Preview

Summary Of The Novel 'A Separate Peace' By John Knowles

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
110 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Summary Of The Novel 'A Separate Peace' By John Knowles
In the novel, A Separate Peace, by John Knowles, Leper’s experience at basic training, filled with hallucinations and confusion, leads him to discover the truth about Gene and the broader truth about people in general, which is that everyone possesses darkness and savageness but it is often hidden deep down inside of them. This truth causes Leper to go crazy and his once innocent mind is tainted with this truth he is no longer able to only see the beauty in things and looks right to the darkness. Knowles uses irony to emphasize Leper discovering the truth and to further highlight the way Leper discovers this important truth through lies.

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    John Knowles’ novel A Separate Peace takes place at a boys’ boarding school during World War II. It is about two friends, Gene and Phineas. The changes that were made for the movie adaptation of John Knowles’ A Separate Peace focuses more on the two friends’ friendship at Devon. The movie is less captivating than the book. The novel is more detailed giving a better insight of the character’s thoughts and the movie does not include some events which take place in the novel.…

    • 84 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Jealousy is apart of human nature. Whether it is a little kid who wants someone else’s toy or an adult jealous of their neighbor's new car, jealousy is inside everyone. In the book A Separate Peace the protagonists Gene and Finny are supposed to be best friends. However, throughout the book Gene is seen being jealous of Finny. Finny is more popular than Gene, and is a better athlete than Gene. This causes Gene to be envious of Finny and tarnishes their relationship. Throughout the novel A Separate Peace Gene is jealous of Finny causing Gene to intentional knock Finny off the tree.…

    • 241 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Gene looked up to everything Finny did. Whatever Finny did, Gene felt that he needed to follow his lead and do the same thing. Finny easily convinced Gene to jump out of the tree after diving in the water.…

    • 1081 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In this nonfiction book based in the years of World War 2, the tragedy that happened to Finny during a summer at Devon set the topic for the story about the novel. During a summer at Devon Finny’s best friend, Gene, who is thoughtful and intelligent and had also developed a love-hate relationship with Finny, made a decision that would end in the death of Finny. They day when Leper, Gene, and Finny were all jumping off a tree at the Devon River there was a serious accident. When Gene and Finny were on a branch in the tree Gene spasmodically decided to shake the branch in order for Finny for all off, although Gene would never admit this to be true. Finny broken his leg and was practically crippled. This “accident” came to be the main aspect of A Separate Peace. Directly after the accident Brinker was interested in what actually happened that day at the river since it was accepted that Finny just fell off. One day when Gene was alone in his form room Brinker and his friends forced Gene down to the butt room, a room where smoking was allowed. Brinker further investigated that day during the summer by interrogating Gene. Gene felt uncomfortable so he fled. As he returned to his room he saw a very familiar face, it belonged to Finny. Finny had returned from resting at his house after the accident. Life went on and Finny continued to be the leader he was born to be, he instigated a snow ball war and school carnival. Towards the end of the boys’ final year in high school, Brinker gathered all the seniors in order to find the truth of that summer day. Slowly but surely Finny began to remember more and more of that day. What finally set him off to realize what Gene did was the return of Leper. Leper enlisted and went out to the war but began seeing things so people thought he was delusional,…

    • 657 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    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
  • Good Essays

    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
  • Satisfactory Essays

    World War II was a devastating war. The war affected so many people. People daily lives were affected by it like the teenagers in the the book A Separate Peace , where the teenage boys struggle with the concept of the war. In A Separate Peace John Knowles demostrats how the boys achieve a separate peace yet the setting and their behavior are tinged with war-like imagery.…

    • 463 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    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
  • Good Essays

    Have you ever heard the saying “ignorance is bliss”? This applies in countless cases, but not in that of Finny, a character from John Knowles’ A Separate Peace. In this text, he, a boy enlisted in a prestigious New England school, scales a tree with his best friend, Gene. Finny, unfortunately, takes a horrendous fall resulting in him breaking his leg. Gene, over come by guilt, profusely tries to come clean about intentionally swaying the limb for the most of the remainder of the tale. However, he fails as Finny refuses to acknowledge this deed because of his ingenuous nature and his desire to see the good in the world.…

    • 204 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    These levels could be described as outer, inner, and world. There is a very good…

    • 1167 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In A Separate Peace by John Knowles, Gene Forrester returns to Devon School. While he is there, he remembers all the good memories and adventures that he had with his best friend Phineas while WWII took place. As a quick and irrational action, Gene jolts the limb of the tree they were on causing Finny to fall to the end of his athletic career and all hopes of making it to the Olympics are shattered. Gene, wallowing in guilt, agrees to fill in for Finny and Gene begins to train for the Olympics. Although Gene and Finny were getting along, Brinker forced Finny to accept the fact that Gene had jostled the limb on purpose ruining the friendship bond between Finny and Gene.…

    • 526 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    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.…

    • 487 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    People who have read Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck should know that there are a lot of similarities and differences compared to the book A Separate Peace by John Knowles. The central message of these two books display some good and bad times of two male friends and the struggle of their friendship. In the book, Of Mice and Men, George and Lennie have a tough time getting along through their journey of living on a farm. In the book A Separate Peace, Gene finds it hard to accept Finny as a true friend, since Gene thinks he is invincible. These books would not be the same if Lennie was not handicap and Finny was not perfect. There are many similar themes that could go along with these books, but only three work best. The story of Gene and Finny’s relationship compared to the story of George and Lennie’s teach many comparable life lessons because they both display friendship, the American dream, and the coming of age.…

    • 709 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Robert Dallek once said, “Don’t be intimidated by people who seem to be experts. Hear their point of view and get their judgment because it is not their life that is going to be affected as much as your future”. Why is it that human beings feel intimidated by others? Everyone has their own fears and insecurities. In A Separate Peace by John Knowles, the main character and the narrator, Gene Forrester feels a sense of inferiority to his best friend, Phineas (Finny). When an individual feels intimidated by another, they do anything within their capability in order to feel secure. An individual may search for ways to be overpower someone, try new things to fit in, and hope that the other lands in a certain predicament. People should strive to…

    • 1042 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    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