In Neil Burger’s work, Divergent, he flips the script in terms of what is commonly seen in the genre of science fiction and fantasy. Typically, in these types of movies, the main character is a male who is strong willed, independent, and brave. Usually the woman is shown as the “damsels in distress” waiting for a heroic man to save them. Divergent certainly does not make this mistake. The movie is about people who live in a futuristic, dystopian world in which society is divided into five factions. As each person enters adulthood, he or she must choose a faction and commit to it for life (Smith). In Divergent, Beatrice, who later changes her name to Tris, takes on these male characteristics. Gender flipped roles are commonly shown throughout the movie not only in Beatrice, but also in Tobias.
A gender role, also known as a sex role, is a social role encompassing a range of behaviors and attitudes that are generally considered acceptable, appropriate, or desirable for people based on their actual or perceived sex (“Divergent through the Lenses”). Beatrice means “voyager” (“Name Beatrice- Meaning”). She does a lot of voyaging, not just physically, but psychologically, and emotionally, too. From feeling ashamed about not being good enough for Abnegation, to being an aggressive Dauntless, to seeing how all the factions could be combined, she chooses to change her name because she has left her old Abnegation ways behind and started over. She is a confident, persistent, adventurous, sixteen-year-old who willingly takes on the role of a rebellion leader when she transitions from Abnegation to Dauntless. During her initiation into Dauntless, she realizes that she is Divergent, this means she shows equal attributes of all the factions and will never just fit into just one. This is a big reason as to why Beatrice is the way she is. Divergents are not accepted by any faction, because they are a threat to other people, so they must keep their identity secret. After Tris got a beat down from a man, she was out for the rest of the day and when she woke up, she realized how she may not make it above the line. If she did not make it above the line, she would not be Dauntless anymore. With that being said, Tris’s determination and willingness drove her to get up and run to the train to go with them for one of the games they play, capture the flag. This game had a twist. They used dart guns that stimulated a gun shot. Tris is the one who captured the flag to help her team win. Also in one scene, Tris and her mom had to shoot their way out of a treacherous situation together (Laura). This is showing two strong women working together to get out of a very dangerous situation. They are proving that women can work together just as well as men work together to fight and protect themselves. These are only some of the ways that Beatrice showed her masculine traits.
On the other hand, Tobias, whose nickname is Four, fears things that males typically would not be fearful of. Four is cowardly and quiet. When we see Tris talking about how people are starting to put down the other factions’ integrity. She said she wanted to be “brave, and selfless, and smart, and kind, and honest,” but Four admits to ‘continually struggl[ing] with kindness” (Roth). Four got his nickname because he is only scared of four things heights, shooting someone, claustrophobia, and his father (“Tobias ‘Four’ Eaton.”). In the movie when Four talks to Tris, you see more of Four’s sensitive and guarded side. He let his guard down and let Tris see something personal about him, his tattoo. This shows a less manly side, and more of a sensitive, feminine one. Beatrice conveys gender flipped roles because she protects the weak and saves countless lives and her actions show more masculine traits. Tobias shows his gender flipped role by opening up to Tris and letting her in. Movies today are moving away from the “traditional” type of movie and are making more gender flipped.
