6 Times You Wished Your Life Was Like 'Divergent'

There are plenty of reasons you wouldn't want to live in the world of Divergent: You are hunted and killed if you don't fit in one of their pre-defined factions; the Erudite are constantly thinking up ways to destroy the world; if you're a Dauntless initiate, you have to get beat up for work every day; you're always threatened with being cast out of society; and Eric with his eyebrow piercing is a person that exists in this world and he is the WORST. But there are certainly times you wished your life was like Divergent.

Veronica Roth created an unforgettable world in her Divergent trilogy. And just like our real-world, this post-apocalyptic, dystopian Chicago has its beauty and its flaws. Sure, it's a very restrictive societal structure where as a teenager you have to decide exactly who you are forever and ever. But there are still people working to make it better, and there remains some stunning natural beauty and sense of community. (Yes, even if you're trapped underground wearing all black in Dauntless with its bullies and the aforementioned worst, Eric.) In particular, I know, there are six times I definitely wished my life was like Divergent, Roth's book series.

1. THIS Is Your Teacher

No shade to any of my wonderful teachers back in my hometown, but I'm pretty sure none of them looked quite like this. Tobias, aka "Four," is the kind of teacher you have when you decide from day one of class that you're going to have to transfer because there's no way you can focus (luckily, in my liberal arts education, it's not like we were knife throwing, so), but then you just can't get yourself to because, hello, those cheekbones. Now that I think about it, my high school GPA thanks the world for not allowing Four to be my teacher, but if he was my adviser I'd certainly be asking for extra credit help whenever I could.

2. Tattoos Don't Hurt

Call me a baby, but... ouch, tattoos. But do you remember the scene when Tori gave Tris her birds tattoo that symbolizes her family? No needles! She put some patch on top of her shoulder and suddenly, poof, the tattoo appeared. No wonder everyone seems to have so many. (This is just another blatant attempt to give you a gif of Four, this time with his shirt off to showcase those tattoos that made Tris fall for him.)

3. You Get To Choose Your Name

OK I know: You can change your name in our real life, too. But it involves the courts and insane paperwork and changing your passport, social security card, drivers license, and every single thing your name exists on. It's a massive headache. Not in the world of Divergent. Beatrice Prior legit shows up on Day One of being a Dauntless initiate and they're all, "Hey what do you want your name to be?" and boom, she has a cooler, more unique name that better fits herself. I'd finally get to officially be Arya Stark White.

4. When You're the Nerd in School, You Can Find a Welcome Home In Erudite

Say goodbye to high school bullying (unless you have to deal with the macho bros in Dauntless), because in the world of Divergent, all the smartest, proudly nerdiest kids can find a like-minded home in Erudite, where they are applauded for their thirst for knowledge. The same goes for the proudly crunchy, modern-day hippies who want to live off the land and wear their beautiful bright clothing. They can go live in Amity and live their life. Sure, the societal structure didn't solve all of the world's problems (and OK, it created a lot of them) but when you're an outcast kid in high school, finding your place in a community can seem like a godsend.

5. That Insane Zipline Exists, and I Need to Ride It

Gimme, gimme, gimme. I'm certainly no Dauntless, but I'm a thrill ride fiend and now that Veronica Roth has given me this idea of a zipline I won't rest until I'm able to ride it. If that means we have to end society and find ourselves living in a dystopian Chicago where I have to pledge myself to a bunch of train-jumping, Ferris Wheel-climbing maniacs, then so be it.

6. You Don't Have to Spend Decades in Therapy to Get to Your Deepest Fears

Do you know how much time and money we could all save talking through every feeling and memory of our lives to get down to the root of our fears with a therapist if we could just enter the fear landscape? Mind you, I in no way want to go into my fear landscape (I'd be trapped on a sinking ship with sharks swarming because I watched Jaws way too young in my life), but you have to admire its efficiency.

Image: Lionsgate