Rivalry In A Separate Peace By John Knowles

At one point in time, everyone has felt rivalry or as if they were in competition withsomeone. In A Separate Peace by John Knowles, main characters; Gene Forrester and Phineashave a close relationship based solely on rivalry. The two teenage boys would compete with eachother in both sports and academics. But do all relationships have some sort of rivalry , whether itbe known or quiet? Based on observations from the reading, examples from the novel and,personal experiences , I do believe relationships in general have some sort of rivalry.Referring to observations made from the novel, rivalry or jealousy can immensely affectone's thoughts. It may cause them to engage in actions they would have never performed in theirright mind. For instance, when Gene intinitally jostled the tree
As statedpreviously, this caused him to act out of his normal character.As for my own experiences, I have had many relations based on rivalry in athletics,family, and friendships. In athletics, a teammate and i would compete with each other for certainspots or positions. Our friendship was built on rivalry and competing with each other. With mysiblings, everything seems to be a contest. Challenging each other not even for a reward, simplyfor “bragging-rights”. Friendships have also had rivalry incorporated as well. Friends couldcompete with one another in different hobbies or activities they both enjoy.When Finny reveals to Gene that he is his best friend, it shows that Finny is bold. Asstated in the novel “there are very few relationships...not based on rivalry”(p. 37) at Devon.Finny revealing to Gene that he is his best friend helps form Finny’s innocent, pure character tothe reader. Gene does not know this though. He thinks that Finny is trying to get in his mind tobecome be better than Gene. I do believe relationships, in general, have some sort of rivalryincorporated based on all that was