Set in a futuristic dystopia where society is divided into five factions that each represent a different virtue, teenagers have to decide if they want to stay in their faction or switch to another - for the rest of their lives. Tris Prior makes a choice that surprises everyone.
ONE CHOICE DECIDES YOUR FRIENDS ONE CHOICE DEFINES YOUR BELIEFS ONE CHOICE DETERMINES YOUR LOYALTIES -- FOREVER ONE CHOICE CAN TRANSFORM YOU |
Group Members: Jill, Semaj, Anna, Linnea
The Society and Setting
In Divergent the society is governed by factions. Each faction has a different role in their society, Abnegation are in charge because they are selfless, Dauntless serve as the police, Erudite are the teachers because they focus on knowledge, Candor runs the justice system their faction believes in honesty. Lastly, Amity is based on peace and provides society with food from the harvests and farming. Then there are the Factionless who serve as the janitors, and garbage men. Divergent’s setting consists of everyone in the society having to choose a faction, which is where they find their purpose in life. In the novel each faction has their own part of town. No one is allowed to switch or even socialize on an everyday basis. Once you have chosen a faction you are forever in that faction, and there is no going back. If you are kicked out of your faction or refuse to chose one, you are deemed factionless. The factionless live out their lives in poverty and are excluded from society. The city itself is falling apart, the sidewalks and streets are caving in. The city was built from the inside and once the materials ran out they just didn’t bother to continue.
Struggles the main character is facing
Throughout the novel so far the main character Tris, has been faced with many struggles and problems. She struggles with the idea of leaving her family behind, knowing that she will never be able to see them again. She also struggles with being around Four, he makes her nervous and flustered and she has a hard time concentrating on anything. Throughout this paper, you will learn about some of the struggles Tris faces so far in the book.
One of the main struggles that Tris faces is the idea of becoming Factionless. Externally Tris struggles because she is not physically capable of completing the Dauntless initiation. In initiation the Dauntless leaders force the initiates to fight one another. Opponents aren’t chosen based on skill level, initiates are put against the strongest or the weakest of the recruits and they are expected to fight. A supporting quote from the novel is, “‘Maybe you can just take a few hits and pretend to go unconscious,” suggests Al. “No one would blame you.”’ (Roth, 107). This shows how Tris is considered weaker than all the other initiates.
Internally Tris struggles because she is Divergent and Divergents are considered a threat to society. Tris has to hide the fact that she’s Divergent because if caught she would either be killed or kicked out of her faction. In the beginning of the book she is warned by Tori the administrator of her aptitude test, ‘“ I don’t mean you shouldn’t share them now; I mean you should never share them with anyone, ever, no matter what happens. Divergence is extremely dangerous’” (Roth, 22-23). This is the first point when she realizes how dangerous being Divergent is. She struggles with being Divergent at the choosing ceremony as well. She has to choose a faction that she will be able to hide her Divergence. In conclusion Tris is experiencing many struggles and problems in her life right now both internally and externally.
Safety vs. Freedom
Is safety more important than freedom? Is taking safety away worth more freedom? Throughout the book Tris is faced to answer these questions. They are forced to stay in the city, so they can be safe from whatever is outside the walls. “The Dauntless guards close the gate and lock it behind them. The lock is on the outside. I bite my lip. Why would they lock the gate from the outside and not the inside? It almost seems like they don’t want to keep something out; they want to keep us in,” (Roth 128). Tris’s freedom along with everyone else’s is cut off. Another struggle Tris faces is what faction to choose being that she’s divergent it makes the choice difficult. She could choose Abnegation which would be the safe choice or she could choose Dauntless which is what she really wants, freedom. Can one have safety and freedom at the sametime? Safety and freedom are considered to be on opposite sides of the spectrum. It is impossible to achieve one without losing the other. In our society today there are multiple struggles between freedom and safety. One of those struggles is gun control, should everyone be able to carry a gun or is that to dangerous. If we allow everyone to have guns you are granting gun freedom but at the same time it is not safe because you could be granting a serial killer a gun. Another example of the struggle between safety and freedom would be how accessible the border is. An example of having freedom would be allowing everyone freedom to cross but by doing this you are risking your safety.
Exploring Utopian Society: What makes this society Utopian?
Everyone has a version of what a utopian society should be like, and that’s the irony of it. When striving for greatness, people lose sight of the main reason they wanted society to work that certain way in the first place. A utopian society is suppose to make all members of the society equal, everything should work in unison . The real problem isn't the lack of good intention, but more the difficulty of one's opinion against another's of what society “should” be like. Divergent has its own way of becoming an Utopian society. Everyone is split into different factions. Each faction is responsible for running a different part of society. For example, Abnegation is considered selfless, so they governor the factions, and Erudite is full of thinkers so they are considered to be the scientists or teachers. Everyone is able to choose the faction they desire. Therefore there should be peace within each faction. The society in Divergent, became dystopian when one faction felt they were more fit to control the government. While another felt that they were the only faction fit to govern the society as a whole. Abnegation felt that they should be government officials because they were “selfless.” Erudite wanted power and to change the norm of Abnegation being in control. The Dauntless leaders made a decision to back the Erudite and overthrow the government. The leaders tell the initiates the common term, “faction before blood”, which means they base their actions and loyalty on faction before their family. However Tris’ mother goes against society, “‘You’re my daughter. I don’t care about the factions.’ She shakes her head. ‘Look where they got us. Human beings as a whole cannot be good for long before the bad creeps back in and poisons us again,’” (Roth 441). She loves her daughter more than anything and doesn’t believe in what society is doing.
When it comes to human beings and society we have learned that the combination of the two will most likely lead to destruction. Humans are always aiming for that perfect society no matter the consequences. In Divergent the human race is split up into factions based on their personalities and skills, but each faction thinks it is better than the others. Human beings main goal in society is to achieve power. That’s what makes a utopian society so impossible to accomplish. Human nature itself is ambiguous. Everyone does what they believe is best for the society. However at the same time in the back of their minds they are thinking about how these ideas would benefit them. Jeanie for example thinks that Abnegation isn’t fit to run the society, “‘ I am not a fool,’ says Jeanine. ‘A faction of intellectuals is no army. We are tired of being dominated by a bunch of self-righteous idiots who reject wealth and advancement, but we couldn’t do this on our own. And your Dauntless leaders were all too happy to oblige me if I guaranteed them a place in our new, improved government,’” (Roth 429). In conclusion, a utopian society is unachievable due to human nature.
Everyone has a version of what a utopian society should be like, and that’s the irony of it. When striving for greatness, people lose sight of the main reason they wanted society to work that certain way in the first place. A utopian society is suppose to make all members of the society equal, everything should work in unison . The real problem isn't the lack of good intention, but more the difficulty of one's opinion against another's of what society “should” be like. Divergent has its own way of becoming an Utopian society. Everyone is split into different factions. Each faction is responsible for running a different part of society. For example, Abnegation is considered selfless, so they governor the factions, and Erudite is full of thinkers so they are considered to be the scientists or teachers. Everyone is able to choose the faction they desire. Therefore there should be peace within each faction. The society in Divergent, became dystopian when one faction felt they were more fit to control the government. While another felt that they were the only faction fit to govern the society as a whole. Abnegation felt that they should be government officials because they were “selfless.” Erudite wanted power and to change the norm of Abnegation being in control. The Dauntless leaders made a decision to back the Erudite and overthrow the government. The leaders tell the initiates the common term, “faction before blood”, which means they base their actions and loyalty on faction before their family. However Tris’ mother goes against society, “‘You’re my daughter. I don’t care about the factions.’ She shakes her head. ‘Look where they got us. Human beings as a whole cannot be good for long before the bad creeps back in and poisons us again,’” (Roth 441). She loves her daughter more than anything and doesn’t believe in what society is doing.
When it comes to human beings and society we have learned that the combination of the two will most likely lead to destruction. Humans are always aiming for that perfect society no matter the consequences. In Divergent the human race is split up into factions based on their personalities and skills, but each faction thinks it is better than the others. Human beings main goal in society is to achieve power. That’s what makes a utopian society so impossible to accomplish. Human nature itself is ambiguous. Everyone does what they believe is best for the society. However at the same time in the back of their minds they are thinking about how these ideas would benefit them. Jeanie for example thinks that Abnegation isn’t fit to run the society, “‘ I am not a fool,’ says Jeanine. ‘A faction of intellectuals is no army. We are tired of being dominated by a bunch of self-righteous idiots who reject wealth and advancement, but we couldn’t do this on our own. And your Dauntless leaders were all too happy to oblige me if I guaranteed them a place in our new, improved government,’” (Roth 429). In conclusion, a utopian society is unachievable due to human nature.