“We understand how dangerous a mask can be. We all become what we pretend to be,” (Patrick Rothfuss). As humans, whatever we deem embarrassing, unpleasant, or villainous in ourselves develops into our shadow, which we disguise under a facade known as our masks. The more masks we wear, the deeper we hide our true identity. However, the acceptance of our shadow and integrating it into our persona creates the start of our journey towards self-actualization. This concept of battling between presenting our masks versus our true identity is narrated in the bildungsroman novel, A Separate Peace, written by John Knowles, which is a recount of Gene Forrester's days at Devon School, where his own envy and jealousy of his best friend causes his shadow
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He tries to suppress his villainous feelings and rationalize their meaning as they continue to seep through his masks and integrate with his actions. As Gene wants to feel superior to Phineas he does unspeakable actions that will forever affect the two of them. When jumping off a tree into the water, Gene” “took a step toward him...jounced the limb. Finny, his balance gone, . . . broke through the little branches below and hit the bank with a sickening, unnatural thud” (60). Gene perceives to be Phineas’s friend through his masks of camaraderie and manipulation but finally his inner feelings of envy and resentment dominate his actions. As his shadow gains control, Gene is unable to use a facade to disguise his grudge towards Phineas. Only after his shadow becomes uncontrollable does Gene starts to realize the many components of his personality. This event is a major transformation in Gene’s journey towards self-actualization as he identifies the inner turmoil within himself between his masks and his true identity. However, as the guilt from Phineas’s accident increases, Gene is forced to wear another mask as he attempts to mend his mistakes with Phineas. Since Phineas is unable to play sports due to his injury, Gene takes over and starts to play for him and “lost part of [himself] to [Phineas] then, and a soaring sense of freedom revealed that this must have been …show more content…
When Phineas dies, Gene recalls, "I could not escape a feeling that this was my own funeral, and you do not cry in that case," (194). The death of Phineas means the death of the mask of Phineas enabling Gene to accept his shadow and merge it with his persona. Now with a sense of maturity, Gene realizes that to be at peace, he must combine his shadow and persona. Fifteen years later, as Gene comes back to the Devon School, he acknowledges that he “never killed anybody and [he] never developed an intense level of hatred for the enemy. Because [his] war ended before [he] ever put on a uniform; [He] was on active duty all my time at school; [he] killed [his] enemy there. Only Phineas never was afraid, only Phineas never hated anyone," (204). As an adult, Gene understands that his evil shadow has been destroyed during his days at Devon, allowing him to maturely deal with the rest of the hardships in his life. Devon was where he fought his own internal war between his shadow and his persona; the place where he achieved the meaning of inner peace and learned how to integrate the two aspects to become his true
He tries to suppress his villainous feelings and rationalize their meaning as they continue to seep through his masks and integrate with his actions. As Gene wants to feel superior to Phineas he does unspeakable actions that will forever affect the two of them. When jumping off a tree into the water, Gene” “took a step toward him...jounced the limb. Finny, his balance gone, . . . broke through the little branches below and hit the bank with a sickening, unnatural thud” (60). Gene perceives to be Phineas’s friend through his masks of camaraderie and manipulation but finally his inner feelings of envy and resentment dominate his actions. As his shadow gains control, Gene is unable to use a facade to disguise his grudge towards Phineas. Only after his shadow becomes uncontrollable does Gene starts to realize the many components of his personality. This event is a major transformation in Gene’s journey towards self-actualization as he identifies the inner turmoil within himself between his masks and his true identity. However, as the guilt from Phineas’s accident increases, Gene is forced to wear another mask as he attempts to mend his mistakes with Phineas. Since Phineas is unable to play sports due to his injury, Gene takes over and starts to play for him and “lost part of [himself] to [Phineas] then, and a soaring sense of freedom revealed that this must have been …show more content…
When Phineas dies, Gene recalls, "I could not escape a feeling that this was my own funeral, and you do not cry in that case," (194). The death of Phineas means the death of the mask of Phineas enabling Gene to accept his shadow and merge it with his persona. Now with a sense of maturity, Gene realizes that to be at peace, he must combine his shadow and persona. Fifteen years later, as Gene comes back to the Devon School, he acknowledges that he “never killed anybody and [he] never developed an intense level of hatred for the enemy. Because [his] war ended before [he] ever put on a uniform; [He] was on active duty all my time at school; [he] killed [his] enemy there. Only Phineas never was afraid, only Phineas never hated anyone," (204). As an adult, Gene understands that his evil shadow has been destroyed during his days at Devon, allowing him to maturely deal with the rest of the hardships in his life. Devon was where he fought his own internal war between his shadow and his persona; the place where he achieved the meaning of inner peace and learned how to integrate the two aspects to become his true