海角大神

Themes of poverty, injustice, oppression 鈥� and yes, hunger 鈥� feature prominently in the story line of 鈥�The Hunger Games,鈥� the film franchise launching this weekend.聽

Now, those issues聽are migrating off the page and silver screen into the real world. Fans of the dystopian聽world depicted by author Suzanne Collins are being urged to get involved with social-justice issues, such as fighting hunger.

The series is tailor-made for this sort of fiction-to-real world translation, says Catherine Wilson, a political scientist at Villanova University in Philadelphia. 鈥淭he film has a powerful line鈥� when Katniss, the 16-year-old heroine sent to battle for her family鈥檚 survival, 鈥渁ddresses the control and manipulation of the food source, proclaiming: 'I refuse to play your game,' "聽she says in an e-mail.

These words are particularly appealing to the film's young adult audience, says Professor Wilson, who studies social movements. This is 鈥渁n audience raised on the importance of community service and finding creative solutions to complex social problems."

In February, the World Food Programme of the UN and Lionsgate, the film鈥檚 distributor, co-created a video to involve "Hunger Games" fans in ending hunger.聽 World Vision, a聽海角大神 charity, has more than 100,000 teen 鈥淗unger鈥� fans lined up for an April 27 fast to end hunger.聽

In another social-action campaign dubbed, 鈥淗unger is not a game,鈥� a project of the Harry Potter alliance (HPA) called "Imagine Better" aims to tap 鈥淗unger鈥� fans to support Oxfam鈥檚 鈥淕row鈥� campaign, a five point, antihunger initiative aimed at specific聽Department of Agriculture legislation now being revised in Congress. Moviegoers this weekend are being urged to sign a petition and contact their local representatives.聽

This move from the couch into the body politic is relatively new for the "Hunger Games" fan base, says Savanna New, a 20-something French teacher from Florida who hosts a weekly podcast on the trilogy.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a natural fit, but pretty new for most of us,鈥� she says. She notes that she was part of a group trying to help raise money for African famine victims in 2011, 鈥渂ut we didn鈥檛 get anywhere near the kind of support we had hoped.鈥�

This time, she says, the movie and the growing momentum around various partners will make a difference. 鈥淚 am sort of the ambassador to the 鈥楪ames鈥� fandom,鈥� she says, working to bring the focus and scope of more experienced nonprofits such as Oxfam and even the HPA to her fan world.

鈥淚t鈥檚 so important that we invest in the energy and passion of young people,鈥� says HPA founder Andrew Slack.聽

This partnership with 鈥淗unger鈥� fans is the first step聽away from the group鈥檚 founding focus around the Harry Potter stories, he says, but he views it as a natural聽 progression for what is being called 鈥渘omadic fandoms.鈥� These are groups that form around an initial shared passion, then migrate the structure and the social-media interconnectedness into the next compelling narrative.

The progression from making a difference in the world based on principles聽gleaned from the Potter books is a natural fit. 鈥淭hese groups love complexity and nuance,鈥� he says, 鈥渁nd they are invested in online activism and connection. They get it way more than adults do,鈥� he adds.

This push through online connections into the offline world speaks to the way the next generation will be interacting with the politics of tomorrow, says Ben Agger, director of the Center for Theory at the University of Texas, Arlington鈥檚 Sociology Department. His 20-year-old daughter is headed to a midnight screening of 鈥淭he Hunger Games鈥� on Thursday, and he says, she intends to sign the Oxfam petition.

鈥淗ow long can you keep the injustices of the world hidden now that they have an international fan base?鈥� he adds.聽

Real-world activism flows naturally from the book鈥檚 themes and characters, adds George Dunn, editor of a new book on the philosophy of "The Hunger Games," and a philosophy instructor at the University of Indianapolis. 鈥淭he heroes of the series are just ordinary people who find themselves in extraordinary circumstances,鈥� he says.

Characters find within themselves the courage and resources to make the world better. As the books move people to take action, he adds, 鈥渋t gives you hope about the future of literature when we realize the power it can have.鈥�