For other uses, see Divergent (disambiguation).

Divergent
Author	Veronica Roth
Cover artist	Harper Collins Publishers 2011
Country	America
Genre(s)	Science fiction/ dystopian fiction/ adventure
Publisher	Harper Collins Publishers
Publication date	2011
ISBN	978-0-00-742041-4
Followed by	Insurgent

Divergent is the debut novel by author Veronica Roth, and the first installment of the Divergent trilogy. It is followed by Insurgent, which was released on May 1st, 2012.

CharactersEdit

• Beatrice Prior/Tris- The series' main protagonist. A born Abnegation who strived to be selfless, but Beatrice grew to have traits that conflicted with her original faction. Though she can be selfish at times, she's more brave when she is motivated by her selflessness and choosing sacrifice over selfishness. She learns of being a Divergent during the Aptitude Tests, who, among other things, are people who can manipulate the simulations. Most Divergent have an aptitude for two factions, but Beatrice has three, Candor, Abnegation, and Dauntless. She chooses Dauntless and changes her name to Tris. In the initiation that follows, Tris encounters numerous enemies who seek to break her, while she grapples with feelings for a fellow Dauntless  man, and her attempts to discover who she truly is. She's described as not necessarily pretty in the traditional sense, but most certainly striking with her blond hair and girlish figure.
• Tobias Eaton/Four- A born Abnegation turned Dauntless, Tobias, or Four after becoming Dauntless, is the one responsible for his faction's initiation. Four is an eighteen-year old Dauntless who oversees the Dauntless initiates during Divergent, specifically those who have transferred from other factions. He meets Beatrice Prior, trainging her, befriending her and ultimately becoming her boyfriend. He helps her through initiation and protects her identity as a Divergent. He is called Four by most, Tris is one of few who knows him as Tobias, the nickname stuck as he only has 4 fears in his fear landscape. Tobias, like Tris, was born Abnegation and is also Divergent.
• Peter- One of the main antagonists of the novel, and a fierce enemy of Tris Prior. Peter is a former Candor who transferred to Dauntless. He is shown to be cruel, sadistic, antagonistic, ill-tempered, and easily jealous. He desires a status of being the top of the initiates, doing anything he can to achieve that standing. His greed for power is Peter's most discernible trait. He uses the slur of "Stiff" towards Tris throughout the novel, and is ruthless towards Tris.
• Caleb Prior- Brother of Beatrice, son of Andrew and Natalie Prior. Caleb always seemed selfless and harbored no selfishness, he loved to read books and seek knowledge, eventually choosing to transfer to Erudite. Despite this, Caleb never forgot about his old faction, and chose to help his family during the rebellion in spite of his apparent betrayal to Abnegation. He becomes a larger part of Tris' story as time passes.
• Natalie Prior- Mother of Beatrice and Caleb Prior. She is selfless, always thinking about what's best for  everyone else. Natalie was born Dauntless but later turned to Abnegation to try to hide her Divergence from wary eyes. She tells Tris she loves her no matter what, and means it; she has a tattoo from her Dauntless upbringing.
• Andrew Prior- The father of Beatrice and Caleb Prior. He is an epitome of selflessness; always doing what's best for the people around him. Andrew becomes a council member effectively becoming an influential man in the city. He has a period of selfishness when Beatrice and Caleb both choose to leave Abnegation, as Natalie tells Tris on Visiting Day. He tends to spout off tirades on the Erudite and their intentions.
• Christina - She is a born Candor who chose Dauntless, She became Tris' bestfriend at the First Day of Initiation. She coupled up with Will, an Erudite transfer to Dauntless. She has a knack for brutal honesty, and tactlessness.
• Eric - He is a Dauntless leader who was an Erudite transfer. He's depicted as envious of Four, though he maintains a higher position in the ranks of Dauntless. Eric is the cruel and brutish side of bravery, contrasted by Four's common-place selflessness shade of bravery. He tends to be a bully, while espousing hatred for bullies.
• Jeanine Matthews - The leader of Erudite and the main antagonist of the series. She was chosen to be the leader because of her extremely high IQ scores. Her main goal: to gather the Divergent and find a way to end their control over simulations (either by murder, or science).

SummaryEdit

In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago, 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). At the age of 16, teens are required to complete an aptitude test to define the faction they are most suited for. Beatrice discovers that she is Divergent, having an equal aptitude for more than a single faction (for her Erudite, Dauntless, and Abnegation; while most Divergent have only two aptitudes). The following day they must choose which faction they will devote their lives to - and "faction over blood" is taken very seriously. Beatrice must decide whether she wants to stay in the never-changing world of Abnegation - along with her family, while denying her true self - or if she wants to embrace who she is at heart. She chooses Dauntless, surprising everyone (even herself).

Dauntless initiation is highly competitive, and aimed at preparing initiates to eliminate cowardice. Beatrice renames herself upon arriving at the Dauntless compound, to “Tris”. She struggles to find out the truth of who her friends are, who she truly is at heart, and how she feels about her trainer, Four—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating boy fits into the life she's chosen.

She’s got a deep secret, kept locked away to heed the warnings she’s heard that it may be the, literal, death of her. Tris discovers that tensions between factions are mounting, and they threaten to unravel her society–not merely a single faction. She finds that her closely guarded secret could help her to save her loved ones… but it also could destroy her.

Tris finds a grasp on reality, and looses it in the same moment - until she is forced to act.