The Ultimate Outsider: The Misfit Persona of Protagonists in
Popular Young Adult Fiction
Jennifer Smith
An outsider can be defined as ‘a person who does not belong to a particular group’
(Merriam-Webster Dictionary, 2014), or as ‘a person who is not accepted by or who
isolates themselves from society’ (Oxford Dictionary, 2014). Outsiders can be outsiders
by choice, by force or by circumstance, based on the way they look, the way they dress,
their economic situation, their ethnicity, their sexuality, their disabilities, or even the
choices they make. Outsiders feel at odds with the world around them, whether that
be against their friends, their teachers, their family, their society, or even against
themselves.
Young adult fiction has often focused on outsiders as protagonists. This reflects the
experiences of teenagers as they often feel as if they are outsiders themselves. At that
age, adolescents begin to realise their individuality and their differences while still
being pressured to fit in with the crowd. Even when they do have a sense of belonging,
the growing acknowledgement of difference often leads to the sensation of not quite
being like everyone else.
While there are many young adult novels with outsider protagonists, this paper focuses
on the most popular and best-selling young adult fiction titles of the past decade, as it
can be argued these stories have the most reach and the most potential for influence.
It will discuss J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series (1999–2007), Suzanne Collins’ The
Hunger Games series (2008–2009), Veronica Roth’s Divergent trilogy (2011–2013),
Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight saga (2005–2008) and John Green’s The Fault in our Stars
(2012), and how the protagonists in each of these can be categorised as an outsider.
Over the last two decades, the market for children’s and young adult fiction has
exploded in growth, with around 5,000 new English language titles published each
year. It is not a stretch to believe that these books are influential, especially to the
young people for which they are intended. Research over the years has shown many
positive implications of reading in young people. It has been linked with improved
reading ability, reading engagement and literacy development. In addition, young adult
novels often address social and psychological issues, such as social inequalities, cultural
differences, opposing identities and prejudice. By reading the experience of
protagonists in these situations and the feelings of difference and alienation, readers
can find comfort in knowing they are not alone. Often the message of these novels is
one of resilience and self-acceptance, which can translate to positive feelings of
identity formation.
Harry Potter series
This year, the Journal of Applied Social Psychology published a very interesting article
titled ‘The greatest magic of Harry Potter: Reducing prejudice’ (Vezzali et al., 2014). It
details the culmination of three studies that examined the attitudes of primary,
secondary and college students to how reading the Harry Potter series led to more
acceptance of marginalised groups, such as LGBT people (lesbian, gay, bisexual,
transgender), immigrants and refugees. This suggests that not only does reading these
books allow young people to understand that they are not alone in their own
individuality, but that they can greater understand and accept others’ differences as
well.
The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling is by far the greatest selling series in young
adult fiction, with 450 million copies sold worldwide and 73 language translations. It
has received numerous awards, has been developed into a blockbuster-hit film
franchise and has several theme parks throughout the world.
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Growing up, Harry was treated as an outsider in a home of abuse and neglect. Even
though he was related to his aunt by blood, he was never considered or treated as a
true member of the Dursley family. He was forced to live in a cupboard underneath the
stairs and was bullied by his cousin, who was, in extreme contrast, coddled by his
overprotective parents.
Once Harry enters the wizarding world, he remains an outsider by circumstances from
his early childhood that he could not control. The lightning scar on his forehead from
the night his parents were murdered by the dark wizard, Voldemort, brands him as
something different and will forever identify him as The Boy Who Lived. Because of
this, he is often treated differently by his peers and often in a negative way. In
Chamber of Secrets (1999), Harry is suspected of being the culprit behind the attacks
on his classmates because of who he is, and his peers alienate him as a result. In Goblet
of Fire (2000), the student body at Hogwarts never truly support him as a contender in
the Triwizard Tournament and suspect him of cheating in order to compete. Even his
closest friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, accuse him of entering his name
into the goblet, no matter how many times he tells them otherwise. These actions and
beliefs of his friends and classmates cause him to feel isolated in what he considers the
only home he’s ever had. During one of the tournament’s tasks, Harry relates these
feelings by saying he felt ‘as separate from the crowd as though they were a different
species’ (Rowling, 2000: 349).
This outsider status continues in Order of Phoenix (2003) when the entire wizarding
society doubts Harry’s accounts of Voldemort’s return. Only those closest to him
believe what he’s seen. Newspaper articles ridicule his stance. His peers gossip about
him behind his back. He is essentially an outcast in his society just by telling the truth.
In the two final books of this series, Half-Blood Prince (2005) and Deathly Hallows
(2007), Harry is further separated from those around him due to the prophecy he
discovered in Order of the Phoenix (2003) that only he can destroy Voldemort. Because
of this, he feels he must isolate himself from the society in which he belongs even as it
in turn continues to isolate him. In Deathly Hallows (2007), he is permanently on the
move. His home, Hogwarts, is no longer safe for him. He now hides from a society in
which he is a fugitive for both safety and to find the Horcruxes needed to destroy the
enemy. Even with, finally, the backing of all of Hogwarts behind him, it is he alone who
faces Voldemort. Harry’s status as The Boy Who Lived, the outsider, is what allows him
to stand up against Voldemort and fight, for he is the only one who can.
It is of note that Harry often befriends and bonds with other outsiders, sometimes
taking a stand against the prejudice shown against these characters. He frees Dobby,
the house elf, from lifelong servitude. One of his two closest friends is Hermione
Granger, the daughter of two Muggles, which causes her to be ridiculed and looked
down on by the pure-blood families. Hagrid is an often-bullied half-giant who becomes
a somewhat fatherly figure for Harry, in addition to Remis Lupin, the werewolf, and
Sirius Black, the fugitive and refugee. Harry also becomes close to Luna Lovegood, a
very odd and whimsical student at Hogwarts, who is continuously belittled by the other
students for her strange behaviour. However, Harry sees the good in all these
characters. He is not only an outsider himself, but he shows compassion and
acceptance towards those who do not fit in.
The Hunger Games series
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins is another young adult series that has reached
astronomical bestseller status in the past decade. It has sold 68 million copies in the
USA alone, has been translated into 51 languages and has been made into a bestselling film franchise.
The world of the Hunger Games is a dystopian society of 12 districts, annually forced to
partake in a violent game to remind the general population that it is better to conform
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to rules and regulations than to upset the accepted societal balance. The protagonist,
Katniss Everdeen, begins the story as an outsider in her own district. Instead of taking
up the mantle of a traditional female role in her society, she hunts and acts as a
provider for her younger sister due to her mother’s depression.
When Katniss volunteers to replace her sister in the annual Hunger Games, it sets her
apart from the other contestants, and in the arena she continues to play by her own
rules. She separates herself from the other tributes and chooses to remain alone for as
long as possible, even though most agree that forming an alliance in the arena is the
best approach to survival and winning. When Katniss finally does form an alliance, it is
with the youngest and weakest player, Rue, and her motive is more to protect Rue
from the other tributes than to try and improve her position within the games in order
to win.
When Rue is unfortunately killed, Katniss shows defiance toward the government by
performing a heartbreaking tribute to her. It is at this moment that the other
disaffected people in the districts begin to see Katniss as a symbol of rebellion. Katniss
survives until the end of the games, and chooses to risk dying rather than conform to
what the government asks her to do: kill her fellow tribute in cold blood. Because of
this act, she is essentially rejected by President Snow, by the Capitol and by the
government. She is seen as Other.
Katniss is different out of her own free will. It is her actions and her choices that make
her stand apart from the rest. She is who the marginalised, disaffected, non-conformist
populace of Panem look to as the rallying point for their growing sense of rebellion
against an oppressive society. In her own words, Katniss says, ‘I am the mockingjay.
The one that survived despite the Capitol’s plans. The symbol of the rebellion’ (Collins,
2009: 386–87). Katniss becomes essentially a symbol for society’s outsiders.
The Twilight saga
The Twilight saga by Stephanie Meyer has sold over 120 million copies worldwide and
has been translated into 38 languages. In addition to the other series mentioned in this
paper, series has also been adapted into a film franchise with record-breaking box
office numbers.
In this series, the protagonist, Bella Swan, is just an ordinary teen girl in an ordinary
world. She feels like an outsider at her new high school in Forks, Washington, but it
isn’t until she meets the mysterious Edward Cullen that her true outsider status
displays itself.
Bella becomes an outsider in the world she wishes to be a part of, which is the world of
the Cullens and the world of the vampires. She is set apart from them in her mortality
and in her ability to shield her thoughts from Edward. Her greatest desire is to fit into
their world and become a vampire herself, as she has never felt as if she fits into
normal society. She tells Edward:
I’ve always felt out of step. Like literally stumbling through my life. I’ve never felt
normal, because I’m not normal, and I don’t wanna be. I’ve had to face death and
loss and pain in your world, but I’ve also never felt stronger, like more real, more
myself, because it’s my world too. It’s where I belong. (Meyer, 2007: 151)
Bella’s outsider status makes her uncomfortable, and her mortality is often portrayed
as fragile and weak. It isn’t until she becomes a vampire herself that she fully accepts
who she is. However, it could be argued that Bella merely changes from one kind of
outsider to another. Once she becomes a vampire, she joins the Cullens as being
outsiders to humanity, in even being outsiders amongst vampires. The Cullens do not
fully fit into the vampire society, as evidenced by the many conflicts with the wider
vampire community displayed throughout the novels. They consider themselves
vegetarian vampires, and they condemn feeding on human blood, which is the
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opposite to how most vampires behave. So it is interesting that in order to escape her
own feelings of not belonging, Bella not only becomes Other, but one of the outsiders
within the Other.
The Divergent trilogy
The fourth example of outsider protagonists in popular young adult fiction is Tris Prior
in the Divergent trilogy by Veronica Roth. This series has sold over 10 million copies in
just the USA alone as of the start of 2014, and has been developed into a currently
ongoing film franchise.
In Tris’s world, society is divided into five factions based on a psychological test taken
when individuals come of age. In Divergent (2011), you live, work and socialise only
with those within your same faction. When Tris then takes the test that will tell her
where she belongs within her society, she is told that her results are inconclusive. She
tests positive for several factions. She’s different. She’s divergent, and this is something
dangerous in her society because it means that she does not conform to any one thing.
She is told that she needs to hide this identity in order to survive.
Even though Tris discovers she is different, she does attempt to integrate herself within
the societal restrictions placed upon her. She joins Dauntless, the faction for the brave,
leaving behind her old life with her parents and her brother in the Abnegation faction,
where she feels she does not belong. However, Tris quickly realises that she does not
fit into Dauntless either. While she shares some characteristics with them, it is not truly
who she is, and she struggles to form her identity based on the rigidly controlled
definitions of self as dictated by her society.
At the end of the first novel, the Erudite faction leaders use a mind-control serum on
the population of Dauntless in order to seize total control of the government. It is then
that we see some further implications of Tris’s outsider status. Because she does not
conform and think like everyone else, she is immune to the serum. She realises the
power of her individuality and says, ‘I am not Abnegation. I am not Dauntless. I am
Divergent. And I can’t be controlled’ (Roth, 2011: 442).
Tris then fights back and stops the Erudite leaders from killing every member of the
Abnegation faction. Because she does not fit into a certain mould, she is able to think
differently and is able to be the hero of her story.
The Fault in our Stars
The fifth and final example of outsider protagonists in popular young adult fiction is
Hazel Grace Lancaster of The Fault in our Stars (2012) by John Green. This novel is a
departure from the others mentioned in that it is a contemporary, present-day novel
with no speculative elements. It has sold over 10 million copies worldwide and the film
adaptation was a box office hit in both the USA and UK.
In The Fault in our Stars, the protagonist, Hazel Grace Lancaster, takes up the mantle of
an outsider. She suffers from cancer, and because of her disease she isolates herself
from the world around her. Hazel says, ‘That was the worst part about having cancer,
sometimes.,a
The physical evidence of disease separates you from other people’ (Green, 2012: 144).
Before she meets the romantic lead, she no longer has any friends. She spends her
days reading in her room and spending time only with her family. While the cancer can
be considered the catalyst of Hazel’s outsider status, it is mostly of her own choosing
that she is apart from the world.
In her own words, she is a grenade, and she is certain that one day she will explode.
Her way of dealing with this knowledge is by distancing herself from anyone who may
have the potential to care about her so that she can reduce the resulting casualties if
she dies.
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Hazel does not draw on her outsider status for strength in the same way the other
protagonists mentioned in this paper do. Harry, Katniss, Tris and even Bella use their
knowledge of not belonging to fight against the enemy, against oppressive societies
and against predetermined identities. Rather, Hazel uses her sense of not belonging to
construct unbreakable walls between herself and others in order to protect those she
loves. However, over the course of the novel, Hazel realises that she no longer wants to
shut out the world, and that while she cannot change the fact that she is different due
to her disease, she still belongs to her world in her own way.
Summary
By examining five of the most popular recent young adult fiction titles, it is clear that
outsiders as protagonists is indeed a trend within this body of literature. These
characters display different types of thinking, different types of belonging, and they
often undergo important transformations of self-acceptance and self-reliance.
Sales of young adult literature are at an all-time high, and these titles are not only
breaking records with their book sales, but they are also becoming entrenched into
popular culture, resulting in these stories having a greater reach and impact on young
people. This increasing influence can be seen in a positive light as these novels portray
characters of their age excelling, despite of or because of their individuality and what
they perceive as exclusion from the wider world. Seeing characters rise above these
situations can enhance real teens’ self-acceptance, and encourage the acceptance and
tolerance of others who are different as well.
As the beloved Headmaster of Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore, says, ‘Differences of habit
and language are nothing at all if our aims are identical and our hearts are open’
(Rowling, 2000: 723).
Works cited
Primary texts
Collins, Suzanne (2008) The Hunger Games. New York: Scholastic.
–– (2009) Catching Fire. New York: Scholastic.
Green, John (2012) The Fault in Our Stars. New York: Dutton.
Meyer, Stephanie (2005) Twilight. New York: Little, Brown.
–– (2006) New Moon. New York: Little, Brown.
–– (2007) Eclipse. New York: Little, Brown.
–– (2008) Breaking Dawn. New York: Little, Brown.
Roth, Veronica (2011) Divergent. New York: Katherine Tegen.
Rowling, J.K. (1998) Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. New York: Scholastic.
__ (1999) Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. New York: Scholastic.
–– (1999) Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. New York: Scholastic.
–– (2000) Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. New York: Scholastic.
–– (2003) Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. New York: Scholastic.
–– (2005) Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. New York: Scholastic.
–– (2007) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. New York: Scholastic.
Secondary texts
Merriam-Webster Dictionary (2014) outsider. In Merriam-Webster.com.
www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/outsider.
Oxford Dictionary (2014) outsider. In OxfordDictionaries.com.
www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/.
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Vezzali, Loris, Stathi, Sofia, Giovannini, Dino, Capozza, Dora and Trifiletti, Elena (2014)
The greatest magic of Harry Potter: Reducing prejudice. Journal of Applied Social
Psychology. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jasp.12279/pdf.
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