Delly tries to help bring Peeta back to his senses after the Capitol hijacks his mind and poisons him against Katniss Everdeen. Although she is not successful in this task, she continues to defend Katniss whenever possible. Delly’s fate after the Second Rebellion is unknown. It is presumed that she survived the rebellion.
Delly Cartwright Character Profile
- Name: Delly Cartwright
- Age: 16
- Gender: Female
- Place of origin: District 12
- Physical appearance: Plump, pasty-faced, with curly yellow hair
- Skills: Talking to people
- Strengths: Compassion
- Weaknesses: No knowledge of weapons
- Loyalties: Rebel
Personality and Physical Description
Delly Cartwright is a teenage girl from District 12. She is a plump girl with a few pounds to spare on her body. She has curly yellow hair, which probably means that she was born in the Merchant section. Katniss describes her as being “pasty-faced” and “lumpy”.
Delly is one of the friendliest people that Katniss has ever met. She constantly smiles at everyone, even people she is not close to.
Delly always thinks the best of people. For instance, she is extremely grateful to the people of District 13 for providing her with a place of refuge and being so caring and considerate towards her. She is also a girl of great integrity, as she holds other people’s secrets without gossiping. This is the reason Katniss begins to hold Delly in great esteem.
Delly constantly stands up for Katniss and defends her each time Peeta spouts something vicious about her. She also admires Katniss for her independence in hunting and trading at the Hob.
“Haymitch says she’s the best defender I have when Peeta goes off on some kind of tear about me. Always taking my side, blaming his negative perceptions on the Capitol’s torture. She has more influence on him than any of the others do, because he really does know her. Anyway, even if she’s sugarcoating my good points, I appreciate it. Frankly, I could use a little sugarcoating.”
Katniss Everdeen about Delly Cartwright in ‘Mockingjay’
Early Life of Delly Cartwright
Delly Cartwright was born in the Merchant section of District 12 around the same time as Peeta Mellark. Her family consisted of her parents and her younger brother. When she was younger, she often used to play with Peeta. At school, she was friendly with everyone and held Katniss Everdeen in high esteem.
“Delly crosses the room tentatively, but as she nears him she naturally breaks into a smile. “Peeta? It’s Delly. From home.”
“Delly?” Some of the clouds seem to clear. “Delly. It’s you.”
“Yes!” she says with obvious relief. “How do you feel?”
Delly Cartwright speaks to Peeta Mellark in ‘Mockingjay’
Delly Cartwright in ‘The Hunger Games’
The first time Delly Cartwright is mentioned is when Peeta attempts to cover up Katniss’ mistake with Lavinia, the Avox girl. Katniss recognizes Lavinia who was appointed to serve her during the 74th Hunger Games. One day, Katniss and her friend, Gale Hawthorne, witness Lavinia and another boy trying to escape from a Capitol hovercraft. The boy is killed and Lavinia is turned into an Avox.
Before Katniss can stop herself, she reveals during dinner that she recognizes the girl. At this, Effie Trinket is surprised. Further, being associated with Avoxes, who were considered traitors to the capitol was a taboo subject. Peeta, therefore covers for Katniss by saying that the girl looked exactly like Delly Cartwright from home.
Although Katniss knows that in reality, the Avox girl and Delly look nothing alike, she goes along with a lie to avoid suspicion. After dinner, Peeta asks for an explanation about the girl and Katniss complies with his request, elaborating on how she knew the girl.
Delly Cartwright in ‘Mockingjay’
Delly and her little brother are some of the few people to survive the bombing of District 12. She therefore escapes to District 13 where she is extremely grateful to the people for providing her with food and shelter.
Katniss notes that she has lost a few pounds from when she was in District 12. She attributes her weight loss to the loss of her parents, the strict diet of District 13 as well as the stress of the rebellion. In District 13 Delly wears the same drab clothes as everyone else and ties up her blonde hair in a long braid. As always, she is amicable towards everyone in the district.
Delly Cartwright and Peeta Mellark
Delly is employed by Plutarch Heavensbee and Haymitch Abernathy to try to bring Peeta back to his senses after his mind has been hijacked by the Capitol. This is because Delly and Peeta were good friends from a young age and Peeta does not have many memories to associate Delly with Katniss. Delly is therefore deemed safe as she would not trigger a breakdown.
Katniss witnesses the interaction between Delly and Peeta. Delly tries to evoke the childhood memories of Peeta. She reminds him of how they used to play together as little children. She tries to remind Peeta of his chalk drawings and the little dough boys and girls that Mr. Mellark used to let Delly and Peeta make in the bakery.
However, Peeta is confused and tries to make sense of why he is in District 13 and why his family is not coming to visit him. Delly tries to steer the conversation from these triggering topics but is unsuccessful. Peeta eventually makes the association with Katniss and goes into a frenzy. He accuses Katniss of being a Capitol mutt that destroyed District 12, despite Delly stolidly refusing his word. Peeta is uncontrollable at this point and Delly is then removed from the room.
Later, after the reverse hijacking of Peeta’s mind, Peeta joins Katniss, Finnick Odair, Annie Cresta, and Delly for lunch. However, he is still shackled and looked after by two bodyguards because he is still not deemed sane. It is here that Delly reminds Peeta that Finnick saved his life in the arena. However, Peeta argues that the only reason Finnick saved his life was for Katniss. This is when Katniss and Peeta begin heatedly arguing with each other. Peeta is rude and inconsiderate towards Katniss, ultimately causing her to leave.
After Katniss leaves, Delly tells Peeta off for the way he behaved with Katniss. This causes him to have a severe mental breakdown, and he begins to argue with himself out loud. Disturbed by this interaction, Katniss leaves. Delly loses her temper and begins to argue with Peeta in a high-pitched voice. Johanna Mason later recounts the argument to Katniss, stating that the entire dining hall was enthralled by the interaction.
“You missed the best part. Delly lost her temper at Peeta over how he treated you. She got very squeaky. It was like someone stabbing a mouse with a fork repeatedly. The whole dining hall was riveted.”
Johanna Mason about Delly Cartwright in ‘Mockingjay’
FAQs
How does Katniss know Delly Cartwright?
Katniss knows Delly Cartwright as they come from the same district and went to school together. She thinks that Delly is an extremely friendly girl who smiles at everyone, including Katniss, as if Katniss is Delly’s best friend in the whole world. Delly has yellowish hair and comes from the Merchant section.
How does Peeta know Delly Cartwright?
Peeta is good friends with Delly from a young age. The two of them used to play together when they were kids. Peeta and Delly were also friends in school and spent a large amount of time with each other.
Is Darius an Avox in ‘The Hunger Games’?
Yes, Darius is an Avox in ‘The Hunger Games.’ Darius is a peacekeeper from District 12 who is turned into an Avox after he interferes with the whipping of Gale Hawthorne by Romulus Thread. Darius is forced to serve Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark before the 75th Hunger Games.
