Phillips Exeter Academy

Some people think jealousy is healthy between friends, but others say too much jealousy causes problems. In A Separate Peace, Gene is jealous of his friend Finny’s charm and charisma. John Knowles portrays Gene as a jealous character through his actions and thoughts. Knowles depicts Gene as a jealous character through his thoughts. Gene has always seen Finny as competition until he realizes “that there was and never could have been any rivalry between us” (Knowles 59). Gene has always had envy…

The ability to sustain relationships and adapt to society often depends on a person’s perspective, personality, and motivations. In the novel A Separate Peace, by John Knowles, the main characters are Gene Forester and Phineas. Knowles portrays Finny as the light to Gene’s dark side, the yin to his yang. Knowles creation of characters with opposing personalities helps to further develop the novel. The most prominent character in A Separate Peace is Gene Forrester. In the novel, Gene is grown up…

Throughout A Separate Peace, Knowles uses juxtaposition to develop the characters of Gene and Phineas, also known as Finny. They are always with each other, and Gene even juxtaposes himself against Finny multiple times in the book. Consequently, these contrasts between them help establish their character; who they really are. One example of juxtaposition would be how Gene and Finny performed in school. Each of the boys had something they excelled at. For Finny, it was athletics; for Gene is…

“Hate, it has caused a lot of problems in the world, but has not solved one yet.” (Maya Angelou) The story A Separate Peace by John Knowles is a coming-of-age story that outlines the summer adventures of the jealous, intelligent Gene and his athletic best friend Finny at Devon School in New Hampshire. Regardless of their close relationship, Gene still harbors some resentful feelings towards Finny which get worse when Gene assumes Finny is trying to keep him distracted from his schoolwork, and…

“There is a time in every man’s education when he arrives at the conviction that envy is ignorance; that imitation is suicide…”proclaimed Emerson (370-372). John Knowles novel, A Separate Peace, takes place at Devon School of New Hampshire, 1942-1943. The narrator Gene is a conformist who questions his personal identity, which becomes lost in the envy of is best friend, Phineas. The mixed feelings of admiration and jealousy toward Finny are portrayed in the book. The novel, A Separate Peace,…

Wheelwright as a Christmas gift and he began to write in it with his entries mentioning God. After Owen’s death, John would read Owen’s diary and in one particular entry written on New Year’s day during John and Owen’s senior year at the Gravesend Academy. Owen was writing about how “[He] wish [he] knew how [he] was going to die; but God has allowed [him] to more than most people know” (Irving 372). Owen is still grateful for what God has revealed to him so far in his life, despite the fact…

A Separate Peace, by John Knowles, is a fictional novel about a boy named Gene Forrester and his life at the Devon Private School, during the early 1940’s. Gene faces many challenges and hardships throughout the book, one being the war. The war ends up taking over life at Devon, starting with the boys picking apples for the war effort, then Leper Lepellier enlisting, and eventually the troops moving in, and dominating life at Devon. The war slowly starts influencing life at Devon, starting with…

“Whoso would be a man, must be a nonconformist” (Emerson 370). A Separate Peace is a coming-of-age novel by John Knowles during the World War II at Devin school, 1942. Gene a, 5’8 sixteen year old, returns to his childhood school for peace. Also as the narrator, Gene struggles with internal emotions toward his friend and identifying who he truly is. A Separate Peace demonstrates how Gene envy and imitation affect himself and his relationship with Finny; Gene finds peace. Gene’s envy and…

The Meaning of A Separate Peace A Separate Peace by John Knowles has a significant meaning in the title. In the book two main characters Gene and Phineas (Finny) struggle to find peace while living at Devon; a prep school and in the time of World War Two. Gene and Finny struggle through many conflicts and find ways to overcome them. A Separate Peace is used as the title because of the way the characters find peace in their own lives, deal with conflicts, and to become comfortable with themselves…

The first way that Irving shows pleasure and discomfort was through Rev. Lewis Merrill. In this scene, Johnny is mesmerized by the significance of Owen's death. He addresses Dan Needam and Rev. Merrill about his sudden belief in God and that miracles are real. Johnny posed a question asking Dan whether or not he believed Owen's death was a miracle. Dan replied by telling Johhny that he wasn't going to contradict Johnny's belief. Johnny then pose another question emphasizing on whethere or not…