Games!

"Ludi Ludi Ludi!" said the announcement, posted in Rome at some point in the distant past. "Games Games Games!" I've been looking for where I saw it - online? in Rome itself? In one of those tourist books? - but I remember the exuberance, the repetition, the insistence of those three words. Bread and circuses, indeed.

A phrase, of course, that is central to the "Hunger Games" series of books and upcoming movie. The country there takes its name, Panem, from the Latin, "panem et circenses."
One might take the title of the first book as a dark inversion, as well: play the Games to get more bread. Each of the 12 Districts in Panem must send 2 teenagers to the Games. The 24 children thus gathered will fight to the death, last one alive the winner, earning glory for themselves and more food for their District. Fun stuff.

My relevant thought is that it feels like a change to how the Hero generation is portrayed. Not just indulged; beyond aimless; post-dependent: Now willing to dig in for the fight - and dangerous to those who threaten their peers. Not the first time for this: Harry Potter is transformed similarly, but over the course of seven novels. (An L.A. Times review invokes the recent "Hanna" and "Kick-Ass" as well.) The ubiquity of the marketing carries an implicit belief that this concept is becoming mainstream, that there's no reason NOT to believe in a deadly huntress taking on the system to protect her sister and District.

For Strauss and Howe, it's a given that the Hero generation is indulged (Third Turnings are associated with economic booms), protected ( more than Nomads, but not as smothered as Artists) and praised. And also that they are the ones who willingly take on the enemies of society, often making ultimate sacrifices up to and beyond their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor. The jump from one to the other is difficult to comprehend, especially as they are coming of age. ("These spoiled, reckless kids are going to save our world?") That ignores what may be their most significant attribute, admittedly one that doesn't easily distill to a single word. They are close knit, work together - do all sorts of things together - stand as one, watch out for one another, and expect the same in return. Like Katniss, they will go into the arena for the sake of others - especially if it will help them keep what they currently have.

I may wait to confirm which of those incentives - helping peers or staying on top - has more impact, though, so check back in about 20 years.