Divergent Fandom

 

      Introduction to the fans 

    In a world where your whole life is based upon a singular personality trait that you have, there is little room for individuality and creativity. At the age of 16 children must decide what they will be doing and who they will be for the rest of their lives. They choose which faction they will join based on their personality traits. The factions are Abnegation (the selfless), Amity (the peaceful), Candor (the honest), Dauntless (the brave), and Erudite (the intelligent).  The issue becomes, what if you possess multiple of these personality traits? This idea of our future is the plot of the book Divergent, written by Veronica Roth in 2011.  If you were enthralled by that short description, you are not alone. Divergent is a well-known series that has a large, loyal fanbase.  Many loved the book so much that it was even turned into a movie, however, that was shown a little less love from fans. 

        Although Divergent's fanbase isn't as large as it used to be, they definitely left a mark in the book community. In 2011, when the fan base was at its peak, members of the fandom called themselves "Initiates." This name was used in the novel when referring to the kids who were in the process of deciding what faction they belonged to. The "Initiates" showed their love for the novel in many different ways, many took personality quizzes, created fanart and fanfiction, and even got tattoos. 

Epic Reads Quiz 

Personality Quizzes 

        You know that a book is amazing when you set it down and envision yourself living in the world that was described. You wonder how you would survive, what choices you would make, and what you would be like if you were part of that world. Fans of this series feel the same way. Many were interested to find out what faction they would belong to if they lived in the world of Divergent. They were so intrigued, that various websites made personality quizzes for super fans to take and figure out what faction they would be in. These quizzes were posted on BuzzFeed, Epic Reads, Wikihow, and many more. I remember being obsessed with the series, asking my friends what faction they belonged to, and taking the quizzes together. 

   Tattoos 

         A subject that was talked about a lot throughout the novel was tattoos. Many of the characters got tattoos to show their bravery. Members of the fandom read about these tattoos and wanted to be just like the characters in the novel. That's right, it is not uncommon for members of this fandom to have tattoos that represent their love for Divergent. Many got the main character, Tris's tattoo of the birds flying over their collarbone. This symbolizes bravery in the novel, and many fans also wanted to highlight their bravery. Some even went as far as getting a whole back piece of the different factions, like one of the other characters had. This demonstrates that they are more than just one faction, they have many different personality traits. 

Back Tattoo of Factions 

Tris's Tattoo 

                                                                                                                                      

Social media and Fan Art 

    

          Divergent fans love to broadcast their love for the novel. If tattoos weren't enough, they also create many fan accounts on Instagram. On these accounts, they post quotes from the books, pictures of the cast, and fan art. They even have their own hashtag, #divergentfan, that they use to post videos from the movie and quotes from the book. They have another hashtag, #divergentfanart, that they use to post art inspired by Divergent. Many spend hours making digital art and others love to sit down and draw on paper. Fans love to draw how they would perceive the main characters looking. Many like to focus on the character, Tris, and draw her into various scenes from the novel.  Some take a different approach and draw recreations of the faction symbols. They combine these with quotes from the book and make collages. However, the most popular art that is made is drawings of the main couple, Tris and Tobias. 

   Fanfiction

             Fans do more than just draw pictures of the couple, they also love to write about them. If you have read the book, you know that Tris and Tobias don't have the happiest of endings. Many fans try to continue the love story of the couple in their own writing like the end of the book never happened.  Some fans write whole background stories for underrated characters that were not the main characters in the book. Others like to rewrite scenes from the book but from another character's perspective. Since this fandom is based around a book, there are endless amounts of fanfiction. Most Fans who love to read also love to write. 

Conclusion

            Overall, members of the Divergent fandom are not afraid to show their love for the novel. They love finding ways to bring the book to life and incorporating aspects of the novel into their life. Creativity is one trait that many members of the fandom share. Divergent may not be as popular as it used to be, but the fan base still lives on. Fans show their love by taking personality quizzes, getting tattoos, creating art, and writing their own stories about the book. 

References: 

Divergent Trilogy Fanfiction Archive | Fanfiction, www.fanfiction.net/book/divergent-trilogy. Accessed 9 May 2023.

“Divergent Wiki.” Fandom, divergent.fandom.com/wiki/Divergent_Wiki. Accessed 8 May 2023.

Kang, Sue. “The Tattoos of Divergent Explained.” Marie Claire Magazine, 19 Mar. 2014, www.marieclaire.com/culture/a9287/divergent-tattoos-explained/.

“Tattoo Uploaded by Mailson Pontes, Tattoo e Piercing • #LIBERTY #divergent • Tattoodo.” Tattoodo, 4 Jan. 2018, www.tattoodo.com/tattoos/452709.