Christopher Loera

Professor Melissa Filbeck

English 113A

Divergent Essay rough Draft

Imagine being divided into one of five jobs and not seeing your family after the
age of eighteen. There are many movies that are being presented with a dystopian theme
such as Divergent which was directed by Neil Burger in 2014. Comparing life in the
movie Divergent and life in our present day is not so different when it comes to social
division. In Divergent the community is divided into factions which can be compared to
our society where people are divided by race, in the government, neighborhoods, schools
and even jobs.
The movie Divergent is set in the future. When you are born you inherit your
familys faction but its not until youre 18 when you take a test and you get to choose
your own faction out of five. Once you choose this faction that means there is no going
back from your decision, the one you choose is the one you will die with. This faction
that you choose will be your new family and your number one priority. Your new motto
will then be Faction over blood. Meaning your old family is nothing its the future you
will have with your faction.
There are many ways that our society gets divided but the most popular way is
through race. Not only because of the history that goes behind the word but its who we
are physically. Take a look at our government. Were not just a number to them but we
are labeled as White, Hispanic, African American or Asian. Any papers that we fill out
for the government they make you check a box based on your race. It is said on the NCBI

website that the most popular documents that require for people to put down a race or
ethnicity are hospital forms, when people go to vote and when the census comes around
every ten years (Campbell). The people of color feel that when they put down their race
and ethnicity the government already have many stereotypes about them presumptions
that might view them in a bad way. People say that when they fill out any papers that it
shouldnt matter how they look or who they are the only part that should matter is the
answer to the questions being asked. In Divergent the clothing that each fraction wears is
like their race because each fraction is known for their color and attitude. Once you
choose your faction you cant switch such as today you cant change the color of your skin.
There are thousands of cities in the United States. Most cites are known for their
race population, of course theres a mix of races but there is always a majority race. We
tend to categorize our own cities. We say South L.A is known to be majority African
American, East L.A is populated with many Latinos, Beverley Hills has a lot of Persian
decent and Sherman Oaks is majority white and Jewish (Vanhemert). Some people tend
to choose certain cities to stay in based on their race. But the influence goes back to the
slavery times and how people of color were segregated from whites. If it wasnt for the
slavery era most cities in the world today would be mixed and not dominated by a single
race. This idea is very much presented in the movie based on how the community is
divided up into 5 sections. Within those five sections it is only fraction populated
meaning anyone in the Dauntless section will only be people from Dauntless with the
same clothing to make sure your from that fraction. Such as when Tris the main actress
goes to visit her brother at his fraction everyone gives her a weird look, making it

obvious that she doesnt fit in this place because of the assumptions that her factions
gives off.
This leads to my next topic on how race divides up school. Looking back to my
last topic on how cities are dominated by one race, the schools around those areas will be
populated with those races. Regardless on the area the kids within the schools would
segregate themselves. I know from personal experience that kids tend to hang out with
kids from their own race based on the cycle of socialization and because they feel more
confident with people that they know and share similar qualities. Back in high school
everyday at lunch and nutrition this group of white kids that sat by some stairs next to
A hall would always give dirty looks to people that werent like them or who didnt fit
in with the hall. Each day I would analyze how they looked at people and which kids told
their friends who was near by. Its not just in schools that this happens but its through
the outside world that teaches us to do these things. In Divergent the test that the people
take before they choose their factions tells them which fraction would best work for
them. Just think of the society in Divergent and compare it to a school yard. You have the
Latinos, African Americans, Whites, Asians and the biracial. They are all groups that
stick with people like them.
Lastly is how jobs in our present day are targeted towards certain races. People of
color are known for statistically not making it to college and dropping out of high school.
They mostly drop out because of low income; family problems and 36% dont make it
because they have a learning disability (Lynch). The Army or any military department
aims their audience towards Latinos and African Americans because they know that they
dont have a future in wealthy jobs. Ads on T.V always have white people as actors to

show that they are the ones that make it through college and get a degree. Media plays a
big role that shapes who we are today and how we should act and do. Media is the
number one way to change people for the good or bad. A few weeks ago the coast guard
came out with an ad with an African American lady smiling serving for the cost guard. If
you go on the Coast Guard web page the images of people that posted are people of color.
They put words such as Honor, Respect and Devotion To Duty to show that working with
the Coast Guard its a great and positive thing to do. They try to convince their audience
that what they are doing is a good thing because the lady on the picture was smiling.
Dystopian movies such as Divergent compare to our present day society is very
much alike. Burger made this movie to show what our present day is leading up to and
how it will affect everyone. The way the both societies are built and the customs they
have this could be us in the later future. One main way that our society is divided is by
race then race is split into different sections such as government, jobs, schools and
neighborhoods. Tris and Four the two main actors in Divergent symbolize the revolt that
our society should take now so that our future wont manage like Divergent.