Divergent and the Problem of Goal Oriented Thinking
The moral case for diverging from the accepted norms of society.
Everyone needs goals.
People need something to direct their focus towards otherwise they feel uncertain and aimless. This necessity is a powerful driver in pretty much everyone. To the point that they get together in groups and find ways towards finding mutual goals so they can get where they want to go. It's a necessary part of being able to function in society to be trying to achieve something. Being able to do so usually benefits everyone involved in some way. Otherwise they wouldn't do it. All that people struggle with is what those goals should be and how to go about getting there. So it makes sense that society would have a vested interest in making sure that everyone will achieve the most beneficial goals both for themselves and for society as a whole. Society should encourage that as much as possible and find ways to help get there. Which is obviously what society has as a goal.
The problem is that people don't fit neatly into simple and obvious categories from which goals can be readily assigned. Human beings are complicated and they can have many different goals at one time. Or their goals can change over time when they get older. They can choose to dedicate themselves towards one goal for years or decades, only to realize later that they don't really like what they're doing. This causes them to find other goals to achieve and focus entirely on that. Along the way they can look for other goals to get to in the mean time. Some of them will help them move towards these ultimate goals, while others will force them to reorient themselves into new ones.
Divergent is fundamentally about the conflict that arises when the goals of the individual and those of society come into conflict. In a post-apocalyptic version of Chicago, everyone has their place within society. They've all been assigned a specific task and an overall goal which is said to benefit all of what they've created within the system. What's missing in the system however is any kind of ability to diverge from the goal for which you've been assigned. Once that goal has been assigned to you, they're basically trapped within it regardless of what happens later. You have no other choice but to live the way in which society has assigned you.
Which is where Tris comes in. She doesn't fit into the society and how it's been designed. Not necessarily because she has no goals, but because she isn't limited to one way of being in the world. She quite literally diverges in all kinds of directions. And that's what makes her a threat to the society at large. Instead of being someone without a place, like the Factionless, she can fit in anywhere she wants. Of course, the society has a way to deal with such people. They find ways to eliminate those who diverge from the system.
Rather than embracing the ability of people to do a multitude of things, these people get ostracized and killed. And that's an extremely disturbing thought. To destroy people who might create a more well rounded society.
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