The Indivisible Bond in Frienship

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Recommended: the nature of friendship

The first deaf and blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree, Helen Keller, once claimed, “I would rather walk with a friend in the dark, than alone in the light.” She offers to willingly sacrifice her happiness in order to be with a companion. Likewise, Gene and Finny, two major characters in A Separate Peace by John Knowles, will definitely state the same. In a school where adolescents make their closest friends and during a time the country endures hardships and troubles, Gene Forrester, an intellectual and reserved 17-year-old, becomes roommates and best friends with an exuberant and audacious school athlete, Phineas (a.k.a. Finny). During their years at the all-boys boarding school, these teenagers go through hindrances in their friendship that causes the two students to share an interesting amity that includes a combination of admiration, respect, and jealousy. Thus, Finny and Gene’s friendship represent a leader and follower relationship, a necessity in life, and a companionship that strengthens one another.

To begin with, Finny and Gene portray a leader and a follower in their comradeship. After hearing Finny’s decision to jump off the tree to start The Suicide Society meetings, Gene admits, “[t]he Charter Members, he and I, had to open every meeting by jumping ourselves… I hated it… But I always jumped” (Knowles 26). Even though Gene despises jumping down from the tree, he inevitably plunges into the water to avoid Finny’s disappointment. Gene sacrifices his own comfort for his best friend’s satisfaction. Obeying Phineas’ every command, Gene displays a disciple of his best friend. In addition, Gene openly announces Finny’s preeminence in the society when he describes, “[The Suicide Society] had been an idiosyncrat...

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...e to surpass his limits as he trains him in becoming an Olympian. Not wanting to appear like a coward to his best friend, Gene presses on with no complaints. Since Phineas remains at Gene’s side, Gene is motivated in both his academics and sports.

In general, the enmity that strengthens the two friends, the essential relationship in their lives, and the leader and follower association represent Finny and Gene’s friendship. These two adolescents mutually make their best efforts for one another, and the unique connection that these high school students share holds both positive and negative qualities that nonetheless strengthen their relationship. Resembling Helen Keller’s attitude, the main characters of Knowles’ novel cherish their camaraderie above all other matters. Happily and willingly, they surrender to any circumstance in order to maintain their relationship.

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