“The Divergent” by Veronica Roth: Major Themes

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Table of Contents

Divergent Novel versus Film
Major Themes
Reference

The Divergent is a fictitious story about a society that is divided into factions and a girl who does not fit in any of them. It was authored by an American writer, Veronica Roth, and is set in a dystopian society that originates from Northern America. Published in 2012, the novel was adapted into a film with a similar title in 2014. The book has since received a positive critical reception from critics because of its plot and action.

Divergent Novel versus Film

A movie adapted from a book may be significantly different from each other in the plot and execution. With a film, the things they can do one is limited, unlike in a book where the content is almost limitless. By reading a novel, you can know the author’s thoughts and reasoning that leads to the actions therein. The Divergent contains aspects different from those that are seen in the movie. For instance, the overall pace of the narrative account, violence, actions, and suspense are different between the novel and film.

Most stories feature a violent character who is often the villain and is overcome by the protagonist. Transferring this violence from the book to a movie is very difficult and at the end several aspects are omitted. In the novel, Peter is depicted as very violent and always trying to dominate everyone. He also dislikes Tris, the protagonist or main character in the book. He feels that she is fragile and pathetic and should be subjected to suffering (Roth, 2011). However, in the movie, Peter is not as violent as depicted in the book. Instead, he portrays a sense of humor in the story, which represents him as a relatable character.

Another major difference between the book and the film is the pace of the narrative account. In the novel, the main character (Tris) experiences hardships and beatings from other people like Peter. She admitted in the hospital repeatedly but struggles for a long time in the book than in the movie. Further, in the film, Tris does not experience intense beatings and even heals faster than in the novel. Understandably, the movie moves much quicker to reduce the possibility of boredom among viewers.

Major Themes

Identity and Choice

Divergent is a novel about choosing one’s personality and identity. Since a majority of the characters in this book are teenagers, they are trying to establish self-identity, their character, and social or peer group. Roth comes up with many crucial questions that dwell on identity: “how do we choose an identity? What are some of the merits of choosing the identity of someone else? And what are the effects of changing identities?” (Roth, 2011, p. 98). In the fictional angry society of the Divergent, a person chooses his/her identity once in a lifetime. This process can be seen by the reader as absurd. When the residents in the city turn 16 years, there is a very complicated and detailed ritual that marks the transition in their lives. They have to choose one of the five “groups”: Abnegation, Dauntless, Amity, Candor, and Erudite (Roth, 2011). The social norm is that they have lived with the chosen group for the rest of their lives.

Each group above tallies with a particular personality type in this society. For instance, people grouped as the Dauntless are believed to be brave, bold, and aggressive (Roth, 2011). For this reason, the young adults have no option but to permanently make a choice on what type of person they want to be at the very age when they are supposed to be trying with many diverse identities. The reason why Tris Prior turns out to be a sympathetic and relatable champion in the Divergent is because she refuses to stick to one identity (Roth, 2011). She is not clear on the type of person she wants to be; at times, she sees herself as a Dauntless, but in another instant she considers herself an Abnegation member – the type of people who are selfless and puritanical.

Women and Sexuality

The novel Divergent has been praised by many because it champions for women. Tris Prior can be seen as a powerful and heroic character who throughout the novel protects the weak and saves many lives. The most important aspect is that Tris’s heroism is proportionally attached to the fact that she is a young woman. Her gender advantageously gives her a powerful tool to fight evil.

It is evident that the novel is set in an environment or rather society that openly supports a masculine structure. The men who are the majority in the government are seen to celebrate violence, aggression, and other qualities that are less associated with women than men (Roth, 2011). When the protagonist arrives at dauntless, most people take her for granted only because she is a woman. According to the societal structure in the Dauntless, Tris should be a timid, subservient, meek female. On the contrary, she tries her best throughout the novel to challenge the masculine society. Her most impressive feat in this society is seen during the capture flag game. Here, she quickly thinks of finding her opponents before they could reach her.

Tris’s gender is crucial but not related to her prowess in the issue of sexuality in the novel. At some point in the book, Tris realizes her sexual desire through her relationship with Tobias. As the novel climaxes, her romantic desire turns out to be her weapon at the same time a source of pleasure. When Tobias conspires to kill her, she is able to convince him against the evil plot by communicating her feelings and this action brings him back to his senses.

Fear and Bravery

Tris Prior, during her times with the Dauntless, she learns how to contain her fears – an important lesson learned from her mentors. For the Dauntless, cowardice is a fundamental flaw inherent in the human character. Therefore, the Divergent shows us how the protagonist became of age by learning how to subdue her fears. The author notes that everyone, without exception, is prone to fright and anxiety. He depicts to the audience how Tris and her peers undergo a rigorous training that turns them fearless. To my realization, every new recruit to the Dauntless is shaken by this trial. To them all, fear is a common denominator and a critical uniting factor. Therefore, if this feeling is described as inherent in humans, then we are required to make sense of our anxieties as we grow up.

Interestingly, the author suggests that since no one can be entirely brave, people do not need to eliminate all the fears but to come into terms with them fear. During her times in the Dauntless, Tris is injected with hallucinogenic serum (Roth, 2011). The main aim is to make her experience her worst fears but over time, she learns how to handle them. She comes into terms with the fact that she will at times be frightened by some things and the only way to cope with them is by accepting them as realities.

Societal Classes

In the Divergent, the lives of the citizens in the society is determined by the faction one to which one belongs. They are only granted one freedom in their lifetime: choosing the individual faction. Despite this norm, one’s decisions in respective factions always follow a particular predetermined role. For instance, the Erudite are teachers, the Candor resolve disputes, the Amity are counselors and farmers, the Abnegation are leaders, and the Dauntless includes the security people (Roth, 2011). Therefore, for one to enjoy leisure activities of their choice, they must be determined by their faction, and they are supposed to marry within this very group. Should one show cause for not fitting in a faction, then they are pronounced redundant.

Most of the discourse in the Divergent originates from the citizens who are not contented. As a result, they are so arbitrarily placed in these functional groups, whereby they are forced to fight for more freedom than that existing within the social groups. But then you may ask, what will happen there after they successfully gain their full freedom? Therefore, the novel depicts the bare truth that as much as people are forced into permanent classes, dissatisfaction and discontent are likely to arise.

Reference

Roth, V. (2012). Divergent. Katherine Tegen Books.

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