Divergent is a dystopian novel set in a post-apocalyptic
Chicago, which is divided into five factions: Dauntless, which
celebrates bravery; Erudite, which emphasizes knowledge; Abnegation,
which advocates for selflessness; Amity, which stresses friendship; and
Candor, which supports honesty.
At the age of 16, Tris discovers that she is ‘divergent’.
Key Literary Elements & Techniques
Dystopia
Allusion
Metaphor
Allegory
Imagery
Setting
Stream of Consciousness
Themes and Motifs
Identity — The novel explores the challenges of establishing a personal identity that doesn’t neatly fit into societal norms.
Sample response This is an image of a busy street in an Asian country. As well as bicycles there are motor vehicles on this street, so it is obviously a high traffic area. A few of the cyclists have bicycles attached to their baskets. This suggests that bicycles may be their primary source of transportation. From the architecture it appears to be a tourist or shopping district. In the background we can see two tall buildings in the distance, which is likely where the business district is located. In the foreground there are cyclists. There seems to be some confusion about direction of traffic flow. The cyclists are travelling on both sides of the centre line and are going in the same direction. The cars, on the other hand, are going two different ways.
The photo is in black and white. In the centre of the photo there is a couple kissing. In the bottom left hand corner there is a man sitting down outside a cafe. In the background there is a very grand building. We can see part of a car behind the people walking around. It looks an old, classic car. It looks like an old photo because of the clothes the people are wearing. It might be winter because in the distance there are trees without leaves and people are wearing winter clothes: coats, hats, scarves. There is a contrast between the romantic scene in the foreground and the daily life in the background. The background is blurry whereas the foreground is very clear, which makes the viewer focus on the couple that are kissing in the centre.
Talking about a photo is not just describing. We can also compare, contrast, speculate about the situation, react, give our opinion, imagine what happened before and after, who took the photo and why it was taken.
Read this information and try to describe Elvis' photo again.