Analysis Of A Separate Peace By John Knowles

himself. Gene explains, “ I spent as much time as I could alone in our room, trying to

The boys at the Devon school, in the novel A Separate Peace, written by John Knowles, are World War II influenced by making them mature and grow up more quickly than they would have had there not been a war. The war makes some boys stronger and more ready for whatever life would bring, while in others it disables them to the point that they cannot handle the demands of life. This novel shows a “coming-of age” story, especially with three boys. Gene starts out as a naïve and sensitive person but matures into a person more knowledgeable and capable of handling the challenges of life through his crisis experiences with of course, Phineas, Leper and, Brinker.

War is a destructive force whose nature is to destroy all things and change lives forever. It is a whirlpool that sucks everything in and is fueled by hatred and violence. Whether one is directly involved in the battlefield or waiting to see the outcome, war has the capacity to affect all people. It can harden one beyond their years and force them to grow, seeing conflicting sides of good and evil. A Separate Peace by John Knowles narrates the story of young boys growing up with World War II as the backdrop. The war impacts them dramatically and is constantly thought about as they are coming of the age since they will soon be enlisted. However, not only are they living during an era of war but are also struggling with the war inside of themselves as they search for the truth within. Knowles depicts the ability of war to affect teenage boys in Devon, an English preparatory school, and transform them from carefree boys to troubled young men in search of their own separate peace.

A Separate Peace “envy is ignorance; imitation is suicide” (Emerson 370). The author John Knowles, goes back to his old high school in Devon, New Hemisphere to find his peace. Gene’s characteristics in the novel shows that he is jealous, smart and conformed. A Separate Peace demonstrates how Gene’s jealously affects him, affects his friend and helps him find his peace. Gene’s envy and imitation of Finny affects him.

"Envy is ignorance; imitation is suicide" (Emerson 370). John Knowles wrote the novel A Separate Peace taking place in New Hampshire around the time of World War 11. Knowles follows two male best friends that go to the school Devon. Gene is one of the best friends who is unsure about himself and has low self-esteem. He is a conformist toward his best friend Finny, which leads to some complicated situations.

In John Knowles, A Separate Peace, the chapter starts off with Finny criticizing Gene’s clothes and talking about how messy he has made their room. The next day Brinker sprints into their room and is about to open his mouth about the war, but realizes Finny is there and decides it is probably best not to talk. Brinker tries to lighten up the mood in the room and joke about Finny’s injury, “‘You can’t get that cast wet, can you?”’(Knowles 107) Finny does not understand why he is trying to make jokes. It is not like he is disabled or anything. Gene tells Finny that he was planning on enlisting before he got here, but now the situation is different. The two continue to make jokes and laugh about the whole thing. Even though it is a little awkward Gene and Finny get through it, and they figure it all out. When they are walking to their first class, Finny notices the cold winter wind, “What I mean is, I love winter, and when you love something, then it loves you back, in whatever way it has to love”’(Knowles 111). Finny is just happy to be back at Devon, however, he most

For me, this moment—four years is a moment in history—was the war. The war was and is a reality for me. I still instinctively live and think in its atmosphere”(32). This quote made by Gene encapsulates the major role World War II plays in A Separate Peace. John Knowles, the author, utilizes the war as a spectacular backdrop for his novel. In fact, without World War II, this book would just be another story lost in the churn of the millions of novels published. A Separate Peace, which would lack an external conflict, have only a paucity of symbolisms and connections, and suffer from a lack of explanation for many of the character’s actions, would need to be completely rewritten or scratched altogether.

Best friends share a special bond. The bond of friendship is a strong bond, and it is often unbreakable. Best friends, by definition, are supportive and loving toward each other no matter the circumstance. What happens, though, when one friend begins to grow jealous of the other? Does the friendship persevere or does the friendship fall apart? In A Separate Peace by John Knowles, two best friends appear to have this unbreakable bond of friendship . Finny and Gene are two boys trying to survive their teenage years at The Devon School. The two are best friends until the unthinkable happens. Gene begins to grow jealous and envious towards Finny. The jealousy and envy take Gene to a dark place he has never imagined.. He does something that he can

As Stephen King once said, “Books and movies are like apples and oranges. They both are fruit, but taste completely different.” John Knowles’ novel A Separate Peace which is also a movie by Peter Yates, both have the same theme and plot, however, there are minor adaptations that are made to the movie which fail to capture the nature of the characters. A Separate Peace is set at a boys’ boarding school in New Hampshire during World War II. It is the story of Gene Forrester, and his confused feelings of admiration and envy that he holds for his roommate and best friend, Phineas. The movie does not get into deeper issues, which makes the movie less captivating than the novel. The movie does not provide a great insight of the character’s thoughts and it excludes a number of events which occur in the novel.

“It is better to have an enemy who honestly says they hate you, than a friend who is petting you down secretly”-Unknown. While this is true, is a person who puts you down secretly even considered a friend? Not according to Webster’s New World Dictionary and Thesaurus’s definition of friend, “a supporter or an ally” and Dictionary.com’s definition of friendship, “a state of mutual trust and support between allies”. In A Separate Peace, by John Knowles, Gene, the narrator puts his “friend” Finny down so is their relationship really classified as friendship? No, Gene and Finny are not friends because Gene purposely made Finny fall out of the tree, their relationship is considered rivalry, and Gene doesn’t support Finny.

A Separate Peace, written by John Knowles, tells a story narrated by the main character Gene Forrester who revisits his boarding school called Devon in New Hampshire and uncovers the emotions surrounding that place. As he recalls events from his childhood, taking place during World War 2, he tells the story of him and his friend named Phineas, or Finny. Memories unfold from the past and Gene’s narration shows his hidden thoughts behind their friendship. The author uses several literary techniques to give clues as to why Gene put Finny to harm by making Finny fall off a limb of a tree and what conflicts their friendship lead to afterward. Despite the usual trust in a familiar friendship, using figurative language to demonstrate Gene’s inner

In the fictional novel, A Separate Peace, by John Knowles,the writer describes how the war slowly became the most important thing at Devon School. Throughout the book several aspects change the characters’ way of life, but the main aspect is war. The war gradually dominates life at Devon in ways such as through character, actions, and thoughts.

In A Separate Peace by John Knowles, Gene Forrester, the main character, struggles with copious moral dilemmas while living at a boarding school, named Devon. The author portrays Gene as an introverted intellectual, who is shielded from the reality of World War II. As a result of this “separate peace”, he mainly struggles with his self-integrity and, consequently, feels much envy and jealousy towards his classmates at Devon. By examining Gene’s antagonistic behavior towards his peers, it is evident that personal insecurities can interfere with the integrity of every relationship.

In the beginning of the novel, when Gene comes back to Devon he revisits his museum which contains the most important moments from his past. In the museum of Gene there might be “exhibits” for events such as blitzball, the Super Suicide Society of the Summer Session, Phineas falling out of the tree, Gene visiting Phineas’s house in Boston, Phineas’s return to Devon, the investigation of Phineas’s accident, Phineas falling down the stairs, Phineas dying, Leper going crazy, Gene training for the Olympics, Gene leaving after graduation, and Gene not crying at Phineas’s memorial service. It is important for him to revisit these memories because he needs to forgive himself for his past deeds and remember the good times he had at Devon. He needs

In the novel A Separate Peace, by John Knowles, it is evident that Gene purposely jounced the limb so Phineas would fall off. Before the incident occurred, Gene thinks, “Finny had deliberately set out to wreck my studies” (53). Gene thought that he and Phineas had a rivalry going on when they decide to go to the tree. He seems to envy Finny about how good of an athlete and how good of a person he is and he thinks that Finny envies him for his academics. During the incident, Gene describes how he “Holding firmly to the trunk, I took a step toward him, and then my knees bent and I jounced the limb” (60). Gene describes how he purposely jounced the limb to make Phineas fall. Later, when Gene visits Finny in the hospital, he feels guilty that he