Blake Kotel - Blog Post 2

"'My conclusion," she explains, "is that you display equal aptitude for Abnegation, Dauntless, and Erudite. People who get this kind of result are..." She looks over her shoulder like she expects someone to appear behind her. "... are called... Divergent.'" (Roth 22)

Summary: This excerpt from Divergent describes the moment when Tris (at this time still goes by Beatrice) receives the results, or lack there of, from her aptitude test. Her test administer is not able to assign her to one faction as she is divergent, meaning that she could belong in multiple factions.

So What Step 1:
Question: What does it mean for Tris to be divergent?
Answer: By Tris receiving the result of divergent on her aptitude test it means that she does not fit perfectly in with the values of one of the factions. In fact, in her case she shows signs of being able to join three of the five factions in the book.

So What Step 2:
Question: Why is being divergent such a serious matter?
Answer: Being divergent is a very important thing in this society. It is clearly illustrated to Tris by Tori, her test administer, who tells her that she cannot tell anyone that she is divergent. This is taken so seriously because even though all of the kids have the freedom to choose whatever faction they like, regardless of their results, Tris still shows signs of being able to fit in with three factions making her way of thinking diverse and different from most other people in the society and inevitably from the faction she chooses.

So What Step 3:
Question: What conclusions about this dystopia and others like it can be drawn from this passage?
Answer: This text allows us to conclude that dystopias, while trying to make an effort to create a harmonious society, will fail because of their lack of flexibility. This is clearly shown in this text because Tris is told that her result is dangerous. The only reason for this is because she is showing multiple different traits and cannot easily slide into one faction like the majority of people. While this society tried to make a place where everyone fits into a single faction, a group of people with the same values, it simply did not work because people are ever changing and can have multiple values and characteristics. A conclusion can be drawn that dystopias in theory may make it seem like everyone will be able to fit in to a group and life will be perfect but in reality, people are complex creatures that thrive off of the similarities and differences of others that they live with.