![]() ![]() And yet the most impressive displays of strength in the novel are selfless-in other words, intended to help other people. On the occasions when Tris demonstrates selflessness, even her close friends misinterpret her actions, focusing on the most selfish, self-sufficient aspects of what she’s done-for instance, when Tris takes Al’s place in front of a target for knives, her peers compliment her for displaying her toughness, not for protecting Al. ![]() In short, Eric and Peter define strength as being able to overcome one’s weaknesses and take care of one’s self Tobias and Tris define it as being able to overcome one’s fears and take care of others.įrom early on, it’s clear that the latter definition of strength (selflessness) isn’t remotely as popular among the Dauntless at the former (selfishness). Tobias is the embodiment of this definition of power: although he was ranked at the top of the Dauntless recruits, he’s chosen to devote his adult life to helping new recruits (a selfless position), rather than exerting his power in the Dauntless government (a selfish position). According to the Dauntless manifesto (the summing up of its principles), being Dauntless means embracing selflessness: overcoming one’s own weaknesses and using one’s power in order to help other people. There’s also another definition of strength circulating among the Dauntless, however-one that the novel’s heroes, such as Tris and Tobias, celebrate. When Eric and his allies stage a coup of the city, they reward Peter with a good position: evidently, Peter’s brand of merciless, guiltless strength is the one they admire most. Peter is one of the most promising Dauntless warriors: he’s merciless in a fight, and seems to have no qualms about eliminating his closest competitors (he even stabs one of his rivals in the eye with a knife). We see this idea in the kinds of warriors the Dauntless celebrate, such as Peter-an aggressive young Dauntless recruit in Tris’s training group. By this definition, being strong is all about taking care of oneself and proving oneself the strongest-in short, extreme selfishness. Especially in the second half of her novel, Roth explores what it truly means to be strong.įor the leaders of the Dauntless faction, such as Eric-one of the book’s main antagonists-strength is the ultimate sign of power and self-sufficiency. And yet there’s seldom any real discussion of what strength and courage mean: everyone seems to take the words for granted. ![]() The Dauntless are constantly being ordered to “prove themselves”-by fighting, jumping onto moving trains, dangling over a chasm, etc. Early in the novel, Tris Prior joins the faction of the Dauntless: a community of strong, war-like people who are taught to worship strength and courage above all else. ![]()
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