This enlightenment causes him to wish he could completely cut off his broken identity and guilt with a pair of “giant military shears”, throw away his complicated past, and conform to the clone-like sameness of the military. He is soon whisked away from this mentality when Finny insists on Gene fulfilling his athletic dreams for him. Once again, Gene finds himself taking on Finny’s identity in place of his own identity. However, Gene’s final submersion into Finny’s identity does not last long. Gene’s carefully structured world falls apart when Finny dies, forcing Gene to finally begin to develop his own individuality. Gene uses Finny as a way to find security in himself and as a way to forget about his insecurities; but when Finny dies, Gene is left alone with an identity that he relied on his deceased friend for. He finally begins to not rely on others to provide him with purpose or security, but rather takes what Finny’s life had taught him and grows his own sense of self. Though Gene does develop his own sense of self, he carries a part of Finny within himself throughout the rest of his adolescence and into his adulthood. Gene no longer depended on the people around him for confidence and security, but rather became his own
This enlightenment causes him to wish he could completely cut off his broken identity and guilt with a pair of “giant military shears”, throw away his complicated past, and conform to the clone-like sameness of the military. He is soon whisked away from this mentality when Finny insists on Gene fulfilling his athletic dreams for him. Once again, Gene finds himself taking on Finny’s identity in place of his own identity. However, Gene’s final submersion into Finny’s identity does not last long. Gene’s carefully structured world falls apart when Finny dies, forcing Gene to finally begin to develop his own individuality. Gene uses Finny as a way to find security in himself and as a way to forget about his insecurities; but when Finny dies, Gene is left alone with an identity that he relied on his deceased friend for. He finally begins to not rely on others to provide him with purpose or security, but rather takes what Finny’s life had taught him and grows his own sense of self. Though Gene does develop his own sense of self, he carries a part of Finny within himself throughout the rest of his adolescence and into his adulthood. Gene no longer depended on the people around him for confidence and security, but rather became his own