitarian regimes in particular - as the Capitol is - vastly prefer "low" repression). Turning someone into an avox is closer on the spectrum to "low" repression than executions. Executions are a very "high" repressive act that regimes should use sparingly, otherwise it may result in public outrage against the regime. When the Capitol turns someone from the districts into an avox, it is technically "high" repression because it is a form of disappearance, but it is still definitely less repressive than executions. When the Capitol turns someone from the Capitol into an avox, it leans even more towards "low" repression, for it is more akin to denying certain job opportunities, limiting freedom of association, and restricting freedom of speech. (2) The difference between the Capitol turning someone into an avox and executing someone also reflects a distinction between specifically totalitarian regimes and more broadly authoritarian regimes. The world of The Hunger Games is totalitarian because the biggest foundation it uses to maintain control is building legitimacy through mythos and the creation of a consistent fiction (in this case, that the Capitol is needed to maintain control to prevent ultimate chaos). Russian political scientist Ekaterina Shulman considers totalitarian regimes to “demand participation,” whereas authoritarian regimes “reward passivity." Turning someone into an avox still demands participation; this is particularly true for Capitol citizens who are turned into avoxes. On the other hand, execution aligns more with when the Capitol wants to reward passivity. In The Hunger Games series, we particularly see executions or threats of executions occur when the Capitol has already lost the totalitarian control over an individual (because they no longer believe that the Capitol is necessary to prevent ultimate chaos). This applies to victors who are disillusioned or angry after surviving (because they experienced that the Capitol is the one who creates the chaos), and Seneca Crane (who defied the created mythos/scientific fiction of the Capitol by enabling two tributes to win the 74th Games).