America is convinced to put her name into the drawing by her secret boyfriend, Aspen, and her mother, both of whom know that participating in the competition will secure America and her family a better life. When America receives a letter from the crown prince of Illéa, inviting her to take part in the Selection process, a televised competition where 35 girls are chosen at random to compete for the hand of the prince in marriage, initially she resists signing up. There exist two rebel groups, one in the North and one in the South, that routinely stage attacks on the palace in the pursuit of an unknown goal. The royal family works to maintain their hold on power in order to keep the peace within Illéa's borders. Political struggle is a constant fact of life under the monarchy. America is a singer and is also proficient in a number of instruments, particularly the violin. The Singer family struggles to meet their basic needs in the Illéan economy. Women take on the caste of the men they marry.Īmerica Singer is a member of the Fifth caste, which was made up of artists who rely upon the financial support of patrons of higher castes.
The only means of doing so are amassing immense amounts of wealth or participating in an advantageous marriage. It is nearly impossible to rise in the caste system. For those in the lower castes, this means being denied an education and being forced into positions of servitude. In this system, one's caste determines which kinds of professions those in it can dedicate their lives to. In the monarchy of Illéa, formed out of the remnants of the USA in a post-apocalyptic world, a strict caste system restricts freedom and condemns most of the subjects of the monarchy to lives of poverty. The Selection is the story of the life of a 16-year-old subject of Illéa, America Singer.
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