A Separate Peace Essay Synopsis

| You receive so much information and deep emotions from this one quote. The author tells us that

Gene was jealous of Finny throughout the whole book because Finny was more athletically inclined then him, and Finny was able to do basically whatever he wanted to.¨ I was beginning to see that Phineas could get away with anything. I couldn't help envying him that a little, which was perfectly normal. There was no harm in envying even your best friend a little¨(8). This lead Gene to want to be better than Finny, by being first in the class. One night while Gene was studying Finny interrupted him, as he wanted to go jump out of the tree. After a little argument Gene eventually went with Finny to the tree, but he was still kind of angry. This lead Finny to jounce the tree limb. ¨Holding firmly to the trunk, I took a step toward him, and then my knees bent and I jounced the limb. Finny, his balance gone, swung his head around to look at me for an instant with extreme interest, and then he tumbled sideways, broke through the little branches below and hit the bank with a sickening, unnatural thud¨(28). Because of this fall, Finny completely shattered his leg. He may have been able to walk again, but he would never play sports again. Because of Gene's jealousy toward Finny he decided to make a rash move, which cost his friend their

After the realization of the person he truly is Gene confronts with his problems, faces reality, and deals with the future. He learns a lot about life and relationships when he finds about his true self. He learns that he must truly express his feelings and communicate instead of keeping all the feelings inside as he had always done with Phineas. Also he learns to listen to himself not others around him if he wants a true advice. After a while, he faced reality and acknowledged the fact that he was not as great was Phineas but they were two different individuals and they were unique in different ways. Gene accepted the guilt for Phineas’ difficulties after his accident and decided he must he must help him as a punishment and act of repentance for what his deed. He does this by giving part of himself to Phineas as we see with the case of the sports

1. Who is the main character in each book? What qualities does the character have that you relate to or admire? Why?

A second way is when he begins to try and somewhat become Phineas. Like shown here, “… a soaring sense of freedom revealed that this must have been my purpose from the first: to become a part of Phineas.” (Knowles 85) from the quote, Gene is stating how by doing sports for Finny gives him a sense of purpose. Also that it may help support his thought of “losing a part of himself”. This only though shows the few of many examples throughout the book of how genes envy or imitation of Finny can affect him in a way.

example, he and three others come to look at a tree, which is considered among

Gene knows he caused the fall and he tries to embrace this in his own way by admitting what he has done to Phineas. Gene says to him, “ ‘I was thinking about it… about you because- I was thinking about you and the accident because I caused it’ ”(Knowles 55). Gene admits to Finny he jounced the limb. This shows he can accept what he has done, but Finny rejects his confession, and puts the weight back on Gene. Finny fails to adapt while Gene continues to develop, causing Phineas to perish, while Gene thrives. In the article, “A Separate Peace”, it reads, “Despite an attempted confession by Gene, Finny seems obliviously unaware of Gene’s responsibility for his condition”(“A Separate Peace” 1). Finny refuses to understand what Gene has done. Gene knows and tries to confess but is denied an acceptance of apology from Finny, who does not believe Gene is to blame for his accident at all. Gene is entirely able to adapt but Phineas holds him back, because unlike Gene, Finny is unable to

A Separate Peace, which was written by John Knowles, has many themes. They are interconnected throughout the book. The most clearly portrayed theme is fear. It seems to be connected with the themes of friendship, jealousy, and war. As World War II was occurring, fear had taken over Gene's life through these various themes. When he visited Devon fifteen years after leaving the school, Gene claimed, "I had lived in fear while attending the school and I can now feel fear's echo" (Knowles 10). He felt like he had gained a separate peace after escaping from this fear.

The consistency of the novel characterizes the two young boys as individuals who resent each other's talents and flourish on each other's flaws. However, once Phineas is left with the burden of being crippled, Gene begins to live as Phineas so Phineas can continue to live within him. This could have been merely caused by Gene's overwhelming amount of guilt, or the malicious envy he drastically tries to mask behind the status of being Phineas' best friend. When Phineas dies, Knowles indicates the part of Gene died along with Phineas, as Gene states that it was "[his] own funeral" (Knowles 194). The death that occurs inside Gene was not himself, yet the part of him that absorbed the life of Phineas. This allows for Gene to be released from the jealousy that was burdening his heart. Despite this emotional and physical separation, Gene continues to live as Phineas would in the sense of letting life's "rocklike facts sift through and be accepted only a little at a time" in order to create a life that is a little less chaotic and a little more bearable (Knowles

In chapters six and seven of the novel A Separate Peace by John Knowles, The Devon River symbolizes the familiar; relaxing and playing with Gene in the summer, while the Naguamsett represents the unknown and undiscovered. As Gene recollects,

This piece is based off the central theme of A Separate Peace by John Knowles. It is a commentary on the current state of the world but at the same time, on a deeper level, it makes a statement about human nature. The central theme of A Separate Peace is about the inescapable nature of war. It defines war as a central part of human nature and society. War does not only refer to the political state of the world, but also can be broaden to wars between parties, people, and even one’s self.

Historical events can play an important role in a person's life.  In A Separate Peace, the whole atmosphere at the Devon School changed as World War II progressed.  The boys either eagerly awaited the draft, enlisted in the area of war they wanted, or did not want to go at all.  The students at the school created new activities for enjoyment since the customary past times could not be played due to a lack of materials.  When a friend "returns" from the war, the boys at Devon got a real sense of what the war was like.  The boys learned that going to war was not all fun and games like they had anticipated.  The influence World War II had on the characters in A

In the novel A Separate Peace by John Knowles, it relates to a complicated friendship of two young boys Gene and Phineas. Gene is jealous of Phineas’ achievements and lets his anger destroy their relationship. The boys at Devon in the summer of 1942 have to deal with the fear World War II brings. Each time the boys feel safe and peaceful, reality sets in and reminds them of the warfare around them. The boy’s mental stability is tested by the struggles of school and the causes of their actions. John Knowles’ A Separate Peace displays how fear, warfare, and friendship can affect a person’s innocence and youth.

In Gene's eyes, Phineas is shown as a godlike figure with his charming characteristics. With these characteristics he gets out of trouble from the faculty of Devon. For instance, when the Phineas decides to go to the beach, Gene agrees because he knew Phineas would swoon the faculty and escapes from his punishments. Gene states the Devon faculty "threw up its hands over Phineas, and so loosened its grip on all of us" (23). With his charismatic personality, he overcame any obstacles that came his way, including his tragic accident.