THAT Scene in Divergent
This is not a movie review, but I am going to discuss one particular scene in the movie. So, if you haven’t seen the movie, be forewarned.
In the book Divergent, Tris joins a faction that valued bravery and fearlessness – Dauntless. As part of the second stage of her training she is forced to go into her subconscious and face her darkest fears. In the book, one of her fears is a fear of intimacy. This fear stems in part from the fact that she has grown up in a family – in a faction even – that is not overly expressive (which was changed some in the movie as we see her parents hug her and hold hands). It also stems, in part, from her own knowledge of her inexperience with relationships and the fact that she has been told that she is Divergent, a trait that puts her in great personal danger, and so she is guarded and trying to figure out who she can trust.
In the movie, this fear is changed drastically as we see Four sexually assault Tris. The scene begins with them kissing, then he tries to remove her shirt and she says “no”. He continues and the two end up on a bed. Tris then kicks him in the groin and hits him, thus ending the attack. She “wakes up” from the scene and is applauded by the audience. She looks at Four, embarrassed, and says “please tell me you didn’t see that.” And then she realizes the fear test isn’t over as she is confronted with one more situation.
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There has been a lot of online discussion about this scene and I recommend that you read these posts about the topic linked on this Tumblr post: http://svyalitchat.tumblr.com/post/80504322821/posts-about-rape-culture-in-the-divergent-movie
I want to take a moment to share my thoughts:
This scene is problematic primarily because it didn’t even need to be in the movie. At all. It has been suggested that this is how the movie producers were able to communicate “fear of intimacy” on the screen. Except, intimacy is about more than sex. And fear of intimacy is NOT the same thing as a fear of sexual assault. It is dangerous and lazy to equate intimacy with sex. And such a casual and unnecessary inclusion of sexual violence is, in itself, problematic. It also changes how the character of Tris is portrayed on screen and what audiences are supposed to know about her through her fear landscape.
There has been a lot of good, important conversation about this scene online. I have been a part of some of that conversation and I’m growing concerned that even our conversation about the scene is a problem. I think we’re talking about it all wrong.
The first post I saw suggested this:
“Divergent marks the first time I have ever seen a teenage girl articulate, in no uncertain terms, that her body belongs to her. That she gets to decide who touches it, and how, and when. That her yes and her no are final, and unambiguous, and worthy of respect.” – from Medium.com
This post discusses how refreshing and empowering it was to a see a sexual assault on screen and see Tris fighting back and stopping the attack. And I agree, this can be a powerful and empowering message. Girls need to know that they can fight back, that they have a RIGHT to fight back. Time and time again I have scene a girl be raped on screen and I did think it was so very important that, for once, the girl fought back and was able to stop an attack. I took my 11-year-old daughter to see this movie and as we left the theater and she was talking about it, one of the things that she mentioned was that if a guy ever tried to kiss her against her will she would fight.
Then Melissa at YA Book Shelf wrote a series of thoughtful posts on this scene, which I highly recommend you read (linked after the quote):
“If you accept that it may, indeed, instil a fear of sexual assault in teen girls, then one could further argue that it actually maintains the status quo of rape culture in Western societies rather than does away with it as Lalonde argues. Why? Well, quite frankly, because rape culture teaches young girls how not to be raped, rather than teaching young boys not to rape. While the movie may deter young boys from attempting to sexually assault young girls, if only to avoid a powerful kick to the groin, it also, simultaneously, teaches young girls that they have to do everything they can to avoid being raped, from screaming and saying “no” to hitting or kicking their assailant if and when he doesn’t listen or respect them, like the real Four does.” – from YA Book Shelf’s 3 Part Series on the Scene and Why it Matters (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3)
Even on Twitter there has been some good discussion of this scene:
.@TLT16 it veers dangerously close to (and can quickly be manipulated to) “See, if women REALLY wanted to fight off rapists, they COULD.”
— Angie Manfredi (@misskubelik) March 25, 2014
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As you see, others have suggested that this scene is not empowering but damaging because it reinforces the cultural tendency to victim blaming by suggesting that “See, if a girl really didn’t want it she would FIGHT.” And this too is a legitimate concern. Because what if my daughter found herself in this type of situation and then found that she couldn’t fight, either out of fear or lack of strength? What then would she think of herself and what had happened to her?
But here’s the real problem with this conversation: IT IS STILL FOCUSED ON THE VICTIM. As we sit here and discuss whether or not the scene is an issue because of how the victim does or doesn’t respond in the scene, we are reinforcing the cultural norm that we have any right to expect any type of behavior at all from a victim. The truth is, until you are in this position, you have no idea how you will respond. And if you are being raped, your response DOES NOT MATTER. Whether you fight back or don’t fight back, the victim is never responsible for the fact that they are being raped or sexually assaulted. This conversation is so dangerous because it continues to, incorrectly, put the focus of discussions on sexual assaults on the behavior of the victims. We don’t need to be teaching our girls (and in many cases boys) to fight back, we need to be telling out boys (and in many cases girls), NOT TO RAPE.
This entire scene is not only unnecessary and story changing in its interpretation, but it is damaging because it reinforces a wide variety of negative cultural norms. Our response should not be to focus on the actions of Tris, but to focus the discussion on whether or not this scene enhances the story in any meaningful way – and it does not. There is nothing about this scene that enhances or reveals important information to the story or the characters, and there is nothing in this scene that enhances our culture and the way we view and treat women or the discussion of sexual violence – especially if we are going to continue to focus on Tris’ reaction. By focusing on Tris’ reaction we are, in fact, continuing to negatively contribute to this cultural discussion.
Every time we talk about sexual violence we must always steer the conversation back on track to the real heart of the matter: the crime and not the victim. We must not allow the talking points continue to be about the actions of a victim preceding or in the midst of the attack. The importance of this scene is not whether or not Tris fights back; no, the important thing to be discussing about this scene is how we continue to halfheartedly and without real thought use moments of sexual violence for storytelling and entertainment and how this use continues to create a culture that is willing to so easily glance over those moments on screen and in real life.
Whether or not Tris fights back is not the problem, but the fact that the scene was included at all is.
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About Karen Jensen, MLS
Karen Jensen has been a Teen Services Librarian for almost 30 years. She created TLT in 2011 and is the co-editor of The Whole Library Handbook: Teen Services with Heather Booth (ALA Editions, 2014).
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Thanks for your thoughtful post on this scene and how we should talk about scenes like it in future. (And of course, thanks for linking to my discussion.) I started writing my post because I was disturbed not just by the decision to change the scene and thus conflate fear or intimacy and sex with fear of sexual assault, and because the book is from Tris' perspective and I'm a woman, I focused on her, in part, because I was seeing the scene through her eyes. However, I do agree that we should consider framing the conversation in a way that emphasizes rape is never the survivor's fault. I mentioned this in my post, but it definitely wasn't the focus. Thanks for making me think more.
I was also uncomfortable with the Medium.com article because again it seems to place the responsibility all on the girl. And the logical extension of the argument is that if you can't/don't fight then you did something wrong. Again, it blames the victim.
Not all girls can be dauntless fighters, but all men are capable of not being rapists. *That* is where the responsibility lies.
Also, in terms of the storytelling, an attempted sexual assault is totally not in keeping with Four's character. There is no way Tris would imagine or fear this. She fears being touched by him, being intimate in allenses of the word, making herself vulnerable. She does not fear being attacked by Four because it's not even a remote possibility.
Jo puts her finger on something that bothered me. If she is afraid of Four, then–as Melissa suggests–we may infer that all men are potential rapists. Or else she is dating a man she is scared of, that he might lose control. Which, as you well say, puts everything back on her.
I agree completely that this is a narrative convenience, that this was simply a more dramatic way of presenting fear for Tris without any thought to what these images can do. And it needs to end.
“Narrative convenience” – exactly. I'm going to have to remember that phrase. Thank you!
Thank you for your comment. And yes, it was also an issue in terms of what it says about Four and what Tris thinks about Four, thank you for that reminder.
I think your post series is very thoughtful and important. I hope everyone reads it. Thank you for your comment. Like you, the scene bothered me and I really needed to talk about it these past few days and I appreciated having you to discuss it with.
I think it would be helpful if the people who have this issue with the movie went back and re-read this scene in the book, because in the book it is actually much worse. When Wendy and I wrote our review of the movie, I actually mis-remembered what had happened in the book, too, and I finally looked it up when I started reading things about the movie containing “a graphic rape scene” and wanted to get the facts straight. In the book, this is what happens:
Tris gets attacked by three boys, including a close friend
Tris spends the night at Four's
Tris and Four kiss
Tris goes into the fear landscape in front of her class and in it she's attacked by three dudes and has a panic attack.
Four scolds her in front of the entire class
Tris slaps Four
Four tells the other instructor that Tris kissed him, and that he thought it was silly and pathetic
Four and Tris make up and kiss because he was only mean to protect her
Tris goes into the final fear landscape for her test and is assaulted by three men
In the same fear landscape, Four kisses her, then unzips and removes her jacket, then kisses her again. He rubs his hands down her harms to her hips, then on the skin between her pants and the bottom on her shirt. She pushes him back and presses her hands to her forehead. He comes back and starts kissing her neck. She tells him she won't have sex with him in a hallucination, then grabs his shoulders, pushes him against the bedpost, and starts kissing him.
Now. Are you saying that this is a better version to show girls? Is it better to soft-pedal the lack of consent and teach them to just take control of the situation when an implied “no” isn't respected? I tend to prefer the movie version (I don't have the movie in front of me, so I can't be as completely accurate with quotes and such):
Tris is attacked by three boys, including a close friend
Four rescues her, lets her sleep in his room
Tris and Four kiss and she tells him she's doesn't want to move too fast
Four says that's fine, he has no problem sleeping on the floor
Tris goes into the simulator for her final test and Four kisses her, she says no, he pushes her onto the bed, she fights him, kneeing him, and the simulation is over.
This movie portrays a mature, respectful relationship. The director never lingers on the idea that Four must be some great guy for being fine with not having sex; it's just understood that that's how it should be. Four treats Tris as an equal, and at the end he follows her lead and trusts her to do the right thing, even though he's older and a big strong sexy guy. I'm pretty irritated that the talk about this movie in feminist circles is so focused in on some very slight changes to a scene that lasts about five seconds, when the overall picture of what a teenager should expect from a relationship is incredibly healthy–much more so than the angsty, abusive back-and-forth portrayed in the book.
I'm also troubled by a lot of the language being directed toward the rape survivor who wrote the article about how much the scene in the movie meant to her. People are blaming a rape victim who is putting herself out there, talking about her experience, for what they perceive to be victim blaming. Everyone doesn't respond to rape the same way. Not every portrayal of a girl fighting off an attacker is meant to condemn those of us who didn't fight back when we were raped.
Also, in the book, Tris has to fight off three men who are attacking her three separate times—once for real and twice in simulations. I am just completely baffled by the criticism here when the filmmakers actually removed most of the scenes of a girl having to fight off attackers, and made the scene where a dude ignores a “no” more honest.
I'm sorry that you feel that a person is being attacked for sharing their experiences and reactions, because I don't feel that is anyone's intentions. The concern being discussed is whether or not the way the scene plays out in the movie contributes to the idea that girls who don't fight back must in some way want it. In fact, I made it a point to acknowledge that I thought both sides of the discussion had valid points and gave my own personal experience of how my daughter found the scene empowering. My concern is that the way we continue to focus on the victim's – Tris' – reaction in this conversation plays right in to the cultural norm where we focus on the victim as opposed to the crime itself.
I do remember the original attack by the 3 in the book and I was glad that the sexual violence element was removed in the movie because it was totally unnecessary in the book. Then this scene happened and I was devastated that they chose to go this route because I also saw it is unnecessary. I can honestly say that I do not remember the attack from the 3 boys occurring more than the initial time, I don't remember it being a part of her fear landscape so I will have to go back in and revisit that part of the book.
What I would like to see, in books and movies, is less sexual violence as a narrative device, as a casual storytelling device, which I believe it is in this work. Frequent exposure to these storytelling elements without exploring the real life ramifications can inure us to the very real world violence that occurs. For those who haven't experienced real life sexual violence, it glosses over the very real implications. And for those who have experiences sexual violence, it can be unnecessarily triggering.
I disagree, however, that the movie shows a healthy relationship in part because in the movie Four is aged up more and given more of a leadership role and I think this blurs the lines regarding the age of consent issues (I am not sure how old Tris is in the movie to be honest but they have said they aged Four up to 24, which makes his relationship with a teenage girl very problematic) and power issues (he is in a power/leadership/teacher role). We see far too many real life situations where older men in positions of power can manipulate that to their advantage. I felt the same way recently while watching The Vampire Academy movie as you saw the relationship between Dmitri and Rose.
But the important thing is that we DO have these types of conversations, with each other and with the tweens and teens in our lives. Because one respectful conversation at a time, we can start shifting paradigms, change the way we talk about consent and relationships, and change the way we respond when we read about sexual violence in both the written and the real world. So thank you.
I typed a response and accidentally deleted it. Grrr. The gist:
I'm really (genuinely; no sarcasm) sorry to tell you that regardless of how you may feel, if you look at the twitter mentions of the lady who wrote the Medium.com article, you'll see (peppered in among the men harassing her for insulting 300 while being a fan of Drake and the women thanking her for writing it) snarky remarks from women who want her to know that they think her reaction is wrong. It's all over Tumblr, too.
I agree that a conversation should be had about Rape as a narrative device (and hey, let's throw in child abuse as a device, too, while we're at it, because the way Roth handles that aspect of Four's past, and the amount that it is brought up in the first two books, is pretty gross and insensitive); my issue here is that the discussion is framing this as an issue with the film, which significantly tones down the sexual violence, rather than one with the underlying property first and foremost. If posts about this issue (including yours) misrepresent the content of the book–accidentally or not–we can't have an honest conversation.
When I was a teenager, a close friend of mine raped me. I didn't fight him off very hard because I was baffled and scared and embarrassed. Afterward, I had nightmares about other men in my life–boyfriends, teachers, other close friends, family members–assaulting me. This is a common response to the feelings of helplessness and betrayal that follow such an attack. Tris's hallucination of Four's attacking her is normal, and it's a part of the trauma of rape.
Also, as a side note, bear in mind that there were some contributing factors here in the form of changes that were made to the story in the movie. In the book, Tris is afraid of intimacy because in Abnegation, family members aren't allowed to hug or show affection in any way, but in the movie, her parents are very open and loving with both their children and each other. In the movie they simplify the differences in how Tris perceives the fear landscapes and how normal Dauntless do by saying that she naturally perceives that the situation she's in isn't real and shatters the false reality, and she has to learn to fight everything with her body and tools she finds in the simulation (as a true Dauntless would) or she will be murdered for being Divergent. Those two things (and the lack of first-person narration, which softened the rape scene in the book), and what I think may have been a desire not to see Tris attacked by and fighting off a trio of men THREE TIMES in the movie, may have contributed to its being portrayed the way it was.
I'm not personally bothered by the age difference between Tris and Four because both actors are in their twenties, and their ages aren't stated in the film–we're just told that she's reached the age where people in that world are considered adults. 16 and 24 is gross, and it's weird because the actors' real-life age gap is smaller than that.
One thing that IS stated–explicitly–is that Four has no authority over Tris because he has repeatedly turned down promotions. This is a slight change from the book, in which he punishes her in front of her fellow initiates for having a panic attack in the simulation following her assault and then kisses her once they're alone, although in both the film and the book Four assists the guy in charge of the initiates and is helpless to save her from him.
I meant “trauma of assault,” not of “rape.”
Hey Karen,
We chatted about this briefly on Twitter already, but I figured I'd add my two cents here as well. My memory of specific scenes in the book are a bit fuzzy since I read them awhile back, but I have complete trust in my co-blogger Kate's analysis of the differences between the way the scenes are portrayed in both–she reread it specifically because of the questions that have been raised after the Medium article.
When we first wrote our review discussion of the film, I had wondered whether that scene really was necessary, or if there weren't another way to portray it. But after hearing Kate clearly explain how it played out in the book, I'm not surprised by the choices they made, not only in actually toning down some of what actually occurred, but also, again, because of the other changes they made to Tris' background and character. And it is not a surprise to me, in book or film, that Tris' halluciantions, as a young, inexperienced girl, would involve fear of sexual intimacy with a man she's interested in, nor that it might get out of control.
I am in complete agreement with you (and I appreciate the reasonable tone of your post) that there should NEVER be victim blaming, and I completely understand where you're coming from in expressing your concern. There's been far too many instances in recent memory where sexual assault is casually used as a sensationalist means of entertainment.
Part of my frustration, and Kate's, is that we've watched this poor woman who posted her reaction to the film get ripped to shreds over the past few days. A woman who is a rape victim, who shared her feelings of empowerment after watching a film. I'm not sure if you've seen the vitriol and scorn and condescension directed her way, but this is just one sampling:
http://the-urban-deforest.tumblr.com/post/80511298132/galaxyofwitches-ouyangdan
Why is Lalonde's reaction less valid than other viewers'? Many of those attacking her haven't even seen the film, or aren't remembering that the exact nature of the scene in the book. I don't think that her taking away a positive message from the film necessarily equates with blaming the victims of assault. I don't expect every personal essay to outline opposing opinions and cover all scenarios, particularly one centered around such a painful topic. It's not the language or tone of your post that I'm questioning, btw, but my general frustration with the way this has played out online, because I DO think this rape victim is being unfairly scrutinized and blamed for expressing her opinion.
(part one–sorry, I'm wordy)
(part two–sorry again!)
I wasn't bothered by the Tris/Four relationship in the film, either–I think the way both actors inhabited their roles, as well as the changes made to both the characters, put them on more of an equal playing field than we've ever seen before in YA films. Yes, he's a trainer (and I agree that there are concerns re: fetishizing those in positions of power), but his later interactions with her, and her attitude towards him, seemed to me to be extremely respectful and mature. As I've been saying on our review discussion, the Katniss/Peeta, Katniss/Gale, and certainly Bella/Edward/Jacob dynamics don't even come close in terms of even power dynamics. This is one instance in which I think the filmmakers and actors improved how the relationships are portrayed from the book, as I like and respect the both more in cinematic format. I was much more bothered in the film by the way Tris is attacked by her friend–it was extremely traumatic and frightening, even though it was very brief.
Anyway, I appreciate the conversation, and as always, respect very much what you do here. I interpreted that scene and that relationship in DIVERGENT very differently, but open-minded dialogue about this kind of thing is never a waste. I just hope that people do keep an open mind, and I feel awful for the people who aren't being so nearly respectful of the Medium author's feelings. She's no less entitled to how she interpreted it than we are.
Wendy @ The Midnight Garden
…edit: I don't feel awful FOR the people who aren't being respectful of Lalonde's feelings. I feel awful THAT they aren't being respectful.
Kate and Wendy,
It is unfortunate that the woman who wrote the original article is being attacked on Twitter and Tumblr. I read the original post when it came up and have read some counter posts but I haven't paid close attention to outside conversations and am not aware of those attacks. This post is not meant to be an attack on anyone, my intention was to call attention to the fact that the way we – the consumers – have chosen to talk about this scene, by focusing on the reactions of Tris – continue to play into the cultural narrative that looks at the behavior of the victim and how potentially dangerous that is. I agree that her reaction is a valid reaction and stated so in the post. I also think there are some legitimate concerns for the other point of view as well.
My second point, and I do feel strongly about this one, is that we – again, consumers and a culture – need to stop giving a slide to the more casual use of sexual violence (and yes, child abuse of any type). I feel that it can desensitize us to the real life ramifications of these major and criminal life events. When I originally read Divergent, I felt that the story could have been told without those elements because they were not necessary to the plot or the character and they weren't treated in any real or meaningful way. And yes, this also applies to Four's abuse at the hands of his father. That is my point: does sexual violence even need to be a part of this story and is it handled well? I argue that no, it does not.
The thing that I would like for everyone to take away from this conversation is that when they see scenes in books or movies they would ask themselves if it was in any way essential to the story, if the author (or director) dealt with it in ways that could make a positive, transformative impact on rape culture, and if it sends a positive message to readers regarding the importance of and a person's right to complete bodily agency. I understand that many people feel that there is a positive message in this scene and that it meets 2 of the 3 criteria I just suggested, and I acknowledge that even my daughter took away that positive message, but my argument is that it failed in one of these tests in that it didn't need to be in the book or the movie AT ALL. Because the truth is, as we read books and watch movies, it would be nice if sexual violence was used way less on the whole as a narrative element because I think that just seeing and reading about it so often even can desensitize us to it. And also because it can be very triggering for survivors.
So I think we basically agree on most of our points.
I am very sorry to hear of your personal experience with rape. My heart goes out to you.
I am also sorry that others have chosen to be horrible to this woman outside of this website. There is far to much of people being horrible to one another on the Internet and I feel strongly that is not okay.
We'll have to agree to disagree about the age difference because I do think that is an ongoing issue in YA literature in that it romanticizes these type of relationships and I feel that is problematic. I think it is very important that stories for teens address the importance of the age of consent and the dynamics of a relationship in meaningful ways and worry that the constant adult man/teen girl relationship portrayal plays right into the hands of our culture that wants to give men a pass for the way that they fetichize younger girls (some not all of course). I also worry that this romanticizing of these relationships helps to groom younger girls into an easier acceptance of those relationships. And consent isn't just about age, it is also about positions of power. I feel that is all problematic in book this book and movie.
I'm glad to hear I wasn't the only one who went back to re-read the book after seeing the movie!
My view on the book's fear simulation scene is that Tris handles it by being clear with Four “I'm not going to have sex with you” and then she makes the next physical move with him, which suggested to me that though she'd set up a boundary, she wasn't going to close it all down; she was also not afraid to keep touching him (her fear of intimacy and of being exposed as inexperienced thus being dealt with, too).
It was a shame to me that the sexual assault component of Peter/Will's assault was glossed over in the film.
I also thought that it was out of character for the film to suggest Tris had fears about rape. We could say, on one hand, that OF COURSE she fears rape – she's a girl. So why not include that sexual assault piece of the physical assault and make it flow better?
But we could also say, that given her upbringing in Abnegation, perhaps she's unaware of how terribly things can go when physical intimacy turns violent. That was how I read the book, and so the book's fear – of being exposed, of fearing how much she wanted physical contact – made more sense in terms of character.
Re: the age difference. I believe we're meant to think Four is two years older than Tris. I cannot recall if the movie touched on this, but the fact that he's in charge of her was also something that I never liked much, either in the book or film. Though I have to say, I inhabit, paradoxically, a great enjoyment of their relationship in a romantic sense. Which is probably gross of me, but I think Roth highlighted their connection in so many ways, both as mentors to each other, that perhaps the inequality was abated in my mind? I don't know what it is. The portrayal of this in Vampire Academy was not to my taste, though; it'd be interesting to unpack why this is.
Well, Blogger just ate my comment, so I'm going to try again.
We do agree on most points here, Karen, and I'd like to stress again that I did NOT think you were attacking Lalonde at all, and I hope you don't think we're attacking you. This is an important topic, and I appreciate having the opportunity to discuss it intelligently.
I think where the dialogue is getting a little murky is that a lot of the outrage I'm seeing charges the film with making significant changes in that scene from the book, and I wish people would do what Carrie and Kate did in comparing the two in detail. Certainly that doesn't change the fact that both are open to different interpretations, but perhaps the typical “big bad Hollywood twisting things for fun and profit” charge would change. If there's critical dialogue to be had about that scene's inclusion, perhaps it needs to start with the source material.
Re: age difference, Carrie, I just read a fascinating Forbes article where the producers clearly state that they made Tris' age ambiguous. This is the last paragraph in the interview:
Ultimately, we always thought as a human story as opposed to a young adult story. Shailene was already 21, while the story itself takes place in the book [when Tris is] 16, but there was no reason why it had to be exactly 16. And we took it as more of a finding your identity, which is something that you do over and over and over again – who do you want to be and how will you be and will you be able to be yourself and how do you conform or not conform? Those kind of issues are much more than just a teenage issue, you know. So we wanted to burst that into the largest version of what that could be.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/toddgilchrist/2014/03/24/divergent-lucy-fisher-douglas-wick-veronica-roth-young-adult-franchise-chasing-trends-is-dangerous-business/
I agree that I think we're meant to think they're closer in age than they actually are, and for me, this relationship worked in the film the way it didn't quite work for me in the book. It also didn't make me cringe the way the Danila/Zoey scenes did in VAMPIRE ACADEMY.
it would be nice if sexual violence was used way less on the whole as a narrative element because I think that just seeing and reading about it so often even can desensitize us to it. And also because it can be very triggering for survivors.
This I agree with completely. In regards to DIVERGENT, I personally wasn't offended by this scene's inclusion in either book or film, but I do understand why the concern is being raised. And it'd be interesting to hear Roth and/or the filmmakers address it.
Thanks again for the opportunity to discuss, Karen.
But perhaps
In the books the age difference wasn't so big between Four and Tris (he's 18, she's 16) and there wasn't a power gap- in fact, he pretty much refused it for the most part. It's not like Vampire Academy or Twilight or some others that had the hugely older guy and younger girl, or using power positions. In the MOVIE, he's almost 10 years older- that's why she doesn't remember him, doesn't remember that Marcus had a son who left, etc. etc. etc.
I'm writing a post about my views (review, reaction, etc) to the movie, but I wish that they had played up the first assault more. The movie shows how body conscious Tris is starting out by how she undresses in the group and her reaction to the group showers, and the threats from the guys was not just a one time thing- it was repeated over and over and over, used to try and break her down. She didn't break, and they tried worse. She didn't break, and it's natural that it would be in her fearscape.
Do I think that the movie as is needed the rape scene from Four? Not without the other foundation- nothing else suggested it, and it came from out of nowhere. It's one of those things that makes me wonder if there are cut scenes somewhere (maybe of the other assaults, perhaps) that were deemed not worthy of the final product. It could have easily been her attackers as Four.
Re the age difference: This is what was revealed at Comic Con –
““Theo James who plays the love interest in my film is 28, in the book his character is 18, but in the movie we’re making him about 24/25. He’s kind of ageless in a way. And even though in the book Tris is about 16, we never allude to the fact that she’s that young.””
Source: http://iamdivergent.com/2013/08/shailene-woodley-reveals-fours-age-in-the-film/
I wasn't going to respond again, but I saw that this was just promoted on Tumblr as well.
Those Comic-Con remarks were from last July, and a lot of story-telling choices would have changed between that time and now. I would also put more stock into what the director/producers' intentions were rather than what was stated by a young actress, particularly given that the Forbes interview ran just a couple of days ago. The Forbes piece also implies that they've matured Tris somewhat since Shailene is older and Theo is older as well. Unless we're taking the “there was no reason (she) had to be exactly 16” to mean they were making her younger.
To be clear, I'm in agreement that consent/romanticizing authority figures can be problematic in entertainment meant for young audiences. But as you said, we'll just have to agree to disagree on the filmmakers' intentions and messaging, as well as the potential damage these specific examples are inflicting.