one serious talk

This morning, C started the morning on a serious note. There have been much hype of the release of the latest instalment of The Hunger Games and C must have been kept in the loop by her classmates. She asked me if it was a good show to watch.

I took a deep breath... and started. First, I acknowledged that the book was extremely popular and almost all, of my students were reading it at some point or another. Then I went on to say that the movie was an even bigger hit. Finally I gave her my views on whether it was a good book.

In the story, in a futuristic world, people live under a harsh and authoritarian rule and their idea of "fun, entertaining and live" action means these rulers sit in the comfort of their homes, tune into their television sets, and watch a pair of candidates from each province fight and kill each other. 

I went on to ask her if we already have such "live, realistic" television shows and slowly she came to realise that I was referring to the reality tv shows we already have on tv now. I said, yes and imagine that the killing was real. There was no "waking up and dusting your feet" when the cameras stopped rolling and she concluded that if such a thing really would to happen in the future, life would be unbearable. I had to burst her bubble by telling her, much to her horror, that back in heyday of the Roman Empire, that was also what people considered entertainment and people would go in doves to watch the spectacle.

So, back to her question on whether it was a good movie to watch; unless we could discuss the themes at length, I would not take her for it, albeit, a hit all around the world.