Title and Author: A Separate Peace, by John Knowles
Setting and Historical Context: 1942-1943, World War II; Devon School, New Hampshire, Vermont (Leper’s home)
Major Characters and Descriptions (external, internal, motivation) [3-5 characters]:
Gene Forrester: narrator, protagonist of the novel, thoughtful, intelligent, competitive, has a love-hate relationship with his best friend Phineas (“Finny”), adores and envies Finny, insecure, uncomfortable with his own self
Phineas (“Finny”): Gene’s best friend and classmate, friendly, honest, handsome, confident with himself, charming, very likable, best athlete in school, “seems perfect in every way” according to Gene, engages others with his spontaneity, frequently gets into trouble, has the ability to talk himself out of trouble, doesn’t see anyone as an enemy, assumes everyone is like him.
Brinker Hadley: charismatic, class politician, …show more content…
We also see Gene create a way to cope with these feelings, by telling himself that Finny feels the same way about him. Gene tells himself that since he envies Finny because of his athleticism, Finny must envy him because of all of Gene’s academic achievements. This way of coping helps Gene for a while, making him feel better about his feelings toward Finny. Yet, later in the novel, Gene realizes that Finny does not feel the same way about him, making Gene even more jealous and angry than before.
Personal remarks; memorable aspects of the book.
This was my most favorite book that I read for my summer reading assignment. Personally, I enjoy reading and learning about events that occurred during World War II, so this book was definitely one of my most anticipated summer reading novels. A Separate Peace was fairly easy to understand and had a great message for younger readers. If I had not heard of this novel, I would be missing out on such amazing
Setting and Historical Context: 1942-1943, World War II; Devon School, New Hampshire, Vermont (Leper’s home)
Major Characters and Descriptions (external, internal, motivation) [3-5 characters]:
Gene Forrester: narrator, protagonist of the novel, thoughtful, intelligent, competitive, has a love-hate relationship with his best friend Phineas (“Finny”), adores and envies Finny, insecure, uncomfortable with his own self
Phineas (“Finny”): Gene’s best friend and classmate, friendly, honest, handsome, confident with himself, charming, very likable, best athlete in school, “seems perfect in every way” according to Gene, engages others with his spontaneity, frequently gets into trouble, has the ability to talk himself out of trouble, doesn’t see anyone as an enemy, assumes everyone is like him.
Brinker Hadley: charismatic, class politician, …show more content…
We also see Gene create a way to cope with these feelings, by telling himself that Finny feels the same way about him. Gene tells himself that since he envies Finny because of his athleticism, Finny must envy him because of all of Gene’s academic achievements. This way of coping helps Gene for a while, making him feel better about his feelings toward Finny. Yet, later in the novel, Gene realizes that Finny does not feel the same way about him, making Gene even more jealous and angry than before.
Personal remarks; memorable aspects of the book.
This was my most favorite book that I read for my summer reading assignment. Personally, I enjoy reading and learning about events that occurred during World War II, so this book was definitely one of my most anticipated summer reading novels. A Separate Peace was fairly easy to understand and had a great message for younger readers. If I had not heard of this novel, I would be missing out on such amazing