A Separate Peace is the story of two young men, Gene and Phineas, taking their first steps into adulthood during the beginning of World War II. The two of them face many challenges, including watching a comrade go into war only to return with his mind useless, and also an incident where Phineas falls from a tree and breaks his leg. "The novel is about a young man's struggle to achieve and maintain ... a separate peace."
             Phineas is a handsome young man who appears from the beginning of the novel to be a nonconformist. Although his athletic ability shines and is proven to be greater than anyone in the school's, he is a poor student. Gene is most definitely the most hardworking and achieved scholar in Devon. Throughout the story, Gene's self-doubt causes nothing but problems for his friendship with Phineas. Gene refuses to believe that Phineas genuinely wants to be friends, stating he had many reasons to try to pull him away from his studies so that he would be no better in studies than the rest of the students, returning the spotlight to Phineas.
             "Phineas is an excellent athlete. He excels in soccer, hockey, and lacrosse and has the queer notion that an athlete is "naturally good at everything at once." When the narrorator asks him why he chose these sports, he replies nonchalantly that they gave him the freedom to develop and display his individual talent." (Magill.)
             One of the major themes in the story is that all of those who suffer convince themselves that the trouble lays not within them, but inside an outside source. They convince themselves so well of this that the envy, jealousy, contempt and even bitter hatred overcomes them; although it is not recognized by any of these persons. Phineas is the only character free of this sort of denial, which makes him an easy target for the others. Phineas is the proof that all who are man are imperfect, and those who are perfect can simply...