Preview

A Separate Peace Literary Analysis

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
487 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
A Separate Peace Literary Analysis
One of the most asked questions for A Separate Peace is: who exactly is the protagonist and antagonist? Most would agree that Gene is the protagonist, however is it Gene or Phineas that is the enemy? I believe that the real ‘bad guy’ in this book is Gene. He envied Phineas from the very beginning but didn’t admit it until a little later on. Whether it was getting away from trouble, having a natural athletic ability, or simply being modest and humble about things, Phineas seemed to have been better at almost everything. In this novel, many events occur between Gene and Finny that foreshadow the inner conflict Gene faces. For example, Gene and Finny are rebellious and often end up in trouble with the teachers. However, because of Finny’s smooth
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    A Separate Peace Chapter 10 Analysis
    • 398 Words
    • 2 Pages

    A Separate Peace Chapter 10 Analysis

    In this chapter, after Leper sends a telegraph which says: "I have escaped and need help. I am at Christmas location. You understand. No need to risk address here. My safety depends on you coming at once." Gene then figures out what he was to do that winter and immediately set his destination for Leper's "Christmas location," which is code for his home in Vermont. Taking a train and bus through the barren landscape of New England, Gene arrives in Leper's town the next day. With each step through the snow, he refuses to believe that Leper has abandoned the army: trying to convince himself that "escape" meant Leper was escaping from spies. As Gene approaches…

    • 398 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Summary Of A Separate Peace By John Knowles
    • 1241 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Summary Of A Separate Peace By John Knowles

    The Critical Analysis of Leper Lepellier In a time of war, people can experience a variety of posttraumatic stress disorders. Personality disorders and personality changes are among the most common. These personality changes prevent people from resuming the lives they had before the trauma caused by war. Not only is this evident among our World War II veterans, it is evident in John Knowles ' A Separate Peace. The character of Leper displays this characteristic after he leaves boot camp. In John Knowles ', A Separate Peace, the, minor character Leper, experiences a dramatic personality change, due to his traumatic experiences during World War II.…

    • 1241 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Summary Of A Separate Peace By John Knowles
    • 177 Words
    • 1 Page

    Summary Of A Separate Peace By John Knowles

    In “A Separate Peace”,John Knowles shares his experience,and nerves throughout pages in the first chapter. He explains how frightened he was and also joy of old memories. As stated on page 10 “I felt fears echo, and along with that I felt the unhinged uncontrollable joy which had broken out sometimes in those days like Northern Lights across the black sky.” This is shows his feeling when he first comes across the school, which is fearful, but deep down, he seeks joy from past experiences. Some of his good experiences are shown earlier in the chapter and he reveals some of his past.…

    • 177 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    A Separate Peace By John Knowles: Character Analysis
    • 403 Words
    • 2 Pages

    A Separate Peace By John Knowles: Character Analysis

    In “A Separate Peace” by John Knowles the reader is left with the question, did Gene Forrester jounce the branch, crippling his roommate in the process, on purpose or accident, trapped in their minds? In 1942 during WW II, Gene Forrester began attending a school in New England called Devon. At Devon, Gene soon finds out his roommate, Phineas also known as Finny, was an extraordinary athlete, quite manipulating and able to talk himself out of any kind of trouble or responsibilities he may have had. This caused Gene to become filled with jealousy and competitiveness because he believed Finny was trying to stay “ahead” of him. This is why the essay will discuss Gene’s jealous and competitive personality which could lead the reader to believe…

    • 403 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    A Separate Peace Literary Analysis
    • 1440 Words
    • 6 Pages

    A Separate Peace Literary Analysis

    Telgen states John Knowles was born on 16 September 1926, in Fairmont, West Virginia. At the age of fifteen, Knowles attended New Hampshire's prestigious Phillips Exeter Academy. The Devon school, where most of the actions of A Separate Peace take place, is based on Phillips Exeter.…

    • 1440 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Separate Peace Literary Analysis
    • 227 Words
    • 1 Page

    Separate Peace Literary Analysis

    These two novels, Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger and Separate Peace by John Knowles both share narrator similarities throughout the book because both show major changes and growth of the two protagonists.…

    • 227 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Compare And Contrast A Separate Peace
    • 359 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Compare And Contrast A Separate Peace

    Both the movie and the book share a basic concept of showing an understanding of a story being told. The book does a more in depth explanation and a better job of narrating the story. John Knowles novel, A Separate Peace, is a story about a destructive and corrupt relationship between Finny and Gene who both attend Devon School around World War ll where most boys went off to fight in the army not realizing there was already a war created within themselves, hence the title, A Separate Peace. The book does a much more effective job of telling the story compared to the movie. In the novel, the story is being told from Gene's perspective whereas in the movie, it is being told from a third persons point of view. Also, Cliff…

    • 359 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    A Separate Peace Setting Quotes
    • 594 Words
    • 3 Pages

    A Separate Peace Setting Quotes

    Through the middle/end of the book; Finny and Gene do something different and unexpected, but once they get caught Finny takes care if everything. Say for instance when Finny set cup the obstacle course for gGene to run through around the Headmaster’s house and around most of the field. The Headmaster came out and Finny used his skill and just simply told the Headmaster that they were training for the olympia, in which they were, but they had gotten out of trouble and went on their way. As the reader reads through they will notice how Finny talks his way and others out of trouble in the easiest way possible. There isn't much left to say how the setting revealed Finny’s character, but he is good at what he…

    • 594 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    A Separate Peace. Chapter analisys
    • 1261 Words
    • 6 Pages

    A Separate Peace. Chapter analisys

    4. What does Finny say to Gene at the end of Chapter 3? “I hope you’re having a pretty good time here. I know I kind of dragged you away at the point of a gun, but after all, you can’t come to the shore with just anybody and you can’t come by yourself, and at this teen-age period in life, the proper person is your best pal. Which is what you are.” (Chapter 3, page 40.)…

    • 1261 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    A Separate Peace By John Knowles: A Character Analysis
    • 928 Words
    • 4 Pages

    A Separate Peace By John Knowles: A Character Analysis

    Becoming an adult, it requires responsibilities and maturity, but loss of innocence. In the novel, A Separate Peace by John Knowles, Gene returns to Devon after fifteen years, reminiscing about his experiences and memories as a sixteen year old boy during the war. Throughout the novel, Gene explains his growth from adolescence into adulthood through his eccentric friendship with Finny and the war’s impact on him. Gene considers Finny a confident, athletic, audacious and easily liked person. Often Finny pushes Gene out of his comfort zone by doing crazy activities like jumping off the tree next to the Devon River where Finny’s accident occurs. In the novel, Finny accident plays a tremendous role in Gene’s life because Finny’s accident is the…

    • 928 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    A Separate Peace Character Analysis
    • 1071 Words
    • 5 Pages

    A Separate Peace Character Analysis

    “A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out” (Walter Winchell). This quote is portrayed in the book of A Separate Peace through the characters of Gene and Phineas. Friendship is a common theme in the book of A Separate Peace. It causes conflict between characters and it also causes characters to change as a person throughout the book. Gene is the narrator of the book and he causes many conflicts with his best friend, Phineas or commonly called Finny, and also changes as a person throughout these conflicts. Over the course of the book A Separate Peace by John Knowles, Gene Forrester changes as a person due to certain thoughts, actions, and feelings; he influences relationships with people in a negative way, and teaches the importance of not being jealous towards others.…

    • 1071 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Terrors Of Youth In Richard Finny's A Separate Peace
    • 1022 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The Terrors Of Youth In Richard Finny's A Separate Peace

    Although some people may have these unsatisfactory recollections, they have few to reflect on, unlike many characters in A Separate Peace. For instance, the harsh memories of Gene, Phineas, and Leper relating to their time at Devon and periods in the war. Through the psychotic behavior of Leper, and Phineas’ detrimental accident, it is proven that teenage experiences are not always amusing. Yet, these horrible occurrences unveil an important message; the realization of…

    • 1022 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    A Separate Peace Analysis
    • 766 Words
    • 4 Pages

    A Separate Peace Analysis

    The great writer George Orwell once stated, “Writing a book is a horrible, exhausting struggle, like a long bout of some painful illness. One would never undertake such a thing if one were not." (Orwell). Knowles had this same struggle, and like Orwell used it to his advantage. The novels of John Knowles reflect his personal background and frequently explore the time period in which he lived through WWII. Throughout his life he reflected on his childhood, nurtured his love and ability of writing, and was rewarded for his great works in literature.…

    • 766 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    A Separate Peace Character Analysis
    • 1081 Words
    • 5 Pages

    A Separate Peace Character Analysis

    To most people a dream is just a part of the imagination, of course it would be ideal for it to come true, but the average person can see the difference from a dream to reality. The average person knows not to trust people blindly, knows to do what is best for them, they understand that occasionally one must put their dreams aside for it will not work with the world around them, they understand how to adjust their dream to reality. Of course this is just the average person. The characters Finny and Neil are both dreamers and idealists and were therefore destined to die for they could not live in a world where dreams are only dreams and reality includes hate, jealousy and practicalists. Finny was unable to live a life where his best friend hated him. Neil was in able of living a life in military school. Both could only live the dream.…

    • 1081 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    A Separate Peace Chapter 1-5 Summary
    • 2936 Words
    • 12 Pages

    A Separate Peace Chapter 1-5 Summary

    CHAPTERS 1-5: • Narrator introduces himself as a detective and claims he craves truth but lies • Manipulates his suspects into giving in and giving him the confession he wants • His name is Adam Robert Ryan • He grew up Knocknaree, Ireland • Book opens and it is 1984 • His best friends were Peter Savage and Jamie Rowan • Went into the woods to play but did not return in time for tea and as the night dragged on their parents grew worried and finally called the police • Adam Ryan was the only one who was found: 4 gashes in his shirt, legs all cut up, shoes soaked in blood, petrified and in shock • No DNA testing in Ireland at the time but blood is believed to be from a 4th person • Jamie and Peter are never found • Adam moves to London for boarding…

    • 2936 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More