Fence

The Fence is the high chain-link barrier topped with barbed-wire loops that encloses all of District 12, separating the coal-mining district from the surrounding woods. In theory, it is supposed to be electrified twenty-four hours a day as a deterrent to the predators that live in the woods — packs of wild dogs, lone cougars, bears — that used to threaten the streets. But since District 12 is lucky to get two or three hours of electricity in the evenings, the fence is usually safe to touch. This unreliable power supply transforms the fence from a tool of absolute control into a porous boundary that the district's poorest residents can exploit.

Physical Description and Weak Spots

The fence is topped with barbed-wire loops and encloses the entire district, including the scruffy field called the Meadow. There are several weak spots in the fence, but the one closest to Katniss's home is a two-foot stretch that has been loose for years, concealed by a clump of bushes. Katniss almost always enters the woods here, flattening out on her belly and sliding under the gap. She always takes a moment to listen carefully for the hum that means the fence is live; right now, it is silent as a stone. The fence has been successful at keeping the flesh-eaters out of District 12, but inside the woods they roam freely, along with venomous snakes, rabid animals, and no real paths to follow.

Transgression and Survival

Even though trespassing in the woods is illegal and poaching carries the severest of penalties, more people would risk it if they had weapons. But most are not bold enough to venture out with just a knife. Katniss's bow is a rarity, crafted by her father along with a few others that she keeps well hidden in the woods, carefully wrapped in waterproof covers. Her father could have made good money selling them, but if the officials found out he would have been publicly executed for inciting a rebellion. Most of the Peacekeepers turn a blind eye to the few who hunt because they are as hungry for fresh meat as anybody is. In fact, they are among the best customers. But the idea that someone might be arming the Seam would never have been allowed. After her father's death, Katniss worked up the courage to go under the fence alone for the first time, retrieving the small bow and arrows he had made her from a hollow tree. She probably did not go more than twenty yards into the woods that day, most of the time perching up in the branches of an old oak, hoping for game to come by. After several hours, she had the good luck to kill a rabbit. The woods became her savior, and each day she went a bit farther into its arms.

Symbolic and Narrative Significance

The fence represents the Capitol's attempt to confine and control the population of District 12, both physically and psychologically. It is a constant reminder of the danger beyond — not just from wild animals, but from the Capitol's laws that punish poaching with death. Yet the fence's very unreliability, its frequent power outages, and the existence of loose sections make it a site of transgression and survival. Katniss's ability to slip through the fence is what allows her to feed her family, develop her hunting skills, and meet Gale Hawthorne, her hunting partner and confidant. The fence also marks the boundary between the known, impoverished world of the district and the unknown, dangerous but life-sustaining woods. After the war, the Capitol destroyed all the tracker jacker nests surrounding their city, but the ones near the districts were left untouched — another reminder of the districts' weakness, just like the Hunger Games, and another reason to keep inside the fence of District 12. When Gale and Katniss come across a tracker jacker nest, they immediately head in the opposite direction. The fence thus embodies the Capitol's strategy of containment through fear, while simultaneously becoming the very means by which Katniss learns to resist and survive.