Peeta Mellark is the son of the local baker in District Twelve, and has been in love with Katniss Everdeen since he was five years old. On his first day of school, Peeta's father pointed out the young Katinss, dressed in a red plaid dress, and said, “See that little girl? I wanted to marry her mother, but she ran off with a coal miner.” The young Peeta was instantly smitten. Like father, like son. Both doomed to live in quiet obscurity, their love forever unrequited.
For the next eleven years, Peeta quietly watched Katniss from afar, unable to work up the nerve to actually talk to her. Haymitch's decision to put a spin on their relationship as “star-crossed lovers” was truly apt: Peeta was born into a relatively well-off family who lived in the mercantile sector of town, while Katniss was a poor girl from the Seam. He was social with some of the other townsfolk; Katniss was more of a loner and preferred her own company. He's social, gregarious, has a flair for showmanship, and possesses artistic talents. Katniss is aloof, calculated; she does what's necessary to survive and doesn't waste time on frivolities.
Yet despite all those differences—or perhaps because of them—Peeta finds himself hopelessly head over heels for the strong and capable huntress. He's one of the very few people who's ever born witness to her vulnerability, which is highlighted by a pivotol event in Katniss' childhood.
When both children were eleven years old, Peeta burned some bread on purpose in order to give to the starving Katniss. Though his mother beat him, he shouldered the pain quietly and offered what little he could so that Katniss could live. Though Katniss never properly thanked him, he was happy knowing that his small offering was enough to keep her going. He is unaware just how much of an impact that event had on Katniss, how those two loaves of bread gave her the strength to keep on living...
Ironically enough, Peeta counts himself fortunate to have had his name drawn for the Hunger Games, after Katniss took her sister's place as a Tribute. He claims it was “a real piece of luck.”
Personality:
Peeta is described as a boy of “medium height, stocky build, ashy blond hair that falls in waves over his forehead” by Katniss. He also has blue eyes. The audience is captivated by his innocent and sometimes self-deprecating manner, which earns him a great deal of favor among his sponsors. One would expect the son of a baker to be rather naïve, if not a bit dim-witted, but Peeta displays a surprising level of intelligence and stratagem both in and out of the Games. He works with Haymitch in order to use his strongest attributes to best advantage. A less scrupulous person wouldn't care about using any means necessary to win, but Peeta's devotion to Katniss is indicative of his gentle nature and willingness to go to extreme lengths in order to insure her safety. Unlike Katniss, he's never had to kill for his food and lacks the instinct and cold, calculated personality in order to take a human life in cold-blood. This is most likely why he claimed that he would never be able to win the Hunger Games.
He only kills two opponents during the Hunger Games, but neither of them were done willingly. The first was the girl attacked by the pack of Career Tributes, but whom Peeta was forced to finish off in a mercy killing. The second was the girl from District Five, nicknamed Foxface by Katniss, though it was an accidental death. She stole some berries from Peeta's pack that were actually poisonous, and which Peeta had intended to eat himself. Those berries actually prove to be crucial in a last ditch gambit played by none other than Katniss in order to allow both Tributes to be accepted as winners...
If given a choice, Peeta would prefer it if Katniss were to win. His love for her is so great that he can't stand the thought of anything bad happening to her. He would willingly sacrifice his own life in order to insure her safety.
Re: Peeta Mellark | The Hunger Games 2 of ???
For the next eleven years, Peeta quietly watched Katniss from afar, unable to work up the nerve to actually talk to her. Haymitch's decision to put a spin on their relationship as “star-crossed lovers” was truly apt: Peeta was born into a relatively well-off family who lived in the mercantile sector of town, while Katniss was a poor girl from the Seam. He was social with some of the other townsfolk; Katniss was more of a loner and preferred her own company. He's social, gregarious, has a flair for showmanship, and possesses artistic talents. Katniss is aloof, calculated; she does what's necessary to survive and doesn't waste time on frivolities.
Yet despite all those differences—or perhaps because of them—Peeta finds himself hopelessly head over heels for the strong and capable huntress. He's one of the very few people who's ever born witness to her vulnerability, which is highlighted by a pivotol event in Katniss' childhood.
When both children were eleven years old, Peeta burned some bread on purpose in order to give to the starving Katniss. Though his mother beat him, he shouldered the pain quietly and offered what little he could so that Katniss could live. Though Katniss never properly thanked him, he was happy knowing that his small offering was enough to keep her going. He is unaware just how much of an impact that event had on Katniss, how those two loaves of bread gave her the strength to keep on living...
Ironically enough, Peeta counts himself fortunate to have had his name drawn for the Hunger Games, after Katniss took her sister's place as a Tribute. He claims it was “a real piece of luck.”
Personality:
Peeta is described as a boy of “medium height, stocky build, ashy blond hair that falls in waves over his forehead” by Katniss. He also has blue eyes. The audience is captivated by his innocent and sometimes self-deprecating manner, which earns him a great deal of favor among his sponsors. One would expect the son of a baker to be rather naïve, if not a bit dim-witted, but Peeta displays a surprising level of intelligence and stratagem both in and out of the Games. He works with Haymitch in order to use his strongest attributes to best advantage. A less scrupulous person wouldn't care about using any means necessary to win, but Peeta's devotion to Katniss is indicative of his gentle nature and willingness to go to extreme lengths in order to insure her safety. Unlike Katniss, he's never had to kill for his food and lacks the instinct and cold, calculated personality in order to take a human life in cold-blood. This is most likely why he claimed that he would never be able to win the Hunger Games.
He only kills two opponents during the Hunger Games, but neither of them were done willingly. The first was the girl attacked by the pack of Career Tributes, but whom Peeta was forced to finish off in a mercy killing. The second was the girl from District Five, nicknamed Foxface by Katniss, though it was an accidental death. She stole some berries from Peeta's pack that were actually poisonous, and which Peeta had intended to eat himself. Those berries actually prove to be crucial in a last ditch gambit played by none other than Katniss in order to allow both Tributes to be accepted as winners...
If given a choice, Peeta would prefer it if Katniss were to win. His love for her is so great that he can't stand the thought of anything bad happening to her. He would willingly sacrifice his own life in order to insure her safety.