Rue's Lullaby: The scene we need to see in "The Hunger Games"

Contains spoilers for "The Hunger Games" and "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows."

“Tonight it sends me Rue, still decked in her flowers, perched in a high sea of trees, trying to teach me to talk to the mockingjays. I see no sign of her wounds, no blood, just a bright, laughing girl. She sings songs I’ve never heard in a clear, melodic voice. On and on. Through the night. There’s a drowsy in-between period when I can hear the last few strains of her music although she’s lost in the leaves.”
"The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins
Pg. 235-6)

With any movie based off a book, each fan has a particular part they wish to see. For example, I wanted to see Fred Weasley’s death in “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2.” I felt that this scene helped solidify Harry’s resolve to meet Voldemort. Harry’s determination to stop others from dying for him is a major theme of the entire series. Watching Fred die, someone close to his age and like family, was necessary to back up the point. Unfortunately, all we saw was Fred’s corpse. Another set of books will arrive on the big screen next spring with its own variety of vital, emotional scenes: The Hunger Games trilogy.

Countless moments stood out to me while reading “The Hunger Games.” Had someone asked me immediately after I finished reading the book what scene I wanted to see the most, I’m not sure what my answer would have been. The parade? The Cornucopia? The berries? Now I now: Rue’s dying scene.

That Rue, the young Tribute from District 11, died was no surprise. Her death acted like a turning point in the novel.

While Rue lies on the ground dying, she asks Katniss to sing to her. Katniss complies, singing a sweet, comforting lullaby. Tears fall from her eyes and her voice grows quieter as she sings Rue to her final resting place. Katniss then lines Rue’s lifeless body with wildflowers. Between the song and the flowers, Katniss shows the people of Capitol that the ones the government continues to abuse are human, are real people. Her actions make the reader wonder if a spectator had a second thought about watching children die for entertainment.

With any book to movie adaptation fans fear the changes. I hope that this scene is included in the film exactly as Suzanne Collins wrote it in the book. To lose such a powerful moment would harm the story.