A Separate Peace

Sarah Hock

By John Knowles

The setting of A Separate peace during World War Two had a major impact on the storyline. Gene and his friends were vastly different from what they would have been, had there not been a war. Their emotions, expectations and actions were greatly altered by the fear and doubt of the times. The emotions of all the characters were riddled with worry, doubt, and fear. Gene Forrester was so distraught and confused that he really believed that his best friend Phineas was fiercely competing with him. This belief caused him to try to kill Phineas, and very nearly succeed: indeed, he shattered Phineass leg. Throughout the novel Gene does not know what to think. He wanted to fight in the war, and then he changed his mind. He seemed to always be differing in opinion and doubting himself. His mind was in a constant turmoil, reeling from the worries and uncertainties of his peers and superiors. All of the young men at Devon were expected to fight in the war. Gene and his friends all believed that the war would be a long one. They even went so far as to consider which branch of service would be the

easiest and the safest. Their parents knew that they were going to join the ranks fighting overseas when they came of age. There was no questioning these ideals. Young men fought in the war. The only way you could avoid it was by being a cripple, like Phineas. Even Leaper Lepellier, the skiing, butterfly-collecting young man that everyone made fun of went off to fight. Or so they thought. He never made it to the battlefield; he was discharged after he began having hallucinations. That terrible war hit everyone, even if they were far from the fighting. The feeling of not knowing what could be happening to loved ones fighting in foreign places tore this country apart. This confusion had a major impact on the actions of the characters. It caused Gene to attempt to murder his best friend, and then lie about it for months after, instead of doing what he knew to be right. Phineas outright denied the fact that there was a war being waged, attributing it to the old fat men lying to the world, once again. When Leaper saw a presentation showing the ski corps, he immediately signed up, without giving the life-altering decision any real thought. Evidently, ordinarily rational people were suddenly doing irrational things. All of this was due to the setting; the American home front during one of the most horrendous wars in human history. The emotions, expectations,

and actions of all of the characters were drastically affected. This novel was fictious, but I have no doubt that people like Gene and Phineas suffered through World War Two. Gene was a symbol for mans doubt and fear, the uncertainty of the human race. We never are completely sure about anything, our most fundamental principles could be blown apart by the discovery of something new. Gene was also a symbol for darkness, the corruption that happens to some of us as we cross over to adulthood. Phineas symbolized innocence, light, and childhood. His death showed that all things good and innocent must conform or perish. He forgave Gene, even though Gene never forgave himself.