A Separate Peace Character Analysis

John Knowles’s novel A Separate Peace follows a group of private school students during a turning point in their lives. After having been secluded from the chaos around the world, their sudden involvement in Finny’s injury and the war effort force them to adopt different perspectives. The more they learn from these new viewpoints, the more they mature and understand how little effect their childhood problems have on the world around them. A Separate Peace shows that in order to grow as a person it is necessary to view life from a different perspective. When a world is at war, to truly understand that world, realizing what a war entails is greatly important. Before becoming old enough to enlist, the Devon boys have little comprehension or interest

This creates an unusual dynamic between them, as while Gene’s jealousy results in him constantly trying to outdo Finny, Finny simply enjoys their friendship, and appears unaware of Gene’s resentment. When Finny falls from the tree, however, and is forced to look up to Gene as Gene once did to him, their roles become reversed. Now the physically dominant one, Gene is given purpose in caring for Finny, and learns to be a better person by helping and supporting his newly crippled friend. Meanwhile, Gene’s original jealousy is tranferred to Finny. Whereas Gene was envious of Finny’s social and sports skills, Finny is bitter that the friend who pushed him off a tree can still live normally, while Finny is restricted by his injury. Now both having shared different perspectives on life, Gene and Finny start living from a more adult perspective. Gene finally views Finny as a person rather than a competitor, and learns to care for more than himself by assisting Finny in his disabled state. Similarly, having been subjected to tragedy, Finny loses his rose-colored glasses and accepts that misfortune is a part of life. Gene and Finny’s changed perspective results in their growing as

Leper’s quiet, peaceful demeanor shatters after experiencing war firsthand, and his subsequent loss of sanity inspires the others to finally realize that the war is far more dangerous than they had imagined. Finny’s injury allows him to self-reflect, as his reliance on others makes him understand more about life and how his natural athleticism will no longer be enough to help him succeed. Gene’s world view is similarly widened, as Finny’s dependancy allows him to care for more than just himself, and he realizes how small his problems were back in Devon thanks to experiences outside of school in the real world. By detailing us the original naivety and subsequent growth expressed by his characters, Knowles’ novel shows that in order to mature and understand the real world, one must view it from a different