Although being a completely fictional novel, John
Green teaches us a very important life lesson through the actions of his
characters, particularly, Augustus Waters: though bad things may happen, it is
important to make the most of the good. Stories teach us about the actual world
too, not just the fictional world. In “The Fault in Our
Stars”, John Green has indirectly taught society to be more like his
characters and make the most of the time they have on earth. Cancer has robbed
Augustus Waters of any chance to rush into a dragon’s lair and save his
friends, but it cannot take away his desire to be heroic. Augustus wants
nothing more than to fly off to another world where he is not a victim. He
escapes in movies and simulates his fantasy in video games. Stories and
storytelling become immensely important, as Hazel and Augustus evolve from
escapists into storytellers. Green means for us to see how the reading of a
book, the engagement in a story, is a creative act, in contrast to screen-bound
stories which we passively consume. The telling of a story requires
collaboration between writer and reader. The writer assembles a sequence of
words, crafting and honing. The story’s framework takes shape in his mind alone.
The reader then unwinds this written story and assigns meaning to the words. A
published book remains an untold story; only in the reading does a story find
voice. The great struggle, the driving conflict, is not just Hazel and Augustus
against cancer. It’s these two kids fighting to understand their power as
readers and story-makers … and most of all their power to choose their own
stories. Life may challenge and bound you, but how make it through is really
what matters. You want to live a satisfying and heroic-like life. As Augustus
puts it, “You don’t get to choose if you get hurt in this world… but you do
have some say in who hurts you. I like my choices.”

The most significant fictional element presented in “The Fault in Our Stars” would be the
ongoing, both internal and external, conflict of time. Main characters, Hazel
and Augustus, are teens living with cancer. Time itself and how that time is
used are two very precious concepts to both Hazel and Augustus. Though it is
the common bond that brings them together, cancer is also the beast that is
slowly killing them both. The two
characters are forced to deal with this conflict all throughout the book, and
all throughout their lives. Their biggest fear is the other person or
themselves relapsing, and being forced to be without the other. The passage I have annotated is a letter from
Augustus to Hazel. At the end of the novel, Hazel indirectly receives a letter
that Augustus wrote prior his death. The letter is addressed to Peter Van
Houten, both Augustus and Hazel’s favourite author. In letter Augustus states
“I wanted more time so we could fall in love”, this displays the ongoing
conflict of time and how it is running out. Augustus also hints at how precious
time is by saying “you don’t get to choose if you get hurt in this world, old
man, but you do have some say in who hurts you. I like my choices. I hope she
likes hers.”, meaning that you may not be able to control what happens to you,
but you can control how you deal with it. Augustus is a firm believer in making the most of your time alive, and dying a hero, "the people NOTICING things, paying attention". Though they have a right to be
constantly afraid, these friends don't let cancer stop them from living their
lives; they go out and make to best of
their situation.