Even though this society lives by the motto "Faction before blood" (4.4) blood is still a factor in Four's life… and we don't mean the blood he draws with his fists, either.
Four has the most complicated family relationship in Four and one of the most complicated in any of Roth's novels. He has an abusive father who he'll end up having to work side-by-side with, and he finds out that his dead mother isn't dead—she just abandoned her son when he needed her most.
For Four, it's a good thing factions are thicker than blood, because his family's blood runs cold and thin.
Questions About Family
- Compare and contrast Four's experience leaving his family (his father) behind with Tris's experience leaving her family behind in Divergent.
- Why isn't Four glad that his mother is still alive?
- Are you surprised at what happens when Four returns to talk to Marcus in the story "The Traitor"? Do you think Four thought their "reunion" would go differently? Why?