The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

Despite his initial disappointment, Coriolanus, the Capitol, and the crowd soon find themselves captivated by 16-year-old Lucy Gray Baird. She slips a snake into the mayor’s daughter’s dress, then responds to the man’s retaliatory blows with a song. The refrain from the song, “Nothing you can take from me was ever worth keeping!” (29), demonstrates both her bravado and her defiance. Coriolanus takes in the rainbow-ruffled dress-wearing “tattered butterfly in a field of moths” (24) and wonders how to best use her to elevate himself.

Coriolanus’s classmate Sejanus Plinth, whose family originally hailed from District 2, suspects that Lucy Gray’s entry was rigged. Yet, Coriolanus remains excited as the young woman is likely to improve his prospects—which cannot come soon enough for young Snow as the Academy’s Dean Highbottom cruelly notes.

Coriolanus decides to meet Lucy Gray at the train station, bringing her one of his grandmother’s—Grandma’am’s—roses at the behest of Tigris. He plans to use Lucy Gray’s unique appeal to curry favor with their audience; however, he also treats her with caution as anyone “who could pull off such a brazen performance” was inherently “intimidating,” even “terrifying” (39). When Coriolanus presents Lucy Gray with the rose, she proceeds to eat one of the petals.

The Peacekeepers who guard the tributes notice Coriolanus, who asks to accompany Lucy Gray to her quarters until the Games commence. He tries to project authority and confidence to impress her and the other tributes. His gambit, however, does not go as planned: He finds himself caged with the unwashed tributes and transported by truck. To make matters worse, Lucy Gray protects him from the others’ murderous intent; Coriolanus is now in her debt.

The caged Coriolanus and tributes catch the eye of spectators. Mortified, he again attempts to make the most of his situation by introducing Lucy Gray to the crowd. Lucy Gray informs them that she is not originally from District 12—but rather, she is of the “Covey,” a group of traveling musicians.

Coriolanus reflects on his and Lucy Gray’s shared ability to “perform.” It is this quality that attracts the attention of Dr. Volumnia Gaul, the “Head Gamemaker and mastermind behind the Capitol’s experimental weapons division” (58). She unnerves Coriolanus with her erratic, sinister behavior—though he manages to hide his discomfort. When Dr. Gaul asks him of the Hunger Games’ purpose, he hesitates; he thinks the Games’ horror lies in sacrificing children, but reflects on the numerous children sacrificed during the war. Dr. Gaul is patient, sensing his future understanding.

Coriolanus visits Lucy Gray at the tributes’ quarters, the zoo—only to find Sejanus trying to feed them. They refuse as they distrust Capitol residents. However, Lucy Gray accepts the food out of her and Coriolanus’s newfound “bond,” encouraging the others to eat as well. All the tributes but the male tribute from District 2—who happens to be Sejanus’s former classmate and mentee—do so.

Afterwards, Coriolanus urges Lucy Gray to sing another song, something to keep the audience interested. She sings of lost love, which evokes memories of his late mother and stillborn sister; he remembers her powder compact, smelling of roses, that he keeps beside his bed. Sejanus interrupts Coriolanus’s reverie to thank him for convincing the tributes to eat. Coriolanus questions why he wished to do so in the first place: “Ever since the reaping,” Sejanus replies, “I keep imagining I’m one of them” (72). Coriolanus fails to empathize, instead admiring the other’s built mentee Marcus: “The idea of [Lucy Gray] defeating Marcus was laughable. Like pitting a songbird against a grizzly bear” (74). But when Sejanus offers to trade tributes, Coriolanus refuses. He wants recognition for his talents, not an easy win. More importantly, he does not wish to give his wealthier rival the one thing he has “over him.”