Letter Essay #2

   In 7th grade, I read the award-winning science-fiction novel: Divergent, and have recently chosen to re-read the book. Divergent is 487 pages long and was written by the brilliant author, Veronica Roth. When Veronica Roth was taking psychology 101 as a young college student, she was inspired to write Divergent. She soon published the book later when she was just 22 years old in 2011. The reason I have chosen to re-read this fascinating piece of literature is that the book is based on the author’s view and thoughts about the future. It is so interesting to me that the author was able to take her background knowledge and her education to help her write a fictional novel. I usually don’t appreciate fiction or fantasy, but this well-written book inspired me to do my own research about the influence of the message portrayed by the book.  

   Beatrice, one of the main characters the book follows, is in need for knowledge to tell her which faction(“A small, organized, dissenting group within a larger one, especially in politics”) she is destined to be a part of. For every, or almost all other 16-year-old children know which faction they fit in best using the test made by the Erudites. But, Beatrice is different, Beatrice is a Divergent (a mix of more than one faction).This makes Beatrice stress and conflicted. She soon decides on her most fitting faction: Dauntless. Tris (Beatrice) soon discovers that her Dauntless decision is more difficult than it may seem. She wants to be able to make it into the Dauntless faction, officially. But, in order to achieve her goal, Tris must work hard and push through many challenges. This leads to Tris’s new relationship with a  Dauntless instructor named Four. While Tris is completing her goal she doesn’t forget about her brother, who has recently joined the Erudite faction. Tris desperately wants her brother’s guidance and help with uncovering systems truths. Unfortunately, Erudite does not approve of their meeting and bands Tris along with keeping a close eye on her. Concluding Tris to form even more suspicions. This, of course, leads to an all faction outbreak. The Erudite, now want to command and plan to take over all of the factions. But, Tris and Four catch on and are determined to save the factions from the Erudites new dictatorship. Now, I won’t spoil the ending but, please keep in mind that every action leads to a consequence in life and in this futuristic tale.

    To me, the Dauntless faction reminded me of the police or protectors of the city. They are brave and courageous and put others before themselves, a description fitted for policemen or anyone who gives their service to others. A quote that proves this idea is “‘We believe in ordinary acts of bravery, in the courage that drives one person to stand up for another(Will – page 206).” I think the author properly made this connection because the city had other connections to people and occupations we see in our daily lives. Even though this book describes a possible future it shows that some things are kept the same. For example, Erudite are the teachers and professors. Amity are the gardeners and peacemakers, Candor the lawmakers and lawyers, Abnegation the caregivers and social service volunteers, Factionless the homeless and poor, and finally the Divergent the mix of one or more factions. This quote demonstrates the message that the Dauntless faction is trying to spread and it is the reason for their heroic acts.

I liked how the author included a moment with Caleb and Beatrice showing a change in Caleb’s character. “Beatrice…We should think of our family…But. But we must also think of ourselves (Caleb-page  36).”. This was a surprising change because Caleb was never“selfish”. It was not in Abnegations nature to be selfish and put yourself before others. I believe Roth added this scene to show foreshadowing. From re-reading the book, I know that Caleb doesn’t choose Abnegation and chooses Erudite instead. Caleb disguised his love for intelligence and his desire for books by hiding them in his room. This quote affected Beatrice(Tris) because she was not expecting that type of reaction from Caleb and it did waver her decisions on her faction choice. This proves that everyone’s action has an effect on the other characters in this exquisite novel.

I was very intrigued while reading this passage explaining the history/reason for the factions.

Veronica Roth Writes: “Decades ago our ancestors realized that it is not political ideology, religious belief, race, or nationalism that is to blame for a warming world.  Rather, they determined that it was the fault of human personality—of humankind’s inclination toward evil, in whatever form that is.  They divided into factions that sought to eradicate those qualities they believed responsible for the world’s disarray

( Marcus-page 41).”

This passage really stood out to me because it demonstrates the author’s opinion on

Humanity and how the government should work today. This section makes the reader question their own views on the matter. Why isn’t there a faction specifically for the Divergent? If there were to be, would Beatrice have the struggles she encountered towards the beginning and towards the closing chapters? I do understand that having a separate faction for the Divergent may get complicated, yet it would solve the devastation of the factionless. In my opinion, Divergent deserves a 7.5 out of 10. I am very appreciative that I re-read this amazing novel and can’t wait to re-read it for a third time soon!