Overview
Beatrice "Tris" Prior, a 16-year-old from the selfless Abnigation faction, undergoes the process of choosing her lifelong faction, navigating intense initiation trials in Dauntless, and grapples with hidden dangers linked to her Divergence as her society faces political upheaval and violence.
Life in Abnigation and Choosing Day
- Tris describes her restricted, selfless upbringing in Abnigation, where personal reflection and vanity are discouraged.
- The society is divided into five factions: Abnigation (selflessness), Dauntless (bravery), Cander (honesty), Amity (peace), and Erudite (intellect).
- At age 16, each young person takes an aptitude test to indicate their best-suited faction, then chooses a faction at the Choosing Ceremony.
- Tris’s test is inconclusive, showing equal aptitude for Abnigation, Dauntless, and Erudite; the tester warns her to keep this secret, calling it Divergence.
Dauntless Initiation and New Identity
- Tris chooses Dauntless over her family, renaming herself and undergoing brutal physical and psychological initiation, including combat, weapons, and fear simulations.
- She struggles but gradually excels, making friends (Christina, Will, Al) and enemies (Peter, Molly, Drew).
- Divergence allows Tris to manipulate simulations, which draws dangerous attention.
- Tris faces bullying and violence from fellow initiates; an attempted murder against her is foiled, but a friend (Al) later dies by suicide.
Faction Politics and Threats
- Erudite spreads propaganda against Abnigation, raising tensions and plotting a coup.
- Tris learns her instructor, Four (Tobias), is also Divergent and shares his traumatic past.
- Tris and Tobias develop a romantic connection, while Tris’s mother reveals she was Dauntless and is Divergent, too.
The Coup and Its Aftermath
- Erudite, led by Janine, uses simulation serum to mind-control Dauntless, turning them into soldiers to massacre Abnigation.
- Divergents like Tris and Tobias resist, but Tobias is captured and controlled through a special simulation.
- Tris loses her mother and father during the conflict and is forced to kill her friend Will in self-defense.
- Tris and her allies disable the mind-control, breaking Erudite’s grip.
Decisions and Consequences
- Tris, Tobias, and a few survivors escape the city by train, uncertain of their future, with their factions broken and lives irrevocably changed.
Key Events and Takeaways
- Tris’s Divergence is rare and dangerous, granting resistance to mind control but attracting lethal scrutiny.
- Family, faction loyalty, and personal identity are major themes, with choices leading to deep personal loss.
- The story ends with Tris and others heading into exile as fugitives, seeking safety and a new purpose.
Questions / Follow-Ups
- What will become of the broken factions and the survivors?
- How will Tris and Tobias, as Divergent, influence the future of their society?
- What are the broader intentions of Erudite, and how can Divergents stay safe?