Cornucopia Hunger Games

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Zack Dowling Period 3 Cornucopia Cornucopia. What does it mean? It sounds dangerous, I know. But what is a cornucopia? Is it just a large word that Suzanne Collins uses to sound intelligent? Or is it something more? And why was this word brought up multiple times in The Hunger Games? Read on and find out. A cornucopia is a symbol of plenty and prosperity. Conventionally, it is represented by a curved horn which overflows with fruit and grain. This representation is often connected with the harvest. This ornamental device has a long and early history, with roots deep in Greek mythology. According to the myth, Zeus was nurtured by a goat named Amalthea. In one account of the story, the young god accidentally broke off her horn, and felt remorseful about it, so he returned it to her in charmed form, proclaiming that the horn would be filled with whatever the holder desired. Other legends say that Amalthea broke her horn off herself, filling it with flowers and bestowing it upon Zeus. The Greeks believe that the Horn of Amalthea, as they called it, symbolized wealth, since it could be endlessly filled with whatever the heart desired. When Romans were presented with the theory, they adopted it as the cornu copiae, the "horn of plenty," using the symbol in their coins, figures, and art to represent copiousness. Over time, the original Latin became degraded into "cornucopia," and along the way, people began to connect the representation of the overflowing horn with the harvest, when they yielded all their crops. Obviously, Mrs. Collins has chosen to name the place where the Gamemakers leave food, weapons, and supplies for the tributes at the Hunger Games ‘Cornucopia’ because as I have discussed, cornucopias signify great wealth and prosperity. In the Cornucopia before the Hunger Games, the tributes were probably looking for weapons,

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