The Elite: Fiction Project
By: Gabbie Donis
Summary
Thirty-five girls came to the palace to compete in the Selection. All but six have been sent home. And only one will get to marry Prince Maxon and be crowned princess of Illea. America still isn’t sure where her heart lies between Maxon and Aspen. When she’s with Maxon, she feels a new and breathless romance, and can’t dream of being with anyone else, but whenever she sees Aspen standing guard around the palace, she is taken over by memories of the life they planned to share. With the group narrowed down to the Elite, the other girls are even more determined to win Maxon over, and time is running out for America to decide. But, just when America is sure she’s made her choice, a life changing loss makes her question her decision. Meanwhile she’s struggling to imagine her future, the violent rebels that are determined to overthrow the king are growing stronger and their plans could destroy her chance at any chance of happy ending
About the Book
Publishing Date: April 23, 2013
Theme: Love is a confusing thing
2nd Book in "The Selection" series
Point of View
Told in America's point of view. Point of view is important because if the story were told in someone else's point of view, the reader wouldn't feel what it felt like to be the most important girl to Maxon throughout the book. Also the point of view is important because with it being America's point of view it shows the reader how she felt when she was with Maxon, compared to the way she felt with Aspen throughout the novel.
America Singer: Protagonist
America is strong because she not only deals with the attacks of the girls calmly, but she also deals with the attacks of the northerners and southerners. She calms the girls while the attacks are going on, and she also keeps herself calm knowing information about the attacks that very little people know. You also know that America is strong because of the way she deals with Marlee’s caning. At Marlee’s caning, America tries her hardest to get to Marlee knowing the trouble’s she could cause. After the caning, which she knew was Maxon’s decision, she didn’t let her guard down until her incident with Celeste in the women’s room. Lastly, another way you can prove that America is strong is the way she deals with\the king throughout the book. Although the king tried to sabotage America to get Maxon to send her home, America fought her way through it to get back to Maxon and succeeded every time. Overall, America is strong, and you can prove this in several ways.
Kriss, Celeste, Marlee, Elise, and Natalie: Antagonist
Setting:
The Palace of Illea. Year: 300 years in the future
The setting affects the plot because it is a time where America has failed and a monarchy has taken over everything that used to be America. Also the setting affects the plot because if the setting took place in modern times, there would be a lot less rebels and there also wouldn’t be the new country Illea. The United States would still be in control because it would have taken place in modern times instead of 300 years into the future. Lastly, the setting affects the plot because the time period has class systems, or a caste. The castes wouldn’t have existed if the time period was modern day.
Theme:
Love is a confusing thing.
The theme fits into the story in several ways. First of all, the theme fits into the story because the whole novel has to deal with love and the way that love effects all of the characters in the novel. You know this because the main problem of the story has to deal with sharing love and or making decisions about love. Secondly, the theme fits the book because the main character, America, has to make a decision between the thought to be love of her life, Aspen, and her new love, Maxon. You can prove this because throughout the story America is trying to decide whether to be with Aspen or Maxon, and everything she does through the book affects her decision. Lastly, the theme fits into the story because the main character and the second main character, America and Maxon, both have decisions to make about the love they have for the people involved in their lives. You can prove this because Maxon has to choose between America and the other girls in the Selection, while America has to choose between Aspen and Maxon. Overall, the theme fits into the novel in several ways.
Internal Conflict:
The conflict is internal. The internal conflict is the way America feels about Maxon compared to Aspen. Her mind is fighting with itself to get Aspen out of her mind, but whenever she sees him around the palace her mind fills up with thoughts about him all over again. Although, her mind is also trying to decide whether Maxon is a good choice or not judging by the fact that Maxon has to share his love between all of the 6 girls, she doesn’t know if they are really connecting or if it’s just like his relationship with the other girls. America’s internal conflict is internal because she cannot decide whether to stay and be with Maxon or to go home and be with the thought to be love of her life Aspen.