A Separate Peace

             In the novel A Separate Peace, by John Knowles. One of the most important themes is about friendship growing through conflict. This theme also includes friends resolving differences, giving forgiveness, and accepting the strengths and weaknesses of each other. The two main characters go through all of these phases in their relationship.
             A good friendship cannot exist without conflicts. All friendships have some problems, even the best friendships. Conflict is what makes friendships stronger and stronger as you stay friends through conflicts. An example of conflicts between two friends is Gene and Finny. In their friendship conflict did not get resolved right away; it kept on growing and building up because Gene could not get himself to tell Finny what really happened at the tree. They just kept putting it off until Gene finally told Finny. This conflict got worse until Finny broke his leg twice. It was finally resolved when Gene snuck into the infirmary and he and Finny both agreed that it must have been some kind of blind impulse that made him shake the tree. That is an example of a good friendship with a big conflict that almost ruined a friendship.
             Conflict between friends can be resolved. Conflict in a friendship can take a long time and be very difficult to resolve. Sometimes for a conflict in a friendship to be resolved a person must resolve their inner conflicts and conquer their fear of it. An example of this from the novel is when Gene is battling with himself over how to tell Finny what he did. The conflict can only be resolved when the two people acknowledge that the conflict is there and they are willing to solve it.
             In a good friendship, a person has to accept a friend's strengths and weaknesses. This is important because no one is perfect and if you can't accept a friend's strengths and weaknesses then you won't have many friends. An example from the novel is the way Finny accepts...

More Essays:

APA     MLA     Chicago
A Separate Peace. (1969, December 31). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 19:23, March 28, 2024, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/75353.html