Veronica Roth · 1556 pages
Rating: (35.5K votes)
“If we're afraid to be ourselves, then who are we? Where's there left to hide?
But if we could concur that fear, we just might be strong, powerful. We just might be unstoppable.”
“How did you do it?” I say. “I don’t know,” he says. “I just heard your voice.”
“And you don’t think you’re too old to be with my little sister?” Tobias lets out a short laugh. “She isn’t your little anything.”
“What book(s) changed your life and why? I could probably list books for days, so I’ll just list a few favorites: The Giver by Lois Lowry, Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card, A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle, the Animorphs series by K.A. Applegate, 1984 by George Orwell, the Bible, Gilead by Marilynne Robinson, and Juliet by Andras Visky (which is a play, but I think it still counts).”
“I feel like I am without substance, without weight.”
“They don’t want people to listen, they want people to agree,” I reply. “And you shouldn’t bully people into agreeing with you.”
“WE DO NOT BELIEVE
that learning to master violence encourages unnecessary violence”
“If they told us what to believe, and we didn’t come to it on our own, is it still true?”
“What is the point in providing food and shelter for an animal that just soils your furniture, makes your home smell bad, and ultimately dies?”
“you display equal aptitude for Abnegation, Dauntless, and Erudite. People who get this kind of result are…” She looks over her shoulder like she expects someone to appear behind her. “…are called…Divergent.”
“Sometimes we need to fight for peace,”
“The goal of my life isn’t just…to be happy.”
“Evil depends on where you’re standing.”
“We may not be Erudite, but mental preparedness is one aspect of your Dauntless training. Arguably, it is the most important aspect.” He is right about that. What good is a prepared body if you have a scattered mind?”
“1. You most want your friends and family to see you as someone who … a. Is willing to make sacrifices and help anyone in need. b. Is liked by everyone. c. Is trustworthy. d. Will protect them no matter what happens. e. Offers wise advice. 2. When you are faced with a difficult problem, you react by … a. Doing whatever will be the best thing for the greatest number of people. b. Creating a work of art that expresses your feelings about the situation. c. Debating the issue with your friends. d. Facing it head-on. What else would you do? e. Making a list of pros and cons, and then choosing the option that the evidence best supports. 3. What activity would you most likely find yourself doing on the weekend or on an unexpected day off? a. Volunteering b. Painting, dancing, or writing poetry c. Sharing opinions with your friends d. Rock-climbing or skydiving! e. Catching up on your homework or reading for pleasure 4. If you had to select one of the following options as a profession, which would you choose? a. Humanitarian b. Farmer c. Judge d. Firefighter e. Scientist 5. When choosing your outfit for the day, you select … a. Whatever will attract the least amount of attention. b. Something comfortable, but interesting to look at. c. Something that’s simple, but still expresses your personality. d. Whatever will attract the most attention. e. Something that will not distract or inhibit you from what you have to do that day. 6. If you discovered that a friend’s significant other was being unfaithful, you would … a. Tell your friend because you feel that it would be unhealthy for him or her to continue in a relationship where such selfish behavior is present. b. Sit them both down so that you can act as a mediator when they talk it over. c. Tell your friend as soon as possible. You can’t imagine keeping that knowledge a secret. d. Confront the cheater! You might also take action by slashing the cheater’s tires or egging his or her house—all in the name of protecting your friend, of course. e. Keep it to yourself. Statistics prove that your friend will find out eventually. 7. What would you say is your highest priority in life right now? a. Serving those around you b. Finding peace and happiness for yourself c. Seeking truth in all things d. Developing your strength of character e. Success in work or school”
“I am not Abnegation. I am not Dauntless. I am Divergent.”
“WE BELIEVE that cowardice is to blame for the world’s injustices. WE BELIEVE that peace is hard-won, that sometimes it is necessary to fight for peace. But more than that: WE BELIEVE that justice is more important than peace. WE BELIEVE in freedom from fear, in denying fear the power to influence our decisions. WE BELIEVE in ordinary acts of bravery, in the courage that drives one person to stand up for another. WE BELIEVE in acknowledging fear and the extent to which it rules us. WE BELIEVE in facing that fear no matter what the cost to our comfort, our happiness, or even our sanity. WE BELIEVE in shouting for those who can only whisper, in defending those who cannot defend themselves. WE BELIEVE, not just in bold words but in bold deeds to match them. WE BELIEVE that pain and death are better than cowardice and inaction, because WE BELIEVE in action. WE DO NOT BELIEVE in living comfortable lives. WE DO NOT BELIEVE that silence is useful. WE DO NOT BELIEVE in good manners. WE DO NOT BELIEVE in limiting the fullness of life. WE DO NOT BELIEVE in empty heads, empty mouths, or empty hands. WE DO NOT BELIEVE that learning to master violence encourages unnecessary violence. WE DO NOT BELIEVE that we should be allowed to stand idly by. WE DO NOT BELIEVE that any other virtue is more important than bravery.”
“Sometimes it is nothing more than gritting your teeth through pain, and the work of every day, the slow walk toward a better life.”
“For a second his dark eyes are on mine, and he’s quiet. Then he touches my face and leans in close, brushing my lips with his. The river roars and I feel its spray on my ankles. He grins and presses his mouth to mine. I tense up at first, unsure of myself, so when he pulls away, I’m sure I did something wrong, or badly. But he takes my face in his hands, his fingers strong against my skin, and kisses me again, firmer this time, more certain. I wrap an arm around him, sliding my hand up his neck and into his short hair.”
“But our minds move in a dozen different directions. We can’t be confined to one way of thinking, and that terrifies our leaders. It means we can’t be controlled. And it means that no matter what they do, we will always cause trouble for them.”
“there was evil in everyone, and the first step to loving someone else is to recognize that evil in ourselves, so we can forgive them.”
“It takes me five rounds to hit the middle of the target, and when I do, a rush of energy goes through me. I am awake, my eyes wide open, my hands warm.”
“Everyone has to blame something for the way the world is,”
“Since I was young, I have always known this: Life damages us, every one. We can’t escape that damage. But now, I am also learning this: We can be mended. We mend each other.”
“I have always hated the emptiness that winter brings, the blank landscape and the stark difference between sky and ground, the way it transforms trees into skeletons and the city into a wasteland.”
“knew that when you control information, or manipulate it, you don’t need force to keep people under your thumb. They stay there willingly.”
“We are creatures of loss; we have left everything behind. I have no home, no path, and no certainty.”
“the Hall of Offerings. Isaac motioned to a wall relief covered in hieroglyphic writing. "Let me show you something I discovered recently," Isaac said. "This hieroglyphic register is a song to Augustus, King of Egypt, heralding him as 'Lord of the Dance,' meaning 'Lord of Life.' I will translate: "The King of Egypt "Pharaoh comes to dance "He comes to sing "See how he dances "See how he sings… "I remember Isaac looked at me to gauge my reaction. In truth I was spellbound. He went on to say, 'The song of Augustus eventually spread to Medieval England where a carol, called "Lord of the Dance," was sung at Christmas and is sung to this day.”
“We are kidding ourselves when we romanticize death as the climax of a life well lived. It is an enemy. It cuts us off from all the wonderful pleasures of this world. We call death sweet names only as the lesser of evils. The executioner that delivers the coup de grace in our suffering is not the fulfillment of a longing, but the end of hope. The longing of the human heart is to live and to be happy.”
“The crucial question, therefore, is not how to accomplish the final reconciliation. That messianic problem ought not to be taken out of God's hands. The only thing worse than the failure of some modern grand narratives of emancipation would have been their success! Merely by trying to accomplish the messianic task, the have already done too much of the work of the antichrist. In demasking anti-messianic projects that offer universal salvation, Lyotard helps us ask the right kind of question, which is not how to achieve the final reconciliation, but what resources we need to live in peace in the absence of the final reconciliation.”
“His parents should be here soon. I shall feel happier when they are able to take the responsibility.”
“I clung to each word that fell from his lips like a spider to a web.”
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