A Separate Peace Essay

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Gene’s understanding of friendship is growing and Gene is coming to an understating.

Gene speaks of the war after Phineas return to school: “So the war swept over like a wave at the seashore, gathering power and size as it bore on us, overwhelming in its rush, seemingly inescapable, and then at the last moment eluded by a word from Phineas; I had simply ducked, that was all, and the wave’s concentrated power had hurtled harmlessly overhead, no doubt throwing others roughly up on the beach, but leaving me peaceably treading water as before. Through Gene’s dynamic actions he was not only able to understand his mind and heart, but his soul as well. This shows that Gene is indeed changing. The first transformation in this chapter comes as Finny reminds Gene of Lazarus, a Biblical character brought back to life by the touch of Christ, as he lies on the beach and wakes from a deathly sleep. ” (186) This passage was chosen because it expresses a solemn conclusion to Finny’s death with Gene. Phineas, still asleep on his dune, made me think of Lazarus, brought back to life by the touch of God. With Finny by his side, he was able, to be kept from being swept away, while "throwing others roughly up upon the beach" (101).

Gene and Phineas sneak-out of Devon to go to the beach one day and sleep in the sand dunes and Gene awakes the morning after: “The beach shed its deadness and became a spectral gray-white, then more white than gray, and finally it was totally white and stainless, as pure as the shores of Eden.

Gene Forrester goes through tough times at Devon High School and learns to grow from his experiences. What that "wave" will be is not yet evident; but Gene is obviously setting the scene for an even bigger shake-up to occur, and building toward the climax of the novel. I did not cry even when I stood watching him being lowered into his family’s strait-laced burial ground outside of Boston. Gene’s actions and conflicts with himself made him all the stronger, though they have hurt the ones dear to him. Gene, however, wasn't even able to acknowledge what Finny was to him until it was too late, and Finny was already lost.

Common topics in this essay:
Lazarus Biblical, Gene Forrester, Phineas Gene, Stanpole Finny, Devon School, Gene Phineas, Eden Phineas, Finny Gene, Gene Gene, dynamic character, gene forrester, John Knowles, throwing roughly beach, novel gene, wave seashore, brought life, own feelings, throwing roughly, roughly beach, brought life touch, life touch, gene forrester goes, understanding friendship,

Approximate Word count = 1063
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)

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