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John Knowles 'A Separate Peace': A Literary Analysis

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Tragedies are an essential part of current literature. Though they might be heartbreaking, tragedies teach their readers life lessons that are hard to find anywhere else. Besides the tragic storyline, tragedies incorporate elements of forgiveness, compassion, and blitheness. John Knowles teaches the readers those lessons with his acclaimed novel A Separate Peace, where he adds tragic elements to his story to add meaning to the novel. Various elements of tragedy are crucial to the plot of A Separate Peace by John Knowles; the struggle between good and evil, catharsis, and tragic waste all create a dramatic atmosphere that adds deeper meaning to the novel.
Gene’s interaction with Finny triggers an inner struggle within Gene where his paranoia …show more content…

Finny’s demise demonstrates that people’s death can be both beneficial and virulent to their loved ones’ well being. After Finny recovers from his initial injury, he plans to train Gene for the Olympics. In the process, Finny tells Gene about his conspiracy on the war. Gene, confused, asks Finny what makes him so special that he gets to know the truth about the war in the first place. In response, Finny claims, “Because I’ve suffered” (Knowles 116). Finny thinks he has suffered after falling from the tree and breaking his leg. After forcing Gene to do 30 chin-ups, Gene says, “Phineas I know had been even more startled than I to discover this bitterness in himself. Neither of us ever mentioned it again, and neither of us ever forgot that it was there” (Knowles 117). Gene explains that both Finny and himself eventually move on from Finny’s bitterness. Him and Finny have created a friendship where they can both rely on one another. This relationship is ruined as a result of Finny’s death, because Gene no longer has a person with a great level of trust like he used to have with Finny. Several months following Finny’s death, Gene decides to enlist in the army. As a resolution once and for all, Gene admits to himself the truth about that summer. He says, “All of them, all except Phineas, constructed at infinite cost to themselves these Maginot Lines against this enemy they thought they saw across the frontier, this enemy who never attacked that way––if he ever attacked at all; if he was indeed the enemy” (Knowles 204). Gene finally comes to terms with the reality of the situation. Gene explains that the enemy across the frontier, might not actually be the enemy at all. Gene believes that no one can be sure who is real enemy is. This is an analogy to Finny and the war, because Finny never had any enemies. His ability to overcome Finny’s death

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