Divergent is a dark and thrilling young adult sci-fi series from best-selling author Veronica Roth. It's set in a post-apocalyptic Chicago that has separated its population into five Factions, each defined by a given set of values, personality traits, and social affiliations. The Factions are Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the kind), Erudite (the intelligent), Abnegation (the selfless), and Candor (the honest). Each year, those who have reached the age of 16 take a placement test and then choose the Faction to which they will devote the rest of their life. In the series, we follow Tris. At her placement test, she receives inconclusive results and is labeled "Divergent." She is warned to never tell anyone. But as Tris grows older and learns more about the world, she starts to question the whole Faction system and the ways it's used to divide and control people.
Warning: The following article contains spoilers for the Divergent series.
What happens in the Divergent series?
16-year-old Beatrice Prior has grown up in Abnegation, but when she takes her placement test and receives results that mark her as "Divergent," everything changes. Her test administrator, Tori, warns her never to tell anyone. Beatrice chooses to leave Abnegation and join Dauntless. Meanwhile, her brother Caleb chooses to join Erudite. When Beatrice joins Dauntless, she changes her name to Tris and forms a relationship with Four. Four explains to Tris that, unlike other Factions, not everyone who chooses Dauntless will be accepted. Only the top ten will be allowed to stay. The rest will become Factionless, which in this world means homeless.
While Tris trains to become Dauntless, Erudite is stirring dissent within Abnegation. This supposedly selfless Faction is accused of hoarding supplies and their leader, Marcus, is accused of abusing his son—an accusation further fueled by the fact that Marcus's son has left Abnegation, along with Tris and Caleb.
Tris does well in the Dauntless trials. In the first round, she places sixth. In the second round, she is forced to face vivid hallucinations of her greatest fear. Because Tris is Divergent, her additional abilities give her a bonus in this round. She makes top rank, which draws the attention of the other competitors. A few try to attack her, but Four comes to her rescue. In the final stage, the Dauntless are tested by going through a fear landscape. Four allows Tris to see his landscape. This is how she learns that Four is actually Marcus's son, Tobias, and the accusations of abuse are true.
After the Dauntless initiates overcome their fear landscape, they are all injected with a tracking serum. Far from harmless, the serum has a hypnotic effect, turning them into mindless soldiers set to attack the Abnegation Faction. Due to their Divergent qualities, both Tris and Four are protected from the serum's effects. However, Four is soon captured by Erudite's leader, Jeanine Matthews, who uses another serum to put him under her control. Meanwhile, Tris returns to Abnegation to try to save her mother. Her mother dies in the attack—but not before revealing that she, too, was Divergent. After Four is able to break free of Jeanine's control, both he and Tris free the Dauntless and board a train to the Amity Faction to help Abnegation's survivors.
This novel is set immediately after the events of Divergent. A war is looming as conflicts between the Factions begin to grow. Tris, Tobias, Caleb, and Susan Black all board a train to the Factionless sector. They begin to hatch a plan to join forces with the Factionless and the Dauntless to fight against the Erudite. Next, Tris and Tobias head to Candor, where the Dauntless are now staying. One night, the Dauntless traitors, led by Eric, attack. Using a serum, they knock everyone unconscious—except for those who are Divergent. The Divergent attack back and are able to capture Eric, while the other traitors run away. Tobias kills Eric, and then the Dauntless return to their own headquarters, disabling the cameras so they cannot be tracked. However, Tris makes a shocking discovery: Caleb has been working for Jeanine the whole time. To save others from being killed, Tris surrenders to Erudite. Jeanine orders her execution, but Tris is saved by Peter, her former rival, and escapes to Abnegation. There, Tris meets with Marcus, who tells her that the Erudite know a secret with the power to destroy the other factions. Next, they head to Amity to ask for help, and several join them. Together, they infiltrate Erudite headquarters and kill Jeanine. At the end of the novel, Tris and her allies uncover a staggering fact: the entire world of Factions is corrupt. And the city of Chicago has been sealed to allow the number of Divergents to increase.
Allegiant is the third and final installment in the main Divergent trilogy. Under new leadership, the Factions now all live together equally alongside the Factionless—but the rebel Allegiant are working to restore the Faction system. Tris, Tobias, and their allies learn that Chicago has been walled off from the rest of the world as part of a government-sanctioned experiment to produce more genetically pure Divergents separate from the genetically-damaged population. Tris learns that her mother was a refugee from Milwaukee, attempting to thwart Erudite's efforts to kill off the Divergents. She then discovers that the serum given to the Dauntless during the attack on the Abnegation was provided by the Bureau. Caleb volunteers to expose the serum, but Tris goes in his place. She is killed by David in the process. Nonetheless, her mission is successful. The book flashes forward to two years later, when Chicago is reopened, everything is being rebuilt, and everyone coexists regardless of gene purity. Tobias has become a council leader.
Four is a collection of five short stories told from the perspective of Tobias. Roth says that these short stories serve as a prequel to the Divergent trilogy and flesh out Tobias's backstory. Additionally, they shed some light on some of the mysteries of the dystopian world and what happened before Tris chose to transfer to Dauntless.
Who are the main characters of the Divergent series?
Beatrice (Tris) Prior
Tris is the main character of the Divergent series. The first two novels are told from her perspective, and the third novel is told partially by Tris and partially by Tobias. Tris was born into Abnegation, but when she takes her placement test, she discovers she has the aptitude for three different factions—Erudite, Abnegation and Dauntless—which marks her as Divergent.
Four (Tobias)
Like Tris, Four grew up in Abnegation. At his choosing ceremony, he opted to transfer to Dauntless to escape his abusive father. Four serves as a trainer for new Dauntless initiates. He was given the nickname "Four" because he has only four fears: heights, shooting innocents, claustrophobia, and his father.
Caleb Prior
Caleb is Tris's older brother. In his choosing ceremony, he transfers from Abnegation to Erudite. Caleb believed in the Erudite mission, and he betrays his sister to follow through with it. However, in the third novel, Caleb asks for forgiveness and even attempts to go on a suicide mission to make up for his treachery. However, Tris refuses to let him go and instead goes in his place.
Marcus Eaton
Marcus is Tobias's father and one of the council members of Abnegation. After the Dauntless attack Abnegation, Marcus is the only council member left alive. Marcus was abusive to his son Tobias. In the final novel of the trilogy, Marcus bands with the Allegiant against the cause of the Factionless.
Jeanine Matthews
Jeanine is the main antagonist in the Divergent and Insurgent novels. She was born into Erudite and chose it as her Faction. She is the one who developed the aptitude test that everyone must take before their choosing ceremony. She is also the one who develops the serum to control the Dauntless.
Christina
Christina is Tris's friend. She was born into Candor, but chose Dauntless. Her relationship with Tris is strained after she discovers that Tris killed her boyfriend, Will. Eventually, Christina forgives her. In the short story "We Can Be Mended," Christina has moved on from Will and is dating Four.
Tori Wu
Tori was born into Erudite and later chooses Candor. She is the one who administers the aptitude test for Tris and therefore knows that she is Divergent. In Insurgent, Tori becomes one of the leaders of Dauntless, alongside Four.
Eric Coulter
Eric was born into Erudite but chooses Dauntless. He is Four's rival as they were initiated into Dauntless in the same year; Four came in first and Eric placed second. Eric leads an attack against the Dauntless in Insurgent, and when he is captured, he is sentenced to death. Eric asks for Four to be his executioner, and Four agrees.
Major Themes of the Divergent Series
Like many young adult books, the Divergent series tackles themes of identity and belonging. The characters in Veronica Roth's novels and short stories are at an age when they're learning who they are and coming to terms with who they want to be—we see this theme reflected in their struggles. The young characters are also at a turning point of their lives when they begin to question authority and make decisions for themselves. As the series continues, the world opens up for Tris and her allies. While in many ways the world turns out to be much darker and more sinister than anything Tris could have imagined, it also offers a wide range of possibilities for a brighter future. In addition, Divergent explores themes of competition and rivalry, fear and bravery, society and its divisions, and maturity.
How did Divergent make it to the big screen?
The three Divergent novels were adapted into a series of films starring Shailene Woodley as Tris, Theo James as Four, Kate Winslet as Jeanine, Maggie Q as Tori, Zoe Kravitz as Christina, Ansel Elgort as Caleb, Miles Teller as Peter, Ashley Judd as Natalie, and Jai Courtney as Eric. Divergent was released in 2014; Insurgent followed in 2015. The third novel was initially planned to be released as two films. The first film, Allegiant, was released in 2016. The second part was initially planned for a 2017 release, but sadly for fans, the film was canceled.
Emma Galvin narrates the first two novels, Divergent and Insurgent, capturing Tris's voice and viewpoint. For Allegiant, Galvin is joined by Aaron Stanford—the dual narration reflects the perspectives of both Tris and Tobias (aka Four). Stanford reads all of the stories in Four, which are told from Tobias's point of view.
