A Separate Peace - Gene's Jour
Gene Forrester's difficult journey towards maturity and the adultworld is a main focus of the novel, A Separate Peace, by John Knowles.Gene's journey begins the moment he pushes Phineas from the tree andthe process continues until he visits the tree fifteen years later.Throughout this time, Gene must become self-aware, face reality andthe future, confront his problems, as well as forgive and accept theperson that he is. With the jouncing of the limb, Gene realizes hisproblems and the true person he is inside. Fifteen years later, whenrevisiting the tree, he finally accepts and forgives himself. Thisjourney is a long and painful one. At the end of
this long and windingroad filled with ditches, difficulties and problems, Gene emerges amature adult. These were justa few of the many problems there were in his relationship with Finny. Gene becomes awarethat only he is the jealous one. It surrounds him with the shock of his true self until hefinally reacts by jouncing the limb. Hemust learn to listen to himself rather than to others. Thisrevelation comes to him back in his room before he and Finny leave forthe tree. The realization thatthese feelings are one-sided causes Gene to to fall dramatically incomparison to Finny (he paints himself black for these feelings andbecause Finny doesn't share them, he puts a halo around Finny's head),concludes with the neccessity for Finny to be brought down to hislevel, and results with Gene jouncing the limb. He realizes that Finny feels no jealousy or hatred towardshim and that Finny is indeed perfect in every way. Now all of the feelings come backto him and he sees how terrible he really is. He must face reality and acknowledge the fact that he isn't as greatas Finny, that he is his own individual person and that Finny isn't asperfect as he thought. Gene must accept the guilt for Finny'sTo view the rest of this essay you must be a screwschool memberclick here to become a member. Gene jounces the limb and causes Finny's fall and at that momentbecomes aware of his inner-self and learns of his true feelings. Up in the tree, before the twofriends are about to make their "double-jump", Gene sees Finny in thisnew light. He learns of his animosity and thathe really is a "savage underneath".
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