Do you remember your first day of high school and how nervous you felt walking into your first class and seeing all the seniors walking around? The overcoming of that feeling is an example of coming-of-age. A Separate Peace written by John Knowles follows best friends Gene and Finny through a couple years of their adolescence. Their time in the Devon school included many situations that cover the topic of coming-of-age. In A Separate Peace, John Knowles portrays coming of age as a despairing time because of struggle.
Conflicts between Gene and Finny occur frequently in A Separate Peace. Phineas and Gene had a fierce, competitive friendship at the beginning of the book, but Gene quickly realizes he was jealous of Finny and regrets what he has done in spite of his envy. For example, when Gene was resentful of Finny, he thought to himself, “I was beginning to see that Phineas could get away with anything. I couldn't help envying him that a little, which was perfectly normal. There was no harm in envying even your best friend a little” (Knowles 25). Gene knew that he should not be jealous of Finny, so he tried to make himself believe it was okay to envy his best friend. Also, Richard L. Simpson and Ida Harper Simpson, authors of "The School, The Peer Group, and Adolescent Development" make it clear that adolescents need to be accepted by their friends. They write, “...the peer group enables the adolescent to gain social recognition through his personal qualities and achievements,” they continue with, “athletic contests, and other activities build a… role into the self-concept of the adolescent,” (Simpson & Simpson). Gene feels that Finny can do whatever he wants, including break a school record easily, so often that he doesn’t even need recognition anymore, but Gene stills feels jealous because he rarely gets acknowledged. Clearly, people in real life and books go through complicated relationships that can prove to be a rite of passage into adulthood. While World War II was raging on in Europe, the boys at the Devon School have to get ready to enlist while they are still at school. Leper was the first character to leave the Devon School and the first to reveal what war can do to a child still in adolescence when put in a situation like war. When Gene went to visit Leper he says, “You’re thinking I’m not normal, aren’t you? I can see what you’re thinking- I see a lot I never saw before… you’re thinking I’m psycho” (Knowles 143). War has many destructive elements that cannot only get rid of a character’s life but also somebody’s lucidity, as it did with previously innocent Leper. Kent Baxter, …show more content…
First off, the envious relationship of Finny and Gene prove to be a hardship that they overcome, however, only after Gene realizes his vision was clouded with envy. The fact that they overcame the hurdle within their relationship proves namely Gene, matured considerably. Also, the way the boys at the Devon School experienced the academic preparations of going to war in their adolescence and school days can demonstrate another transition into adulthood. Finally, schoolmates of Finny dealt with his early death early in their life, which could have easily changed their perspective on life. Ultimately, coming-of-age is an important event in a person or character’s life that can shape their
Conflicts between Gene and Finny occur frequently in A Separate Peace. Phineas and Gene had a fierce, competitive friendship at the beginning of the book, but Gene quickly realizes he was jealous of Finny and regrets what he has done in spite of his envy. For example, when Gene was resentful of Finny, he thought to himself, “I was beginning to see that Phineas could get away with anything. I couldn't help envying him that a little, which was perfectly normal. There was no harm in envying even your best friend a little” (Knowles 25). Gene knew that he should not be jealous of Finny, so he tried to make himself believe it was okay to envy his best friend. Also, Richard L. Simpson and Ida Harper Simpson, authors of "The School, The Peer Group, and Adolescent Development" make it clear that adolescents need to be accepted by their friends. They write, “...the peer group enables the adolescent to gain social recognition through his personal qualities and achievements,” they continue with, “athletic contests, and other activities build a… role into the self-concept of the adolescent,” (Simpson & Simpson). Gene feels that Finny can do whatever he wants, including break a school record easily, so often that he doesn’t even need recognition anymore, but Gene stills feels jealous because he rarely gets acknowledged. Clearly, people in real life and books go through complicated relationships that can prove to be a rite of passage into adulthood. While World War II was raging on in Europe, the boys at the Devon School have to get ready to enlist while they are still at school. Leper was the first character to leave the Devon School and the first to reveal what war can do to a child still in adolescence when put in a situation like war. When Gene went to visit Leper he says, “You’re thinking I’m not normal, aren’t you? I can see what you’re thinking- I see a lot I never saw before… you’re thinking I’m psycho” (Knowles 143). War has many destructive elements that cannot only get rid of a character’s life but also somebody’s lucidity, as it did with previously innocent Leper. Kent Baxter, …show more content…
First off, the envious relationship of Finny and Gene prove to be a hardship that they overcome, however, only after Gene realizes his vision was clouded with envy. The fact that they overcame the hurdle within their relationship proves namely Gene, matured considerably. Also, the way the boys at the Devon School experienced the academic preparations of going to war in their adolescence and school days can demonstrate another transition into adulthood. Finally, schoolmates of Finny dealt with his early death early in their life, which could have easily changed their perspective on life. Ultimately, coming-of-age is an important event in a person or character’s life that can shape their