Divergent

The first chapter introduces the novel’s narrator, Beatrice, who is 16 years old and is preparing for an aptitude test that is to take place later that day. Beatrice is having her hair cut by her mother in front of a mirror, and reveals that her family belongs to a faction called Abnegation that only permits access to a mirror once every three months. This chapter sets up the context in which the story takes place, informing us that the aptitude test is meant to establish the faction to which a person is best suited. Everyone Beatrice’s age takes this test and then attends a Choosing Ceremony where they officially state the faction that they have selected. This can involve either staying in the faction that they have grown up in or choosing a new faction.

From the outset, then, we can see that this is a society that has been split into a variety of factions and that the Choosing Ceremony is a major event. From Beatrice’s comments, it is clear that she is not entirely happy in her existing faction. Her home life is pleasant and normal for the most part, yet she comments that this makes her feel all the more guilty about wanting to leave. She is also markedly nervous about the aptitude test.

Beatrice and her brother, Caleb, travel to school by bus, and Caleb gives up his seat to a member of the Candor faction. This is a model act for a member of Abnegation, which, as its name suggests, is a faction that values selflessness. It also marks one of many ways in which, in Beatrice’s view, Caleb seems naturally suited to Abnegation.

Upon arrival at school, Beatrice and Caleb see members of some of the other factions who are likewise due to take the aptitude test. All is not harmonious, however, with relations between Erudite and Abnegation having become tense. This might seem like typical schoolyard behavior, but, as the novel proceeds, we see that the rift between these factions is a much more serious affair. Still, Beatrice is preoccupied with the members of Dauntless, who arrive at school each day by leaping from a moving train. Clad in black and adorned with tattoos and piercings, these figures are a source of continuing fascination to Beatrice and seem to epitomize bravery and excitement.

Chapter 2 focuses on the aptitude test itself. When Caleb is called in to take the test, Beatrice reiterates her belief that he has always seemed naturally suited to Abnegation, whereas she has different instincts. Once it is her own turn to take the test, she enters the testing room and meets a woman called Tori who will be administering the test. Beatrice notices that this woman has a tattoo of a hawk on her neck and cannot help but enquire about it. Curiosity is not supposed to be a trait of the Abnegation faction, but, as we have already seen, Beatrice sees herself as far from perfect in this respect. Tori replies that the hawk represented the sun in some ancient societies and that she used to be afraid of the dark. The tattoo symbolizes her triumph over this fear, and in turn sets up a theme that will play a major role throughout the novel.

The aptitude test involves engaging in a simulation, which, again, is a recurring motif throughout the novel. The test is described in vivid detail and involves a series of choices. In the first phase, for instance, Beatrice is asked to choose between two baskets; one of which contains a hunk of cheese and the other a knife. Beatrice asks what she is supposed to do with them but, hearing no answer, folds her arms stubbornly in a display of pride and noncompliance. Still, when the baskets disappear and a growling dog appears, Beatrice realizes why the cheese or knife would have been useful. Assessing her options, she decides to lie on the ground so that she does not seem threatening, and this tactic works. However, a young girl then emerges and runs at the dog, exclaiming “Puppy!” At this point, Beatrice jumps at the dog and grabs it by the throat, protecting the girl and demonstrating the selflessness that proves she is not devoid of Abnegation qualities. This is a theme that comes into play throughout the novel, as Beatrice realizes that she is not as selfish as she imagined. Shielding the child was both brave and selfless, and this prefigures Beatrice’s later understanding that the two are not mutually exclusive.

The simulation changes and Beatrice finds herself on a bus. A passenger is reading a newspaper featuring a picture of a young man and the headline “Brutal Murderer Finally Apprehended.” The passenger asks Beatrice if she recognizes this man and she is conscious that something awful will happen to her if she admits that she knows him. On the other hand, saying that she does not know him would be a lie. She chooses to lie and remains steadfast in her denial that she knows this man—even when the passenger says that she could save him were she to identify him. The first chapter has already established that Beatrice feels the need to put on an act in real life, in an attempt to fit into her Abnegation surroundings. Here we see further evidence of Beatrice’s capacity to be dishonest. We also see that, in some respects, Beatrice is right—she does not qualify as an ideal Abnegation citizen.

Beatrice awakes from the simulation in Chapter 3, and Tori remarks that she is perplexed by Beatrice’s test results. As Tori steps out of the room for a moment, Beatrice is nervous; in particular, she is plagued by the fear of being factionless. This is not a fear that is exclusive to her, and, she gives the reader a sense of what it means to be factionless in this society: it is to live in poverty, discomfort, and isolation. Beatrice thinks of her mother’s comments on this matter: “that we can’t survive alone, but even if we could, we wouldn’t want to. Without a faction, we have no purpose and no reason to live” (20).

When Tori returns, she explains that the test is supposed to move along in a linear fashion, with the test subject’s choices eliminating various factions until the ideal faction is left. Beatrice’s results, by contrast, were inconclusive, and Tori breaks down the simulation stage by stage to explain the effects of Beatrice’s decisions. As she describes them, some of Beatrice’s decisions seem to indicate an affinity with one faction, while other decisions were more characteristic of another. Ultimately, Tori concludes that Beatrice has an equal aptitude for Abnegation, Dauntless, and Erudite, and she reveals that people who receive such a result are known as Divergent.

From Tori’s manner, it is clear to both Beatrice and the reader that being Divergent is not a matter to be taken lightly, nor is it something to share with other people. In fact, Tori instructs Beatrice never to reveal this result to anyone. Neither Beatrice nor the reader knows the ramifications of Divergence at this point—Beatrice wonders, what is so dangerous about inconclusive test results? Nevertheless, Beatrice heeds Tori’s warning and turns her attention to the Choosing Ceremony. With her inconclusive results, which faction should she choose?

As she walks home, Beatrice elaborates on the detachment that she feels from Abnegation. She knows that this faction must look ideal from the outside, as it is harmonious and everyone helps one another, but she cannot help but feel that it is not right for her. However, she has lived there all her life and she loves her family. Leaving is therefore not an easy decision.

Further to her previous comments, we see what it means to be factionless when Beatrice makes her way through the factionless sector of the city. This sector is a place of squalor and ruin, and the factionless are forced to live in poverty and do the jobs that no one else is willing to undertake. When a factionless man approaches Beatrice, she is torn between her instinct to carry on walking and her father’s instruction to provide such individuals with food. Again, then, we see that Beatrice is subject to an internal struggle between Abnegation values and her own instinct.

Beatrice gives the man some apple slices that she keeps in her bag for such occasions. Rather than merely accepting them and offering thanks, however, the man grabs Beatrice’s wrist and says that she looks too young to be walking around on her own. From this comment and Beatrice’s annoyed reaction, we get a sense of Beatrice’s youthful looks and small frame (which, as we will see throughout the novel, Beatrice sometimes regards as a hindrance). When she informs the man that she is sixteen, he remarks that tomorrow must be the day of her Choosing Ceremony. His parting comment is “Choose wisely, little girl” (26). Indeed, it would seem that the factionless know the full impact of not choosing wisely and the abject status that can result from failure or making the wrong decisions. The prospect of being factionless therefore weighs heavily on the characters during the Choosing Ceremony and, as we will see, throughout the faction initiation process.

In Chapter 4, Beatrice returns home and reflects on the housing design within Abnegation. The houses are simple, minimalist, and uniform in appearance, but this is not because the faction deplores individuality. Abnegation does not seek to be petty or oppressive but rather to create a state of equality and harmony. Where things are equal, it follows that people will not be greedy or envious of one another. This outlook is certainly logical and Beatrice has tried to love her native faction. However, she feels like she possesses natural personality traits (a tendency towards sarcasm, for instance) that cannot be accommodated in Abnegation. The question is whether she should try to suppress these traits or transfer to a different faction?

When Caleb arrives home, he notices that Beatrice looks unwell, and she pretends that the liquid she had to ingest for the aptitude test made her sick. Caleb does not believe her but she maintains that they are not supposed to discuss the test. Nevertheless, she turns his question back on him and asks him how he did in the test. Though neither of them will comment on their result, the conversation is loaded with unspoken meaning and the two look at each other, with Caleb finally agreeing not to say anything about Beatrice’s test to their parents. Meanwhile, Beatrice hears the faint sound of a train and feels as though the Dauntless are calling to her. By this point, the reader has a sense of where Beatrice’s instincts are leading her.

Beatrice imagines Caleb living out the rest of his life in Abnegation, embarking on a trade and starting a family. Likewise, when the two are cooking dinner, Beatrice is annoyed by how innately selfless and helpful he is. As they prepare dinner, Beatrice’s narration touches on wider social conditions, as she notes that most of what they eat now is genetically engineered and canned, with farms being far away. Throughout the novel, the city is presented as though it is a self-contained entity, and we get few hints about what might have happened or is happening in the outside world. In this respect, the novel is deliberately vague and does not delve into broader socio-political issues. It is up to the reader to consider the various possibilities based on occasional observations such as Beatrice’s comments in this passage.

Seated around the dinner table, Beatrice’s parents ask about the aptitude test, with Beatrice’s mother having heard that one student became ill and was sent home early. When Caleb replies that he has not heard anything about it, Beatrice observes that she is not the only one who has the capacity to lie. Here, we get a hint that there are aspects of Caleb’s personality with which Beatrice is not familiar. Moreover, if Caleb does seem like a perfect member of Abnegation, then there is the question of whether this is genuinely the case or if he, like Beatrice, has the ability to pretend.

The discussion around the dinner table also affirms that the relationship between the factions is not entirely harmonious. We learn more about the faction system here; notably, that the city council is ruled entirely by members of Abnegation due to their perceived selflessness, leadership skills, and moral fortitude. Representatives of other factions can speak in meetings, but the council has the final say. Beatrice believes that this system persists because people fear that war might break out if it did not. However, members of Erudite are not happy with this arrangement and have started stirring up trouble.

We learn that the prime culprit is Jeanine Matthews, the sole Erudite representative, who has produced a report criticizing Marcus—a particularly influential member of the council. This report states that Marcus’s cruelty and violence caused his son, Tobias, to transfer to Dauntless. Beatrice’s father believes that there is more trouble to come and that the emphasis that Erudite places on knowledge has caused that faction to become power hungry. Beatrice agrees with her father’s view on this faction, and knows that she would never transfer to Erudite. At this point, then, it seems that she has two choices: Abnegation or Dauntless.

Later that night, Beatrice and Caleb have another cryptic, portentous discussion, with Caleb telling Beatrice that they must think not only of their family but of themselves. Beatrice is surprised, given that Caleb has hitherto seemed to uphold the Abnegation vale of selflessness, but they do not discuss this topic any further. Indeed, it is evident that they are not used to being open and honest with each another given the strictures of their faction. Though she does not vocalize this to Caleb, Beatrice confirms that she has two options: she must drum up either the selflessness to choose Abnegation or the courage to transfer to Dauntless.

Chapter 5 takes place on the day of the Choosing Ceremony, and Beatrice’s nervousness is readily apparent. What is also apparent is the difference between her mother’s and her father’s expectations of their children: while her father seems to assume that both his children will choose Abnegation, her mother tells her that she will love her no matter what.

At the ceremony itself, participants are faced with five bowls representing each of the five factions: Abnegation, Dauntless, Erudite, Candor, and Amity. Marcus takes to the podium and makes a speech that helps the reader gain a firmer understanding of the faction system. This system was established several decades ago when people concluded that warfare was not caused by political ideology, race, religion, or nationalism, but by the human personality. Factions were therefore created on the basis of personality traits that were deemed responsible for such conflict. So, for example, those who thought that selfishness was the 16, main culprit formed Abnegation, while those who saw cowardice as being responsible formed Dauntless.

Beatrice’s mind is whirring as she sits through the ceremony. She agrees with the Abnegation claim that selfishness can be blamed for aggression, yet she has never felt that she can put aside her own selfish instincts to the extent demanded by her faction. As Marcus continues his speech, and stresses how integral ones faction is in life, she and the others are reminded of the ultimate fear: to be factionless.

As the procession begins, a boy named James is the first to transfer factions, and this elicits murmurs from the crowd. From this reaction and Beatrice’s explanation, we learn that transferring is seen as a treacherous act. A person who has transferred will be permitted visits from their family, but there is a strong likelihood that their family will not want to visit following this “betrayal.” Still, there is a bigger surprise in store for Beatrice when she sees Caleb pledge his allegiance to Erudite. Looking back, Beatrice recognizes that he hinted at this possibility, but her immediate reaction is shock—she had never considered him as anything other than Abnegation. That her seemingly perfect brother wants to leave Abnegation makes her all the more conscious that she cannot remain in her native faction. She consequently chooses Dauntless, recognizing in herself the two qualities that she associates with this faction: selfishness and bravery.