hello again! do you mind going more in depth about the cutters and keepers (and the ideological divide between them)? you’ve already mentioned that propaganda has affected the keepers more- is that a purposeful thing done by the captiol? or something perpetuated by the keeper community themselves? a mix of both?
Hello, dear! I'm going to write this with as much neutrality as possible because the lore I have created is long and extensive and I don't want that clouding this response.
I want to stick to as close to the canon as possible and my interpretation of the canon without having what I created leech through [especially since it tends to get jumbled in my head].
Get ready for another long one, Backpacks!
I have always believed that post-Dark Days there has to be that separation between trade and industry, especially in a district that then has two principle industries. Prior to the Dark Days, there was much more community between the trades-folk of 2, everything was very unified and friendly to an extent, which is why Katniss mentioning the first rebellion and the Victor tributes holding has as a sign of unity between the districts mirrors that community and solidarity (CF, 258).
But war changes things in unbelievable ways. There were those who remained loyal to the Capitol of course, by way of taking their names that have Greco-Roman origins (Strabo, Sejanus, Cato, Brutus, Enobaria), and then there were those who remained loyal to their people and their trade, who saw the military industry as a disruption to their work and community and traditions. They were more aware of their slavery once the military entered their lands and held a stronger Capitol favor.
Gale had a point when he said: "It's to the Capitol's advantage to have us divided amongst ourselves." (THG, 14)
District 2 is one know for its strength in not just its manufactured, propagandized kind, but prior to that when it was full of stonecutters, mountain-miners, blacksmiths, etc. and that strength is just as strong if not stronger after the Dark Days among the trades-folk. Where before there was a healthy delineation between the natural trades of the district, after the first rebellion that bond grew stronger and closer among the working-class because of the military invasion. There was less care put towards whether people mingled between a hewer or layer mason (historically hewer masons [those who cut the stone] was a far more contentious and lucrative job than a layer mason [those who set the stone]) and more of an effort to maintain their community as trades-folk in the face of an oppressive military who wanted nothing to do with them.
So the clear divide between the two industries was done by the Cutters in an effort to steer clear of both becoming a part of the propaganda (in both industry and Games-realted) and siding with the new invaders. There was a high likelihood of ostracization among the Cutter community to those who became Peacekeepers once it was exclusive to 2—prior to the first rebellion, I think it was seen more like how Plutarch had explained it "[as] a way for their people to escape poverty and a life in the quarries. They're raised with a warrior mind-set." (MJ, 83). I do see that last sentence as being more appropriate post-Dark Days, but that's neither here nor there.
As for the Keepers, they are an oppressive, invading force that were not welcomed by the natives of 2 at large, but they are also amazing at brushing that off if it meant more of a chance of wealth and success within the district (and within the Games too, of course). They knew that they were in better favor with the Capitol compared to the Cutters after the Dark Days and more so because they saw themselves as better than the Cutters, still District and not Capitol, but at least they weren't Cutters. And those who came from the Capitol to be stationed in 2? Well, they were all kinds of high and mighty! But as I said in a tik tok breaking down District 2 and my love for it: "the loyalty of District 2 has always been in something that has been Capitol made." (1:42-149).
In regards to the propaganda having more of an affect with the Keepers, I believe it is a mix of both and it has to be. The superiority complex of the Keepers (as in: those born and bred for it, not Cutters who join) comes from sustaining the Capitols favor but it is because of that propaganda that is so deeply imbedded into the district. Once they came into the picture as the new Capitol favorite, they didn't flaunt it so much as usurp it once various military installations came about, like The Nut, that did away with various Cutter work. Maintaining that "warrior mind-set" works with children who saw that as a thing of pride and not a thing to do out of poverty and upper class mobility. I still am having difficulty distinguishing both a timeline and an explanation for how the propaganda becomes successful within the Cutter community because I simply can't see it as A Thing™ without an intense feeling of betrayal to both your heritage and your people*, but again, that's a question for another day.
By Panem, I hope I answered this well! I feel like I kinda dropped the ball on the Keeper bit, but then again, I'm in the minority & don't give them much thought compared to everyone else.
*Please ask me if you want me to talk about Lyme in regards to that sentence because OH BOY IS THIS ALL ABOUT HER!
Also I almost started this with an excerpt from my silly OC fanfic but a ficlet of a scene, only to realize that my open statement completely contradicts that! Anyway, here it is at the end so you can't say I didn't do it in the actual answering of this ask!
Because if the years of watching District 2 pairs reach victory has taught her anything, it’s that those from 2 are loyal to their community. Of masonry or military. And that it’s the worst part of watching The Games in District 2, how much the animosity grows amongst the crowd at even the slightest difference in trade or birthplace is put to question the chance of triumph as one tribute falls. But is the answer so simple? A mere difference in industry? In home? The Cutters: hewer and layer masons, quarry-folk, stone and crystal miners, blacksmiths. The Keepers: soldiers—the common grunt and almost unheard of 2 born general—, cadets in schools, Peacekeepers stationed throughout the country never to return for 20 years, the hundreds working in The Peak*. The southern desert folk and their blunt nature, intrenched in tradition that mirrors what it was before. The northern mountain people and their river sweet ways, creating new rituals after living so close to their invaded neighbors. No, nothing as simple as that. Their mutual destruction is not an echo of past rivalries, but of present vows.
*What I think the natives of 2 call The Nut since that name came about by the 13 rebels, not the natives
