Joe Allan - Becoming Divergent: An Unofficial Biography of Shailene Woodley and Theo James

AN UNOFFICIAL BIOGRAPHY OF
SHAILENE WOODLEY AND THEO JAMES

First published in Great Britain in 2014 by
Michael OMara Books Limited
9 Lion Yard
Tremadoc Road
London SW4 7NQ

Copyright Michael OMara Books Limited 2014

This electronic edition published in 2014

All rights reserved. You may not copy, store, distribute, transmit, reproduce or otherwise make available this publication (or any part of it) in any form, or by any means (electronic, digital, optical, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of the publisher. Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN: 978-1-78243-212-8 in hardback print format
ISBN: 978-1-78243-213-5 in trade paperback format
ISBN: 978-1-78243-237-1 in e-book format

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V ERONICA R OTH WAS BARELY OUT OF HER TEENS when she had the germ of an idea that would form the foundation for her first novel, Divergent. She says the book grew from a jumbled thought collage that incorporated several random images: someone jumping from a tall building, a relentless, citywide, elevated train system and theories she had studied in her psychology classes. She had just finished her final year at Northwestern University when she signed the publishing deal that would culminate in Divergents extended run on TheNew York Times Best Seller list, and within a few months she landed the film rights deal that led to the book being adapted into the first of a potential trilogy of Hollywood movies.

Like many recent book-to-film adaptations, the novel sits comfortably alongside The Hunger Games and Enders Game under the young adult banner, and has its roots in a well-established literary tradition: the coming of age story. Whether it is Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games, Holden Caulfield in The Catcher in the Rye or Harry Potter, what all of these stories have in common is a main character facing a life-changing event or important decision as they enter their late teens. They may be forced into situations over which they have no control and are often expected to make choices that have far-reaching effects on their families and the people they love. The main protagonist frequently discovers a previously hidden resourcefulness or overcomes his or her problems by forming an alliance or making a pact with others. Lessons learned on the heros voyage of self-discovery invariably help him or her make choices that lead them to find their own way in the world, fulfil untapped potential and bring the realization that the answers to the important questions in life dont end in happy ever after.

Divergent is no different. In Beatrice Tris Prior, the book has a heroine who fits neatly into many of these formulas, but what sets Divergent apart from many of its contemporaries is the true-to-life nature of its main characters, ordinary people who are forced into extraordinary situations and are able to find the courage to become more than they were as their lives are thrown into chaos. There are no vampires, werewolves or genetically mutated superheroes in the Divergent world. The great powers that bring great responsibility to Tris Prior are her innate intelligence, kindness and bravery, and it is these abilities she has to recognize and learn to use over the course of the story in order to deal with all that is thrown at her.

The action takes place in a future version of America, where civilization has broken down and rebuilt itself as a society divided into five separate factions. Each faction serves to reflect and uphold a different basic human characteristic: members of Dauntless are brave and fearless, Abnegation promotes selflessness and generosity, Amity encourages harmony and togetherness, Candor represents honesty and trustworthiness while Erudite values intelligence and learning above all else. At the age of sixteen, each child is given a test to see which faction they are most suited to joining, and on Choosing Day they must decide themselves whether to stay with their birth faction or transfer to a new one. Leaving your birth faction means you are unlikely to see your parents or the rest of your family again.

Divergents main themes deal with issues all teenagers experience: the realization that the choices we make as young adults will have a far-reaching effect on our lives, the anxiety that arises from breaking away from what our parents think is best for us, becoming who we truly want to be to achieve our personal goals in life and the ultimate conclusion that our parents will be there to support us no matter what we decide. As a main character, Tris Prior is instantly relatable. She is revealed to be Divergent meaning she doesnt fit exclusively into just one faction a displacement many young people will understand. The need to conform, to live by a set of rules or appear a certain way are all very common contemporary pressures that affect everyone, young and old. Tris, like many readers, has important life decisions to make while also dealing with the potential fallout that could arise from her choices. Added to that, she would meet a boy and fall in love for the first time.

The romance that weaves its way through the heart of the Divergent series is more straightforward than the complicated love lives of Katniss Everdeen, Peeta Mellark and Gale Hawthorne, the heroes of the Hunger Games trilogy, or Bella Swan, Edward Cullen and Jacob Black, the supernatural, star-crossed lovers central to Stephenie Meyers Twilight saga. There are no messy love triangles for Tris Prior. She begins to fall in love with Tobias Four Eaton from the moment she meets him. Its the simple, age-old story of girl meets boy, boy throws an enormous knife at girl, girl saves boy from a forcefully administered mind-control serum and, in between, theres a lot of jumping from incredibly fast moving trains, scaling tall buildings, heart-breaking personal sacrifice and then they all live happily ever after... we hope.

The two actors who bring these lovers to life in the film version of Divergent are Shailene Woodley and Theo James. Like their characters growing up in opposing factions of the Divergent world, their separate journeys to the big screen adaptation of the book couldnt be more different one is a seasoned veteran with over fifteen years experience in the US television and film industry, the other is a relative newcomer who stumbled into acting on a whim. One was born and raised in a peaceful suburb of sunny California in the USA, while the other grew up in a not quite so sunny corner of England.

For Shailene, it would seem her fate was sealed very early. She had chosen acting as something that would dominate her whole life when she was little more than a child. The numerous television and movie sets on which she spent her formative years and early teens would become her playground and her classroom. Subsequently, her formal education had to fit in with her busy working schedule, while Theo had been lucky enough to attend one of the most respected boys schools in England and had even gained a university degree before he had to make any final choices about his long-term future. Theo made the decision that acting would be something to consider pursuing as a proper career well into his adult life.