A Separate Peace Character Analysis
"A Separate Peace" takes place during World War II in 1943, a time of great uncertainty and changing lifestyles but the danger of this war never really seems to come near Devon. So does this terrible environment and events affect the characters of a Separate Peace or just provide a safe and surreal environment for the characters? The war in a Separate Peace may not directly affect the characters for the majority of the novel but we see its affects on the characters actions indirectly and it ends up greatly affecting the final outcome of the novel. The war also changes the characteristics and attitudes of certain characters of the novel, causing them to adapt and change to create a sort of defense against the impending threat of enlistment in
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This effect of the war can be quiet clearly seen with Phineas who, disappointed at not being accepted into any army, decides to adopt a view in which he does not accept that the war exists when talking to anybody else. Indeed we see this when he is in the infirmary and tells Gene "Why do you think I kept saying there wasn 't any war all winter? I was going to keep saying it until two seconds after I got a letter from Ottawa or Chungking or some place saying 'Yes, you can enlist with us ' "(190). This shows that Phineas is pretending that there exists no war because of his disappointment in the rejection of his application. The change in interaction with others due to the war is also seen with Leper who is more hostile towards others after his experience in the army where before he was much more quiet and friendly. The change in attitudes towards others due to the war is also seen with Brinker who begins to resent his dad for his ideas towards war. This resentment is seen where Gene says "He did know his father, however, and so they were not getting along well now." (201). This is in reference to Brinker 's complaint that his father 's generation had caused the war and their generation had to fight it and we see that this war is a major reason for why Brinker resents his father. As it can be seen, the war is a definite factor in the way that the characters in the novel interact with each other and the war affects these interactions and relationships in adverse
This effect of the war can be quiet clearly seen with Phineas who, disappointed at not being accepted into any army, decides to adopt a view in which he does not accept that the war exists when talking to anybody else. Indeed we see this when he is in the infirmary and tells Gene "Why do you think I kept saying there wasn 't any war all winter? I was going to keep saying it until two seconds after I got a letter from Ottawa or Chungking or some place saying 'Yes, you can enlist with us ' "(190). This shows that Phineas is pretending that there exists no war because of his disappointment in the rejection of his application. The change in interaction with others due to the war is also seen with Leper who is more hostile towards others after his experience in the army where before he was much more quiet and friendly. The change in attitudes towards others due to the war is also seen with Brinker who begins to resent his dad for his ideas towards war. This resentment is seen where Gene says "He did know his father, however, and so they were not getting along well now." (201). This is in reference to Brinker 's complaint that his father 's generation had caused the war and their generation had to fight it and we see that this war is a major reason for why Brinker resents his father. As it can be seen, the war is a definite factor in the way that the characters in the novel interact with each other and the war affects these interactions and relationships in adverse