Beatrice Prior

Lore & Background

Tris bears three ravens on her left collarbone representing her family, a Dauntless seal on her left shoulder, and an Abnegation seal on her right. She is Divergent, possessing the aptitude for Erudite, Abnegation, and Dauntless. Her fears include being attacked by crows, drowning, being tied and burned to death, intimacy, and killing family members.

In Their Own Story

At age 16, Tris takes an aptitude test where Tori reveals she is Divergent but warns her to keep it secret. She chooses Dauntless during the Choosing Ceremony. During initiation, she befriends Christina, Al, and Will. In a capture the flag event, she plays a major role in her team's victory. On visiting day, her mother Natalie reveals she was originally from Dauntless and warns of Erudite plans involving simulation serum. During second initiation, Tris clears fear simulations faster than anyone else, drawing Four's attention to train her. When Erudite attacks Abnegation, Tris is immune to the mind-control serum. Jeanine Matthews orders her execution; Natalie saves her but dies in the escape, and Tris kills Will while he is under control. Reuniting with her father, Caleb, and Marcus, they sneak into Dauntless where her father is killed. Tris helps Four break free of mind control to stop Jeanine. In Insurgent, hiding in Amity, she learns Abnegation leaders died protecting a secret. She surrenders to Erudite to save friends, escapes with Tobias and Peter, then joins Marcus to retrieve stolen information. In Allegiant, she frees Caleb before his execution and travels with Tobias, Christina, Peter, Tori, Uriah, and Cara to the Bureau of Genetic Welfare. There, she meets David, receives Natalie's journal, and opposes Nita's coup. When David plans to use memory serum on Chicago, Tris volunteers for a suicidal mission to expose it. She repels death serum by thinking of those who died for her but is shot by David while exposing the memory serum. Dying, she forgives herself and others and sees visions of her mother.

Reader's Guide

Beatrice Prior begins in Abnegation before transferring to Dauntless at age 16 after testing as Divergent. She adopts the name Tris and befriends initiates Christina, Al, and Will. Her physical performance places her near elimination until she excels in capture the flag. She discovers Erudite's plot to use simulation serum on Abnegation. Immune to mind control, she is targeted by Jeanine Matthews but saved by her mother Natalie. Tris kills Will under duress during the escape. After her father dies in battle against Dauntless traitors, she helps free Four from control and stops Jeanine. In Insurgent, she hides in Amity with Tobias, Marcus, Caleb, and Peter. She reveals to Candor that she killed Will before surrendering to Erudite. Escaping with Tobias and Peter, she aids Marcus to transfer stolen data. In Allegiant, she leads an expedition to the Bureau of Genetic Welfare, meets David, and stops Nita's coup. Learning David plans to reset Chicago's population with memory serum, Tris replaces Caleb on a suicide mission. She successfully exposes the serum but is fatally shot by David.

Did You Know?

• Tris has a tattoo of three ravens on her left collarbone, each representing one of her family members.
• Tobias 'Four' Eaton earned his nickname from having exactly four fears in his fear landscape: heights, being shot, claustrophobia, and his father Marcus.
• During second initiation, Tris clears fear simulations in record time, which is symbolic of her Divergence and ability to control simulations.
• Tris's mother Natalie was originally from Erudite before transferring to Abnegation.
• In the epilogue set two and a half years after her death, Tobias spreads Tris's ashes across Chicago while riding a zip line.