Divergent by Veronica Roth
Dystopia, Science Fiction, Young Adult
In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue--Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is--she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.
During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are--and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, Tris also learns that her secret might help her save the ones she loves . . . or it might destroy her.
Setting
Chicago, Illinois
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Of course, in the world of Divergent, Chicago doesn't look like that anymore
It looks more like this...
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I apologize for the low quality, I couldn't find one of better quality, so I improvised by screen-shooting the movie trailer.
Places
Even though Divergent is only a fiction novel set in about 100 years from now, there are places mentioned in the world of Divergent that are very much real places that exists in Chicago today.
Willis Tower (aka Sears Tower)
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"The building that was once called The Sears Tower, we call it The Hub."
--Veronica Roth, Divergent
Expect yet another name change within a hundred years, people. JK.
Sears-- I mean WILLIS -- Tower (Sorry -- lol jk no, I'm not) is 1451 ft. tall (if you count the antenna), 108-stories. That's taller than the Empire State building and the Eiffel Tower. Just thought I'd point that out there and make this useful, because here comes the Sears Tower puns...
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Hancock Building / Navy Pier / Lake Shore Drive / Michigan Ave
I was just informed that there is NO zip line at the top or near the Hancock building. You see the problem -- they need to add one.
The iconic Ferris Wheel scene during capture the flag takes place on thee very ferris wheel at the Navy Pier. I guess it withstood till then. Go ferris wheel!
Factions
- Abnegation
- Candor
- Amity
- Erudite
- Dauntless
So... What warranted the government to create the faction system, you ask?
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Manifestos
Each faction have manifestos they live by
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Favorite Quotes
"Faction before blood."
"Becoming fearless isn't the point. That's impossible. It's learning how to control your fear, and how to be free from it."
"Fear doesn't shut you down; it wakes you up."
"Valuing knowledge above all else results in a lust for power, and that leads men into dark and empty places."
"It must require bravery to be honest all the time."
"We both have a war inside of us. Sometimes it keeps us alive; sometimes it threatens to destroy us."
"It's easy to be brave when they're not my fears."
"That's my girl. Tough as cotton balls."
"You know, most boys would enjoy being trapped in close quarters with a girl."
"Not claustrophobic people, Tris."
“Human beings as a whole cannot be good for long before the bad creeps back in and poisons us again.”
"One choice. One choice, decides your friends. One choice, defines your beliefs. One choice, determines your loyalties - forever. One choice can transform you."
“Learning how to think in the midst of fear is a lesson that everyone needs to learn.”
...and last, but not least
Book Trailer
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tu5Erw-posg&w=560&h=315]
Movie Trailer
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sutgWjz10sM&w=560&h=315]
About the Author
Veronica Roth is from a Chicago suburb. She studied creative writing at Northwestern University, and wrote DIVERGENT (Katherine Tegen Books, May 2011) and INSURGENT (May 2012). The third and final book in The Divergent Trilogy, ALLEGIANT, will come out on October 22, 2013. In the meantime she will spend endless hours browsing Wikipedia in her pajamas as she eats corn flakes. (Or some other kind of bland breakfast cereal.)
Divergent is in theaters today, March 21!
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