Divergent Chapters 28 - 39
Tris, reeling from a sense of failure, goes to the Erudite compound against the rules, seeking solace in her brother, Caleb. He takes her to the park to talk privately, and Caleb reveals a troubling hunch that Erudite is planning something big against Abnegation. He is reluctant to share any information with her and she perceives this as a betrayal of their Abnegation roots. Before departing, she tells him that their mother had wanted him to research the simulation serum. Before she can leave, she is accosted by Erudite people who lead her to meet the Erudite leader, Janine. Her encounter with Jeanine amplifies the stakes as Tris evades divulging any information about her ‘missing’ test results. Tris realizes that she had heard Jeanine’s voice in the simulation, as well as in the hallway when Eric had been talking about finding Divergent rebels. Upon her return, Tris is confronted by an angry Eric who wants to expel her from the faction along with her friends because she had flouted the rules. She is saved by Tobias, who leads Tris to pretend that she had gone away from Dauntless because Tobias had rejected her romantic advances.
In private, Tobias tells her that he had been cruel to her after the simulation because he wanted to protect her and not display any favoritism. She forgives him, and he reveals that before training had begun, he had found documents that indicated Erudite’s plans to attack Abnegation. He takes her into the city and shows her that the lights in the Erudite compound are still switched on, against the rules. Tris is certain that the Erudite takeover requires Dauntless soldiers but she wonders how they aim to achieve their compliance.
Initiation day at the Dauntless compound presents a charged atmosphere, characterized by revelry and inebriation. Tris's disquietude amplifies as she discovers her choice of traditional Abnegation food, prompting her to introspect about her faction selection. She falls asleep as she is considering these thoughts and is awoken by Christina. They walk down to the pit, where each initiate is supposed to go through their fear landscape in front of a panel of judges. The other initiates observe the time each initiate takes, and their heart rate as they are going through the trial. The initiates go through the test in reverse order so Tris is the last to go through the simulation. When her turn arrives, Tris approaches Eric, and he injects her with an orange liquid.
Tris undergoes a profound transformation during the final initiation, realizing that it’s a test of mental fortitude rather than just facing fears. Understanding that her fears symbolize a loss of control, she adapts, asserting her power and mastering each challenge with imaginative resilience. Confronting the avian threat, she channels inner strength, conjuring a gun to conquer her fear. She manipulates perceptions, visualizing the glass box as ice to break free by shattering the ice with a blow.
Her trials escalate—escaping drowning, evading fiery torment, and confronting disturbing scenarios. Facing her fear of intimacy, she asserts her autonomy, refusing Tobias’s sexual advances in a hallucination. However, the ultimate trial arrives when an apparition of Jeanine demands the unthinkable: to sacrifice her family. Demonstrating true bravery rooted in selflessness, Tris defies the command, offering her own life instead, embracing the essence of sacrifice, and demonstrating an unwavering commitment to her values amidst the crucible of fears and illusions.
Tris concludes her simulation evaluation and receives Eric’s congratulations for completing her trial. He implants a tracking device in her body and tells her that he is doing the same with all the other Dauntless members. She is suspicious of Eric because of his involvement with Janine, but she allows him to administer the tracking device. She is joined by Tobias, they converse intimately and he tells her that he is confident that she is going to rank first because she only had to face about seven fear landscapes. She shows him her Abnegation tattoo, and he surprises her by showing her tattoos of all the factions on his body. He tells her that he has got the tattoos to remind himself to focus on developing all virtues and not just one. Tris confesses that she is worried Tobias is only with her for sex, but he reveals that he is a virgin himself. They both agree that they need to figure out a means of protecting their old faction from the plans that Erudite has been making against them.
Tris and Tobias share an intimate afternoon but part ways at the dining hall entrance. Concealing her time with Tobias, Tris joins Christina and Will to discuss the possibility of future jobs as well as their fear landscapes. Christina asks why some of the panelists were laughing during the final part of her simulation. Tris tells them it was because of her fear of intimacy, but she doesn’t mention Tobias. Amidst raucous cheering, Eric delivers a congratulatory speech and unveils the final rankings. Tris ranks first, while most of her friends make it into the top ten. Christina and Will kiss with relief when they discover they have successfully passed the initiation. Tris surprises her friends by kissing Tobias, and as he brushes the site of her simulation injection, she realizes that Erudite may be planning to use the simulation serum to control the Dauntless. She decides to share her suspicions with Tobias in private.
Tris fails to find a private moment with Tobias at the banquet and decides to meet him later at night, but she dozes off. She is woken in the middle of the night and finds that her peers are leaving the dorm in a serum-induced trance. She pretends to be under the same influence and follows them as they pick up guns from a pile at the pit and board trains. Resolute in her loyalty to Abnegation and decision to protect her family, Tris accompanies the assault against her home faction. Amidst the chaos, Tobias aids her, unveiling his divergence by his ability to resist the effects of the serum. Upon arrival at Abnegation, chaos unfolds as Dauntless soldiers begin to execute Abnegation members. Eric comes across Tris and attempts to ensure that she is under the influence of the serum. Eric tells her that he is a superior leader in comparison to Tobias, and he prepares to shoot Tobias. Tris jumps into action as she shoots Eric in the foot and attempts to escape with Tobias. As they are about to escape, Tris suffers a bullet wound in her shoulder. Eric demands that they surrender to him.
In a gripping turn of events, Tobias and the severely wounded Tris are brought before Jeanine at Abnegation headquarters. The erudite members refer to them as Divergent rebels. Jeanine, claims she had already been suspicious of Tris, but she hadn’t ever suspected Tobias. She tells them she plans on trying out a new serum that has been specifically designed to override the abilities that Divergent possesses. She also promises to explain to them why most of the Divergent come from the faction of Abnegation. She unveils her scheme to create a new ruling order, merging factions while eradicating Abnegation. Jeanine aims to manipulate Tobias first, injecting him with the mind-altering serum to test its effects.
Tobias, under its influence, sees Tris as a foe, leading to a heart-wrenching altercation. Tobias tries to kill Tris but the guards overpower him, and Jeanine sends him to the control room. Tris is hit over the head, and taken away in an unconscious state. Tris, weakened and confined in a perilous tank, much like her fear landscape, faces imminent drowning under Jeanine's surveillance. Struggling fruitlessly, she confronts mortality, reflecting on faith and loved ones. Miraculously, her mother intervenes, freeing her by shooting the glass with a gun. Together, they flee, and Tris discovers her mother shares her divergence, which means that she is immune to faction control. They try to reach the hidden location of her father and brother, but they are accosted by soldiers. Overcome by grief, Tris wrestles with despair but resolves to persist. Despite her devastating loss, she finds the courage to keep running, navigating a tumultuous and heart-wrenching escape from the clutches of danger.
Tris faces a perilous encounter with Dauntless soldiers, discovering one of them is Will. In a heartbreaking moment, she's forced to shoot him in self-defense. Guided by her mother's instructions, she reunites with her family and Abnegation members, just as she is succumbing to her injuries.
Amidst the chaos, Caleb discloses Erudite's nefarious plans, prompting Tris to devise a plan to thwart their control over Dauntless. Unexpectedly treated as an equal by her father, she proposes a daring mission to dismantle the manipulative computer system at Dauntless headquarters. This newfound camaraderie with her father signals a shift, positioning Tris as a strategic leader amidst impending turmoil.
Tris, accompanied by Caleb, her father, and Marcus, travels to Dauntless headquarters on a train. In a tense exchange, Tris defends her allegiance to Dauntless as a symbol of selflessness. Upon arrival, she guides the group through the treacherous Pit entrance, encountering a non-trance-induced Peter, whom she subdues for information. Tris's assertiveness shocks her father, yet she ruthlessly confronts guards to reach the control room. Dividing the group, she instructs Caleb and Marcus while heading to the control room with her father. Tragedy strikes as her father valiantly sacrifices himself in a bid to help Tris proceed. Tris confronts Tobias in the control room, poised on the brink of a critical confrontation amidst the chaos of Dauntless headquarters.
Tobias, seemingly bewildered, threatens Tris, sparking a harrowing struggle. Tris navigates a tumultuous battle of wills, desperately trying to reach Tobias during their scuffle. Refusing to succumb to violence, she attempts to appeal to his recognition, embodying the lessons of courage and altruism. In a poignant moment of surrender, Tris, guided by her newfound strength, relinquishes control, placing her fate in Tobias's hands. As Tobias holds the gun to her, their poignant connection signifies a clash of emotions and loyalties, teetering on the edge of a pivotal and emotionally charged resolution. Tobias breaks free from the trance as he and Tris share a tearful reunion. Together, they witness the chaos caused by the mind control program, saving Tris's loved ones from imminent danger by halting the manipulation. They salvage the computer's hard drive, but the sight of her deceased father distresses Tris profoundly.
During their escape, Tobias confronts his father, and Tris staunchly backs him as she warns Marcus away. Concerns for her friends and guilt over Will's death weigh heavily on her mind. Bound for Amity headquarters, Tris grapples with discomfort, realizing their factionless status. Tobias's declaration of love offers solace, but the presence of Marcus creates unease, leaving her anxious about the uncertain future looming ahead for them all.
Analysis
Tris and Tobias are taken to Jeanine’s headquarters, where Erudite’s plans to overthrow Abnegation are revealed. Jeanine, the leader and mastermind behind the coup d’etat, is intelligent and sees this takeover as a solution to poor governance. She uses mass violence as a strategy to achieve her goals. She attempts to execute Tris in a glass box, similar to Tris’s fear simulations, turning Tris’s death into a science experiment to understand Divergent capabilities. As Tris faces death, she reflects on her Abnegation upbringing and worries about divine judgment.
Tris’s impending death triggers memories of her baptism, foreshadowing her rescue by her mother, who reveals she’s also Divergent. Her mother’s actions show that familial love transcends faction boundaries, combining Dauntless bravery with Abnegation sacrifice. When Tris reunites with her family, she senses corruption within Abnegation. Reports of Marcus’s abusive behavior were true, making her question the validity of other accusations. Marcus’s strange behavior also raises further suspicions about Abnegation’s leadership in her mind.
