Does the government control everything? Maybe not as much in the United States, how ever in other societies and Panem they definitely do. Panem takes to extreme the punishment, violence and secrets where as the United States tries to keep it fair. Although, the government in the Hunger Games is different from the United States it is also very alike.

Not only do the Panem citizens have to work to stay alive but they also have a government that won’t tell them anything. Panem and the US both have censorship. In Panem the people know nothing about their government, society or what happens behind closed doors. All they know is what they see and what they manage to find out. Their whole life they grope to find out something but that gets them punished. It is sometimes the same in the US but isn’t as extreme. In the United States the government sometimes doesn’t tell the people some serious issues to avoid havoc. If the people knew everything they would be completely uncivilized because everybody would get worried at an unserious issue that can be resolved easily. So all societies have censorship but some of them have more of it. Panem is very extreme when it comes to that.

All societies have punishment when it comes to committing crimes. In Panem one of the punishments for a bad crime is becoming an Avox. When somebody becomes an Avox the government chops off their tongue so they can’t talk and then they have to serve the government. Also, in the Hunger Games punishment is violence. Violence could be a public whipping for hunting inside of the district or even being beat to death for hunting outside of the district. The government also maims citizens. A bad US punishment is going to jail for life or the death penalty. In the USA, for a small punishment they can also just give somebody a fine. If somebody gets too many driving tickets they can suspend your license. Those are some of the many punishments between the two societies. The US and the Hunger Games both have punishment but the Hunger Games society is much more extreme.

A difference between the two societies is that in the Hunger Games, the government controls everything. In the US there is freedom of speech and also people have lots of rights. Some of the rights include, the freedom of thought and speech, the freedom of life, the freedom of liberty, etc. In the Hunger Games the government controls their lives and doesn’t allow freedom of speech. The only time they can say something bad about the government is when they are deep into the woods where nobody can hear. Also, if a person living in the Hunger Games does something that the government feels is insulting them, the citizen will get a punishment depending on how bad it is. In the United States people can say whatever they want whenever they want. It is also a democracy so people can vote on decisions. The government doesn’t decide everything but they do make most of the decisions. It is fair and democratic where as the Hunger Games government is unfair and cruel.

The laws are also very different between the different societies. In Panem the laws are basically, don’t leave the district, no hunting and follow no rebellion. These laws are like the government itself which is, unfair and cruel. In the United States some of the laws include, no murdering, no suicide, no stealing, etc. The US’s laws are fair and simple. Depending on the states, the laws change. Panem can relate to other country’s laws but when it comes to the United States they are completely opposite.

Is the US on their way to a government like Panem? With the government we have now, maybe not anytime soon but what will it be like in a few years? American citizens should keep working to keep a fair government so it can stay that way for generations to come. Just as Panem’s citizens are trying to make their government better, so too American citizens also work on improving theirs. Hopefully Panem will revert back to the government we have now.