Category: A Separate Peace

There are people from all over the world who live their life entirely in denial, unable to see what is right in front of them. They try to keep their innocence for their whole lives in order to not see the real world around them. In John Knowles’s novel, A Separate Peace, one of the main characters, Finny, pursues his life goals and dreams by putting up a curtain for himself, so that it is impossible for him to see the real world. Throughout the book, Knowles shows how people attempt to keep their innocence, in order to evade the pain that might come without it.

First and foremost, Finny is a sensitive person, and he does everything he can to hide things from himself, so he doesn’t end up getting hurt. One of these things is the war. WWII is the center of everyone’s life at the time, yet Finny is desperate to find a way to avoid uncovering the truth about it. When Finny returns to Devon with a cast and crutches, he says to Gene, “‘Don’t be a sap… there isn’t any war’” (Knowles 115). He then goes on to explain his conspiracy of the fat old men who are doing this so the younger men don’t get too out of hand. Finny has himself convinced that if he just doesn’t admit to himself the war is going on, he won’t have to leave his place of security, where he can never get hurt. If he ever does let himself realize the things he doesn’t want to believe, the pain will be even more unbearable then when he fell from the tree. But this pain is preventable, so he must keep his facade up. The reason he has made this conspiracy about the war is finally revealed to Gene when he says, “‘Why do you think I kept saying there wasn’t any war all winter? I was going to keep on saying it until two seconds after I got a letter from Ottawa or Chungking or some place saying, ‘Yes you can enlist with us,’’” (Knowles 190). At this moment, Finny is brought harshly back to reality. His innocence is gone now since he is letting himself realize and encounter the pain that comes with letting his front down. He hid the entire war from himself just in case he never got one of those letters back saying he could enlist. Finny’s innocence is taken away from him when he is forced to see the cruel reality of the war, and without this innocence he is also forced to endure the pain that comes without having it.

One of the most painful experiences is realizing the betrayal of a friend. This is something Finny had to deal with after shattering his leg. Gene and Finny are inseparable, and losing Gene is so scary to Finny that he shields himself from the fact that Gene played a big part in his injury. Gene is full of guilt, so he admits the truth while visiting Finny by saying, “‘I deliberately jounced the limb so you would fall off,’” (Knowles 70). Finny replies to Gene by only saying, “‘Of course you didn’t,’” (Knowles 70). Even after the blatant comment telling him the truth, Finny can’t make himself believe such a thing. If he admits to himself what Gene said is true, he would lose his best friend. With all of the trauma he has had to deal with, Finny doesn’t think it’s possible for him to lose his friend on top of all that. Other people at the Devon school have seemed to realize how Gene caused Finny to fall off of the tree. Brinker Hadley calls a meeting in the middle of the night, and tries to force Finny to see the truth of the situation. After hearing what Brinker says, Finny replies with, “‘I just don’t care. Never mind,’” (Knowles 176). Even with multiple people trying to make him see what really happened that day on the tree, Finny is still staying in denial, afraid of what might happen if he believed what everyone around him is saying. It takes him another fall (down the marble staircase this time) to really see the truth. With another fracture in his leg, Gene decides to pay him a visit in the infirmary. When Finny catches sight of Gene hanging by the window, he yells, “‘You want to break something else in me! Is that why you’re here!’” (Knowles 184) I think this is the point in A Separate Peace, where Finny loses the innocence he’s had for the entirety of the book. He isn’t in denial anymore, but he is in shock. The fact that his best friend was capable of doing something like that is really making him question everything. Finny doesn’t know how to handle himself now that he is harshly brought back to reality.

Overall, Finny’s evasion of pain and the truth is very apparent throughout the book, A Separate Peace. Since Finny is already in a lot of pain from his past traumas, he decides to hide what is really going on so he won’t have to feel the pain that it will cause. The author, John Knowles, is showing the readers that people tend to feel the need to run from the pain instead of facing it by keeping the innocence they’ve had since childhood.

Realizing betrayal can be one of the hardest things for a person to do. People are sensitive and often attempt to hide things from themselves and avoid uncovering the truth about those situations in order to evade the pain that comes with that recognition.

In John Knowles’ novel A Separate Peace an inherent flaw of human nature causes Gene to subconsciously jounce the limb of a tree on which Finny stands. This event spirals into a never-ending trauma for Finny, of which he attempts to make the best of both physically and emotionally, continuing to see only the good in all people. Finny’s deliberate blindness to realize Gene’s wrongdoing serves as a shield from the immense pain Finny knows he must experience. Although Finny’s loss of innocence is fomented by the acceptance of the brutal reality of the war, ultimately both Gene and Finny’s loss of innocence comes with the recognition of Gene’s betrayal, personal war, and secret resentment discovered in opposition to Finny’s separate peace and unconditional love. Finny’s desperate attempts to turn his back to the pain of his inability to enlist in the war cause Finny’s creation of a separate peace where the war is a thing of the imagination. He is convinced that if he believes it enough he will not only be able to secure his homeostasis of security and peace within his small secluded world but also succeed to pull Gene into that sheltered world with him. Behavior with the understanding and love Gene most definitely doesn’t deserve. Finny excels in controlling his emotions and using his uncertainty to his advantage.

When Leper comes in and comments that the two figures on the tree had been like an engine with two pistons, Finny finally comes to grasp the extent of Gene’s malevolence and resentment. “Phineas had gotten up unnoticed from his chair. ‘I don’t care,’ he interrupted in an even voice…he shook his head sharply, closing his eyes, and then he turned to regard me with a handsome mask of a face… ‘You get the rest of the facts, Brinker!’” (176-77). Here Phineas realizes that he had known all along but had purposely not wanted to lose Gene’s friendship, no matter how one-sided. Because Finny loved Gene even though he hurt him, his acceptance of Gene’s actions is especially painful. In his acceptance of Gene’s betrayal Finny loses innocence but in turn matures with the liberation of the truth. With the mutual recognition of the differing friendship values inherently present in each boy, conflict is inevitable and innocence is lost as Gene’s betrayal, personal war, and secret resentment meet Finny’s ever-separate peace and unconditional love.

Human nature harbors a monster that it cannot deny, and that is the demon of jealousy. Even though there is competition between even the closest of friends, none are this deeply rooted in evil. Finny loses innocence when he comes to face the reality of the war, but the ultimate loss of innocence in both boys occurs when they realize the other’s role in each of their downfalls.

Author John Knowles uses the narrator’s point of view to describe the way he feels about his friend. The novel by John Knowles A Separate Peace shows the readers a complicated relationship between two friends and how their relationship is affected due to envy. By applying psychological criticism to A Separate Peace by John Knowles, the reader can understand the theme of jealousy that is faced between friends and how it can lead to bad decisions in life. It tells about the way behavior influences our minds and made us think in different ways.

This novel was written in 1959 about two young friends growing up during World War Two. This novel takes place in Devon, a boarding school in New Hampshire, in which narrator Gene Forrester is the main character and his best friend is Phineas (Finny). The story starts as Gene being an adult and visiting Devon as an adult and he goes around the campus on significant landmarks that reflect the things that happened 15 years earlier. His flashback begins in 1942 when he came to attend a summer school at the age of sixteen and his roommate was Finny who was an extraordinary person full of energy. Finny invented many new games to keep them all busy because they were too young to be drafted in the war so they made a secret society known as the Super Suicide Society of the Summer Session. To be accepted into that society they have to climb up a tree near the cliff and jump into the ocean far enough to safely land in the water. Gene maintained the appearance of a friend when the hatred was growing inside him.

Finny kept Gene busy with these activities and he started to feel as if Finny was trying to sabotage him and want him to get bad grades as he states: “Finny had deliberately set out to wreck my studies.”(Knowles) But soon he realized that he was wrong and this hatred is one-sided so he accompanied Finny to the tree for their jumping ritual. They both climb the tree and Gene’s knee got bent that moved the branch and Finny fell off and nobody blamed Gene for anything. Finny’s athletic career was over and Gene felt the guilt and on holidays went to see him at his house to admit his fault. Finny never thought that Gene could do anything to hurt him so he did not accept the fact he did it and forgets everything. Some students are planning to be drafted while Finny is preparing Gene for the Olympics of 1944 in his place, Leper their friend is mentally damaged due to taking part in the war. Brinker, their other classmate, meets up with everyone, including two of them to talk about his suspicion on Finny’s fall and gets to know that Gene did it on purpose he goes out in anger and falls again and damaged his leg again but this time when he goes for surgery he dies.

Using the psychological theory on A Separate Peace reveals many aspects of the book that describes the different states of minds, emotions and the psychology of the characters. The readers came to know about the psychological state of Gene and the internal conflict going on inside his mind that made him violent towards everyone and most of the time he uses violence to solve his problems. Gene could’ve handled the hatred inside him easily but he couldn’t control the anger and hatred inside him that by shaking the tree caused Phineas to lose his career as an athlete as Gene explains him falling: “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.” This shows that Gene had difficulty in controlling his emotions and feelings to such an extent that he can hurt someone. According to psychoanalysis, people have an unconscious part that holds all the negative emotions and the things that they never know they can do until they unconsciously do it.

The psychological lens portrays the process of self-discovery in which a person goes through a change or mend his path towards a single way. Similar to the other adolescents Gene went through his stages of consciousness and then gets control of his freedom as the ego inside, he moves out of his unconsciousness and he can do whatever he desires. A lot of teens spend their summer relaxed with no stress, but he faced the tension of war surrounding him and his friends and everyone going away to fight while he stayed behind hoping for them to return the same way they were. Psychology plays an important role in shaping a character and everyone is different in their own way.

Leper was Gene’s friend and he went through World War two terrors because he took part in it and saw horrific deaths and faced all the terrible events of the war. As stated by Gene: “ ‘I escaped!’ the word surging out in a voice and intensity that was not Leper’s. His face was furious, but his eyes denied the fury; instead, they saw it before them. They were filled with terror.” (Knowles) Leper couldn’t stay there and he escaped from the army because his head started to hurt and he felt as if he was still at war even after he went home. He went into a state of shock and it was hard for him to recover.

Phineas himself went through a hard time when he falls down the tree and felt as if everything inside him was broken and he cannot be himself again and felt as if he would never be able to walk and wondered why this all happened to him. How suddenly life changes his ego always made him a person who always felt like he had all and acted as a master even though he did not want to be one, but everyone looked up to him and listened to him because he was good with words. He never thought that the person he considers his best friend will be his murderer covering himself to hide his identity which will come in front of him, but he will deny it many times as he does not want to think that Gene would do something like that to him. He wants to search good in people, but sometimes the closest ones are the enemies waiting for the right opportunity to break him in pieces from which he could not recover. He trusted Gene to the extent that when Gene went to confess his fault he did not believe him. Finny never wanted anyone to suffer and he was always trying to make the environment less tense by making new games for the students and trying to make everyone happy.

The Id, Ego, and Superego are the three components of the human personality and psyche. These three components are critical in this novel and the key concepts of primal fear and repression in the text are a part of the psychological lens. According to Freud, the id is the component the includes the human psyche in control of an entirely unconscious state of mind and is not affected by reality, logic and everyday life. The id is driven by the principle of pleasure. It also contains the biological components present at birth. It does not change with experience or time as it is not in touch with the external world. The ego is “that part of the id that which has been modified by the direct influence of the external world.” (Freud) It is the decision-making component of personality and develops with time and experience that we face in our life. The ego works according to reality by satisfying the demand of id and compromising with the society and taking the decision according to the situation. The ego also looks for pleasure but comes with solutions to obtain it realistic without getting hurt in the process. The superego incorporates all the morals and values of society and absorbs what we see our elders doing and came to know about different traditions. The superego contains two systems: the conscience and the ideal self. The conscience can punish the ego by the feelings of guilt and the ideal self is an imaginary picture of how you ought to be and how to treat others.

Everyday young adults are becoming mature due to the different experiences they go through. Some moments in these teens’ lives, they will need to take responsibility for their own mistakes. In the novel, A Separate Peace by John Knowles shows Gene not accepting not taking responsibility for his actions which leads to other consequences. When he finally becomes fully mature it was too late. Also, the movie, The Lion King produced by Don Hahn, is a story of Simba figuring out how who he is and his role in the pride. However, the digital article, “Teen Brain: Behavior, Problem Solving, and Decision Making” by the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, claims why considering the consequences of your actions is better than accepting the mistake once it has been completed. Teens should accept responsibility for their actions because it shows how they are mature. Although, it is better to consider the consequences of those actions before doing it.

There are many qualities that describe mature teens. A quality in mature teens is being able to accept responsibility for their actions. For example, when Finny proposes a double jump with Gene, Gene “ 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.” (Knowles 28). After, Gene does not confess that he made Finny fall and he keeps this burden throughout the whole story. Knowles gives Gene a childlike characteristic because he refuses that he makes Finny fall. Until teens take ownership of their actions they will be mature. Furthermore, Gene eventually admits to Finny that he is the cause of Finny’s injury. The text states, Finny outburst in refusal and “Phineas had gotten up unnoticed from his chair. ‘I don’t care,’ he interrupted in an even voice, so full of richness that it overrode all the others… The excellent exterior acoustics recorded his rushing steps and the quick rapping of his cane along the corridor and on the first steps of the marble stairway. Then these separate sounds collided into the general tumult of his body falling clumsily down the white marble stairs.” (Knowles, 97). Maturity is knowing when to respond, according to the situation. If Gene had admitted earlier, Finny would have not tumbled down the stairs and died. Gene’s foolishness of not owning up to his behavior is a sign of juvenile. Therefore, teens that cough up their mistakes show early signs of maturity.

While it is a genuine quality to take responsibility for your actions, it is more beneficial if teens would think about their actions before doing which shows a more prominent maturity. The digital article, “Teen Brain: Behavior, Problem Solving, and Decision Making” by The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, indicates the science of teens maturing. For example, it states, “Pictures of the brain in action show that adolescents’ brains work differently than adults when they make decisions or solve problems. Their actions are guided more by the emotional and reactive amygdala and less by the thoughtful, logical frontal cortex.”(The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry). Amygdala is a region in the brain that is responsible for immediate reactions. Also, the frontal cortex the area of the brain that controls reasoning and helps us think before we act develops later. The quality to think before acting is a trait that Gene had not developed. Moreover, adolescents respond more recklessly than adults who rationalize their actions when they make decisions. As seen in the article it is written, “ Based on the stage of their brain development, adolescents are more likely to: get into accidents of all kinds… engage in dangerous or risky behavior”(The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry). In other words, the process of teens becoming mature, they are expected to get themselves into casualties. This can be seen with Gene when he keeps hold of his burden, which is immature. Therefore, if teens would consider their actions before doing it shows a more significant matureness.

Understanding the causes of teen maturity can be complex. Young teens will never learn to think before they act until they get older. In the movie, Lion King produced by Don Hahn is about a lion cub, Simba, that does not go back home after he made a mistake. Particularly, Simba was told not to go to the forbidden area from his father, Mufasa. But, Simba’s reckless behavior leads him to the prohibited land and gets himself into trouble. Mufasa had to save Simba and to do so Mufasa dies, Simba does not return home because he was ashamed of himself. Similarly, the behavior of Simba is parallel to Gene’s behavior since they both were running away from their mistakes. Furthermore, young teens tend to get in a lot of trouble and those that do not own up to their mistakes show immaturity. Also, later in the movie, Simba grows up and meets his father’s ghost from the clouds. Mufasa reminds Simba “You have forgotten who you are, and so forgotten me. Look inside yourself, Simba? You are more than what you have become” (Hahn). Clearly, Mufasa knows that Simba has been running away from his mistake and wants Simba to be responsible for his actions since Simba has grown so much since the accident. So, Simba does go back to his home and takes the throne and learns that he was not the cause of his father’s death. To sum it up, teens that take responsibility for their actions show they are maturing.

In conclusion, early signs of maturity in teens is when they take responsibility for their actions. In my life, I have always wanted to be considered mature and older. But, as I get older I’m realizing that there are more responsibilities for adults and you need to take responsibility for your actions. Right now the best way for me to show that I am mature is to own up to my reckless mistakes and consider the consequences before doing so. Also, I should not have the same qualities as Gene’s so I can show that I have grown. To sum it up, teens should accept responsibility for their actions, although, it is better to consider the consequences of those actions to show they have matured.

A Separate Peace is a novel that is a great example of life through WWII. A separate peace follows two main characters: Gene and Finny. Gene possesses a humble yet intellectual character while Finny carries himself with much confidence. The two of them become good friends starting in the summer of 1942. Gene soon becomes jealous of Finny’s characteristics and is jealous of all that he does. Finny is more of a “leader” while Gene is the silent “follower.”

Their friendship takes a turn when an activity that they did regularly for fun, jumping from a tree into the accompanying river, becomes a disaster. While Finny is at the end of the branch ready to jump into the river, Gene shakes the branch causing Finny to fall and snap his leg, ending his athletic career. Throughout the novel, it is unclear whether this act was purposeful or a mere accident, until Gene confesses to Finny that it was on purpose when visiting Finny on his way home. Finny is oblivious and decided not to belive this.

Gene ends up continuing on with school, where he becomes assistant manager of the crew team but eventually quits to do a fight with manager and quits. Many boys at Devon School are waiting on the day that they can enlist themselves in the war. Brinker Hadley, an attendant at Devon school, and Gene suggest enlisting together. They cancel these plans once they realize Finny has returned to school. Finny suggests Gene take over his sports roles but Gene says sports aren’t important at the moment because of the upcoming war, which Finny declares is just a “conspiracy.” (Knowles, Ch. 8)

Gene eventually agrees to take over Finny’s athletic positions after finding out that Finny had planned to participate in the 1944 olympics. As enlistment time approaches, many boys are awestruck when the news spread that Leper Lepellier was first to enlist. Leper sends Gene a telegram saying that he needs help. Gene travels to Vermont, Leper’s home, and realizes that Leper has gone somewhat insane. Leper tells Gene that he the details about what happened between Gene and Finny that summer. (Knowles, ch. 10)

Brinker creates an after school club which questions the two boys about the summer incident out of his own suspicion. They both conclude that they can not remember full details about the incident when asked. Leper than comes into the room to testify against Gener. Finny rushes out of the room, falls down the stairs, and breaks his leg once again. (Knowles, ch. 12)

Gene goes to visit Finny at the hospital but is not accepted. Gener falls asleep on a nearby football field and goes back the next day to apologize and take full responsibility for his actions and the two boys makeup. Later, when the doctor is performing an operation on Finny’s leg to repair it, bone marrow escaped and made its way into Finny’s heart, killing him. Once Gene hears the news, he believes that he will always be a part of Finny. Once the other boys at Devon School graduate, they continue their lives in the military. (Knowles, ch. 12)

This novel also shows us some of the effects that the war had on school aged boys during the pre-enlistment period. The biggest effect I saw that the war had on a character was Leper. A once timid, shy, underwhelming boy suddenly decided that he would enlist in the war. Leper’s character soon transforms into more of a hard-hearted type. He has come out of his shell slightly, and is much more present than before.

Finny also expressed a strange idea that the war was just a conspiracy. We later find out that he was only saying this out of anger of not being a able to enlist. We are led to believe that Finny truely thinks the war is a hoax until he comes out as saying: ‘Why do you think I kept saying there wasn’t any war all winter? I was going to keep saying it until two seconds after I got a letter from Ottawa or Chungking or some place saying ‘Yes, you can enlist with us’ ‘(190).

It is made obvious that Brinker is afraid of the war. Brinker constantly slanders the war because of his fear of fighting. He develops a hatred towards his father and his idea of the war. (Knowles, p. 201). Brinker believes that he should have no obligation to participate in the war since his father’s generation was the main cause of the war.

A Separate Peace, written by John Knowles, is a novel that explores the mind of a boy, Gene Forrester, during World War II. Gene has a friend, Finny, whom Gene has a very complicated relationship with. They both attend the prestigious Devon School, which is a boarding school in New Hampshire. This essay will explore the relationship between the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil in the biblical Garden of Eden and the tree by the ricer at the Devon School in A Separate Peace and the plethora of symbolism that can be found throughout the novel.

The tree by the river at the Devon School is very symbolic in reference to the biblical Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. The prestigious Devon School represents The Garden of Eden, which implies that Finny and Gene are somewhat in a state of grace. When they see the tree by the river, they are tempted to jump off it, such as Adam and Eve were tempted by Satan to eat the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Gene and Finny fall from innocence, or a state of grace, and “renounce the Eden-like summer peace of Devon” when they jump off the tree at the Devon School (Wolfe 34). Gene has the “sensation that [he] was throwing [his] life away” (Knowles 17). Adam and Eve threw away their eternal life with Yahweh when they ate off the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and fell from grace. Jumping off the tree by the river initiates the preparation for the “hell” of World War II for Gene and Finny—even though Finny is not able to participate in the war—just as Adam and Eve’s falling from grace initiates their preparation for the hellish sinful world outside of the immaculate Garden of Eden. This connection between Gene and Finny’s jump from the tree and Adam and Eve’s falling from grace implies that A Separate Peace is not a novel of sin instead of redemption.

In A Separate Peace, John Knowles, the author, uses symbolism throughout all places of the novel. Knowles uses symbolism in the names of his main characters: Gene Forrester and Finny. The name Gene can be a shortened version of Eugene, which implies “that the bearer of the name is genetically clean and noble, or at least fortunate in health and antecedents” (Bryant 42). Gene is a proud symbol of his name as he is an intelligent, healthy, athletic, and caring adolescent boy. Gene’s last name Forrester can be traced back to the Middle Ages, and his last name is “from the occupation or office of a forester, the warden whose duty it was to protect the woods of a lord. The officer was an enforcer, keeper, and custodian” (Bryant 43). Just as a forester keeps the woods, Gene “keeps” the secrets of his jouncing of the limb and of Finny’s record-breaking swim. Finny also contains elements of symbolism in his name, such as Gene contained symbolism. Finny’s real name Phineas also contains symbolism because it can be referred to the biblical Phinehas, who was “the youngest son of Eli, a rebellious youth who was a rule breaker” (Bryant 45). Throughout the novel, Phineas is constantly committing mischievous acts although he is not always disciplined for the acts. These mischievous acts include wearing his school tie as a belt, forming “The Super Suicide Society of the Summer Session”, and sneaking out to the beach (Knowles 31). Phineas is a clear symbol of Phinehas, the son of Eli.ing

This essay has touched only the surface of the abundance of symbolism that is found throughout the novel. This essay explored the relationship between the biblical Garden of Eden and the tree by the river at the Devon School. The essay has also analyzed the symbolism in the names of the two most important characters in the novel.

“This time he wasn’t going to get away with it. I could feel myself becoming unexpectedly excited at that’ (Knowles 27). Gene lacks self-confidence and is an introvert and a follower. He does not have his best friend Phineas’ witty personality, athleticism, and leadership traits. Researching adolescent ego is important to the character development of Gene, a character in A Separate Peace. In Knowles’ novel A Separate Peace understanding Gene’s adolescent ego, his friendships, and environment are important to the growth and maturity of his character.

During adolescent development, people grow more independent. In an article about the link between academic social environments and ego-identity formation a psychologist, Kroger, states that ‘Young people experience periods of exploration where they must choose for themselves–in accordance with their own interests, goals, talents, and the standards of their social milieu–the childhood identifications they wish to adopt and those they prefer to discard'(qtd. in Kroger 5). In A Separate Peace, Gene is 16 years old and is going through a period of exploration. From the beginning of the novel, the reader can infer that Gene is experiencing self-worth issues and feels inferior to his best friend, Phineas. In an article from The Journal of Humanistic Counseling Vernon states that ‘ During adolescence, teenagers develop emotional independence and are working at achieving socially responsible behavior’ (qtd. in Vernon 6). Gene grows as a character throughout the novel and experiences pain when his best friend Finny dies. Gene is overcome with guilt, and by the end of the story feels responsible for Finny’s death and blames himself. Finny’s forgiveness and Gene’s apology to Finny makes it possible for Gene to grow and come to the realization that he was self-centered and caused pain to his best friend.

When maturing from a teenager to an adult, there are changes in relationships with family, friends, and classmates. As Gene and Finny are maturing, their relationship is continuously evolving. Gene is constantly with his best friend Finny and feels obligated to do the things Finny wants to do. For instance, Gene jumps out of the tree even though he does not want to. It is important for teenagers to have individual goals and supportive people during this period of constant change. Gerald R. Adams talking about ego-identity and academic success states that ‘It is imperative for adolescents to be surrounded by individuals who offer support for their process of exploration and affirmation for their chosen identity commitments’ ( qtd. In Matheis, Adams 7). In the novel Brinker Hadley, one of Finny and Gene’s classmates is constantly manipulating Finny of Gene’s loyalty and puts him on trial late at night in the Assembly Room. The trial in the assembly room becomes so infuriating to Finny it leads to him falling down the stairs and ultimately to his death. Gene does not have supportive relationships at Devon. Brinker is eager to find out about what happened the night Finny broke his leg, Leper testifies against gene in the assembly room, and Gene feels so guilty in his relationship with Finny. The friendship between Gene and Phineas has life long effects.

Erik Erikson was a German-American developmental Psychologist that stated: ‘A socially supportive environment is the basis for success and happiness’ ( qtd. in Erikson 6). Devon School is an elite boy’s prep school where wealthy families send their kids to get the best education. At Devon, the boys are all in the same social class and are sheltered from what is going on in the war. A socially supportive school atmosphere will promote positive academic and social outcomes in young people. In an article about Adolescent Psychology, the author William A. Darity states that “ Cognitive abilities are enhanced in settings in which they feel comfortable in performing cognitive tasks” (Darity 13). At Devon, the boys are well disciplined limiting shortened attention spans and increased focus. In an article about Adolescent Academic Achievement the authors state “ With increasing ego development, adolescents demonstrated increased internal academic locus of control” ( Bursik Krisanne Martin 1). At Devon, Gene is not worried about being drafted for the war allowing him to focus on his academics. Finny was Gene’s biggest supporter even after his accident. Finny pushed Gene to the height of his athleticism and never stopped believing in him. It took Gene time to mature in order to appreciate how Devon formed him and made him a well-rounded person.

Understanding Gene’s adolescent ego, his friendships, and his environment are important to the maturity of his character. In A Separate Peace, Gene is going through a period of exploration. The people Gene surrounds himself with influences his actions and decisions. At the end of the novel, Gene comes to terms with his actions and is no longer an adolescent but an adult. The environment at Devon also impacts Gene. By the end of the book, Gene matures and appreciates Phineas and Devon’s influence.

War. When the word is said, what immediately comes to one’s mind is a battlefield; blaring guns, generals screaming orders as planes roar overhead, with soldiers watching as their comrades have unimaginably gruesome deaths. The same is expected for a novel about war. The main character is enlisted and goes through all of the aforementioned things and then some. However, one book does not fit under this stereotype. Even though a huge theme in this novel is war, not a single gun is fired throughout the entire story. Not only that, but the main character does not share his time in the war until the last few pages of the book. This is because the novel accurately depicts the effects of an actual war instead of a romanticized version of one. By showing the impact of war on his characters, John Knowles uses his novel, A Separate Peace, to reveal how Americans reacted to World War II.

As one goes through life, their opinion on things change a great deal. For example, one month one might love the color pink, and then the next month the same person can’t stand it. This drastic change in opinion happened during both the war in A Separate Peace and World War II. While the second world war was taking place, everyone in America contributed to the war. “Americans focused their lives on the war,” says Carl and Dorothy Schneider. Patriotism took over the country. Americans either enlisted or helped the war effort from their homes; there was no in between. Over five million Americans fought from within their own walls whenever they had time. Volunteers were everywhere, from chipping in and helping prepare for air raids, to learning how to apply first aid, to watching for enemy planes (Schneider and Schneider). The thought that one either contributed to the war with all of one’s might or they weren’t a part of the country was not only popular in America. This belief is also beloved in the best-seller, A Separate Peace, when the war is just starting. In the beginning of A Separate Peace, the characters are all for war, believing that anyone who didn’t enlist is basically an unpatriotic bum. One of the characters even states, “Everybody in this place is either draft-dodging kraut or… I’m giving it up, I’m going to enlist. Tomorrow’ (Knowles 100). Some of the other characters in the novel enlist as well, and most of those who don’t enlist planned on enlisting. With all of this patriotism and nationalism going on, It is rare to hear of someone who didn’t somehow take part in the war effort in A Separate Peace and America. However, in both cases, it didn’t last. The very same people who muscled the effort towards the war now went against everything it stood for. At first, the popularity of volunteering “dwindled or died a natural death” (Schneider and Schneider). However, as more time passed, some people opposed the idea of the U.S. being a part of the war. This event in the novel also coordinated with the views of the people in John Knowles’ book. For example, in A Separate Peace, Brinker, the character with the most love for the war, now despises it. He even says, “‘Left out! He and his crowd are responsible for it! And we’re going to fight it!” (Knowles 201). Only a few months after the war is fully fired up, Brinker now thinks that the old men and politicians who started it should go into battle, which is the complete opposite from his previous belief of everyone fighting in it. Just like someone loving the color pink to hating it the next minute, both the novel and history showed that romanticizing war and showing affection for it went from being extremely popular to being something that one was ostracized for doing.

Even though the public’s opinion on war changed, one thing that never changed was the after-effects of war-related trauma for the American soldiers. John Knowles uses the impact of war on his characters to show one last thing to show how Americans in the real world reacted to World War II, and that is the change of setting from before to war to during. In the real world, American soldiers reacted very badly to the poor environment that the battlefront provided. These soldiers survived thousands of misfortunes while serving time in the army. From bomb attacks to gun battles to suicide bombers, one would have to look on a considerably bright side to think that these men could get off perfectly fine. Sadly, there is no silver lining for the soldiers of World War Two. Many of the enlisted got medically discharged after PTSD became apparent. Soldiers suffered from palpitations, shaky hands, and extreme cases of anxiety. This intense condition forbids the sufferer to calm down and let go of their feeling of being in imminent danger (Was This Muslim going). The after-effects from the horrible treatment of combatants that is shown in in A Separate Peace is almost identical to the real-life symptoms. For instance, when Elwin Lepellier, also known as Leper, is describing his life during war, he says, “ Because they turned everything inside out. I couldn’t sleep in bed, I had to sleep everywhere else. Everything began to be inside out. And the man next to me at night, coughing himself inside out. That was when things begin to change” (Knowles 150). This quote reveals the parallelism between what the Americans experienced in World War II and what the characters experienced when going into war. In both, the soldiers faced such a treacherous and hectic lifestyle, that it really affected them mentally. Not only that, but Knowles also shows how the actual soldiers have to go through life with their symptoms of PTSD. As mentioned above, the symptoms of this disorder were very bad. Knowles shows this by having Leper describe what having PTSD feels like for him. He states that one day, after becoming fed up with never being able to sleep and being so far from home, Leper begins hallucinating. He sees a man’s face turn into a woman’s (Knowles 150). Just like the American soldiers, Leper becomes extremely anxious, yelling and screaming after his PTSD strikes. “I started to yell for everybody, I began to yell so that everyone would see it too, I didn’t want to be the only one to see the thing like that, I yelled louder and louder to make sure everyone within reach of my voice would hear…” (Knowles 150). Knowles made sure that his war novel accurately portrayed what the real-life soldiers went through by showing the horrible things that happened to the soldiers in World War Two.When authors write about history, It is a known fact that they must be describing the topic perfectly. Sadly, this does not usually happen in most novels. However, John Knowles accurately portrays World War II and its effect on Americans perfectly. He shows how opinions of the second World War went from supporting it to disliking it through his characters. Furthermore, Knowles reveals the terrifying effects that war had on the soldiers through his characters. By doing all of this and more, it is no wonder critics claim that this book gives such a realistic twist on a war novel.

This summer all incoming freshmen were asked to read the book “A Separate Peace,” by John Knowles. Although this book would not be a book of my choice I did enjoy reading it for the interestingly developed plot, and intriguing characters that deal with real-life problems. The main character Gene goes through a period where his jealousy of his best friend drives Gene to do things he never thought he would be doing. ‘A Separate Peace,’ has many twists and turns that result in interesting reactions from readers of vast age differences.

I was very surprised by the main character Gene and his outlook on life. Gene, being best friends with one of the most popular and well-liked students Phineas, found it hard to contain his jealousy. One day, Gene lashed out and shook a branch of a tree that Phineas was standing on. This resulted in Phineas tumbling into the water at uncontrollable speeds and never being able to play sports again. This part of the book caused me to feel both surprised at Gene and confused about why Gene would do such a thing to his best friend. It took me a moment to realize that Gene may not have understood what he was doing, and most likely was not aware that Phineas would end up shattering his leg. On the other hand, the boys were not supposed to be on the tree anyway, and this adventure was Phineas’ idea. Therefore, the injury was not fully Gene’s fault. Furthermore, the book contains many pieces of figurative language as shown on page 12 when stating, “Someday the Dean would probably live entirely encased in a house of glass and be as happy as a sandpiper” (Knowles.) This metaphor helped me to have a visual of how the school looked like during wartime, as that was the books setting.

When looking at the deeper meaning of the book “A Separate Peace,” I began to formulate the question “Would Gene have told Phineas or others that he was the reason for Phineas’ shattered leg, or would he have never said anything?” I began debating this question in chapter 8 when the truth was coming out and people were beginning to conclude what had happened to Phineas. I realized that although Gene had a great feeling of guilt for what he had done, he would never admit to people that it was he who broke Phineas and his future. At the start of the book I believed Gene was a good person, yet towards the middle, I wasn’t sure if Gene had the right intentions. Readers must also consider that the story might not be fully reliable, as the book is in 1st person, and is Gene’s side of the story.

As I have already stated this book would not be one of my choices. This is because some chapters were very full of detail and exciting action, yet the majority were very calm and hard to get through because of the lack of action. The book also had a very confusing ending which I had to reread quite a few times to understand the significance. Moreover, I would have liked to see a little further into the future of what happened when all the boys were sent off to war. On the other hand, the book drew me in with its warm-hearted theme of keeping a sense of innocence. Through the author’s words, I was able to feel what the characters feel, especially when Phineas passed away. This particular part broke my heart and lead me to understand just how sorry and how much love Gene had for Phineas. Ultimately, I would not choose this book to read, but enjoyed some of the connection and reactions I had with multiple characters.