Coriolanus and Tigris Snow’s relationship fell apart between the events ofThe Ballad of Songbirds and SnakesandThe Hunger Games, and I bet I know exactly why. We first met Tigris in theMockingjaybook when she assisted Katniss and her crew in the Capitol. The cat-like woman was pleased to hear that Katniss planned to execute the president, and Katniss assumed that this was because Snow had fired Tigris from working as a stylist in the Games. However, theHunger GamesprequelThe Ballad of Songbirds and Snakesrevealed there was far more to Tigris and Snow’s history.
Tigris and Snow turned out to be cousins inThe Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. They were raised more like siblings, andthough the teenage Coryo showed signs of cruelty even back then, he had a soft spot for Tigris. She had practically raised him, and it was clear that Tigris loved her younger cousin deeply. As of theend of theHunger Gamesprequel, Tigris and Snow were still on good enough terms. However, it’s heavily implied that Snow began treating Tigris with the same cruelty he did everyone else.His love for her soured, and several details of theHunger Gamesfranchise hint at why.
Tigris Was An Inherently Good Person
Snow was alwaysbadinBallad of Songbirds and Snakes, but he went through a significant shift at the end of this story. After his falling out with Lucy Gray,young Coryo concluded that humanity is inherently evil. He had tried to ignore his own violent and cruel tendencies throughout theHunger Gamesprequel, but he reached a point where he could no longer deny that he was a terrible person. To cope with that revelation, Snow convinced himself that all humans are evil, not just him. The Hunger Games were proof of this, he decided—a yearly reminder that even the most innocent of humanity would quickly turn to vicious murder.
The big question Snow grappled with inTBOSASwas what the Hunger Games were actually for. He ultimately came to the conclusion that they were a reminder of humans' true nature, thus demonstrating the necessity for totalitarian control.
Snow’s idea that humanity is inherently evil excused him from experiencing any remorse for his crimes. It justified oppression and changed the Hunger Games from a simple spectacle to a necessary demonstration of natural human behavior. However,Tigris completely contradicted Snow’s newfound belief. He had already acknowledged inBallad of Songbirds and Snakesthat Tigris was inherently good and pure, and she served as his external conscience for a time. For Snow to swallow his own crimes, he had to believe humans were bad, but Tigris got in the way of that. Nothing could have made him hate her more.
Tigris & Snow Having The Same Background In The Hunger Games Is Profoundly Important
Two Characters Raised Under The Same Circumstances Turned Out Very Differently From One Another
Suzanne Collins did something genius when she introducedTigris and Snow’s relationship inThe Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. The two cousins had the same exact history. They had both been orphaned by the Capitol’s war with the Districts and were raised by the same loyalist grandmother. Tigris and Snow witnessed terrible things as small children, such as starvation, death, and cannibalism. Additionally, they were both raised with inadequate nutrition. These are all the ingredients that made Snow the man he turned out to be—but thenwhy didn’t Tigris turn out that way?
Collins used this character as an argument in the “human nature” debate, emphasizing that Snow’s upbringing certainly aided in his becoming a cruel, murderous dictator, but his choices determined his identity.
Tigris was gentle, kind, and compassionate inThe Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, andSnow no doubt grew to despise this about her. Collins used this character as an argument in the “human nature” debate, emphasizing that Snow’s upbringing certainly aided in his becoming a cruel, murderous dictator, but his choices determined his identity. Interestingly (but not coincidentally), this is precisely the sort of thing that Katniss grappled with in herThe Hunger Gamesstory. Tigris and Snow’s parallel relationship seamlessly continued the original story’s themes.
Tigris & Snow’s Differences Perfectly Reflect Katniss' Hunger Games Ending
Remembering The Good In Humanity Made All The Difference For Katniss
Snow was confronted with the ugliness of humanity internally and externally inThe Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, and Katniss was faced with the same inThe Hunger Games.At the start of her story, Katniss is focused entirely on survival. She had little room to consider any more than what it would take to stay alive. However, she went against this core instinct when she volunteered to take her sister’s place in the Games. Though she quickly shifted back into survival mode,the natural acts of kindness shown by characters throughout her story, especially Peeta, caused a shift.
By the end ofThe Hunger Games, Katniss had witnessed firsthand the terrible cruelty and violence that humanity was capable of. This same evidence had led Snow to be the appalling dictator he was, but unlike the president, Katniss didn’t close her eyes to goodness. In fact, the epilogue ofThe Hunger Gamesrevealed thatKatniss would cope with her trauma by playing a little game with herself in which she would list every good thing she ever saw a person do.The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakesretroactively emphasized the power of choosing to see the good in humanity—it’s ultimately whatThe Hunger Gamesis all about.
