Interdependance (For A Seperate Piece by John Knowles)
In A Separate Peace by John Knowles, two school-aged friends, Phineas and Gene, go through many trials and tribulations together that mold Gene from a very dependent person to a very independent person. During World War II, Phineas (Finny) and Gene are juniors at a New England prep school called Devon. Many of their friends are being drafted into the war. However, they are unaware of the threat of enlistment, thinking the war is a big joke. During the summer, they spend much of their time together at the school. During this time, Gene wants to stay in his room and study while Finny wants to go out for a swim in the river. Gene eventually goes with him even though he does not want to. Once they reach the river, Finny finds a large tree, climbs to the top branch, and jumps out of the tree. Afterwards, he talks Gene into doing the same. Reluctantly, Gene jumps out of the tree to prove himself to Finny. Afterwards, Finny tells Gene that he has a "tendency to back away from things" when Finny isn't around (10). Gene, seconds later, declares, "I never backed away from anything in my life," but then he admits that he feels bad because Finny's statement is "so true" (10). This shows his dependence because he is actually admittin
Gene is totally sure of himself because the person he relied on for almost everything (Finny) suddenly becomes absent, forcing him to become independent on his own. It also shows that if Finny had not tricked him into jumping, he would have never done it in the first place. In the course of Gene's Year at Devon, he becomes more independent for one very important reason. When Finny learns of this, he is outraged. As Gene's dependence on Finny grows over the next couple of weeks, a tragic event occurs. Gene's thoughts show that he is depending on Finny to help him in case something were to go wrong, like him falling. This causes Gene to state that his goal of enlistment "lost [its] meaning to me" (100). Another strong example of Gene's independence occurs later in the story when Gene talks about enlistment into WWII. Finny and Gene are in the tree, ready to jump out again. This is evidence that he has realized that a piece of him (Finny) has died and it is a piece he will have to live without. When he arrives on the job, his boss, Senior Crew Manager Cliff Quackenbush pushes Gene to his limit with orders and insults, causing Gene to attack Quackenbush and throw him into the river. In disgust, Finny runs out of the auditorium and breaks his leg again falling down the auditorium stairs. Later that day, Gene mentions that he has finally "done it for himself," without the help of Finny (72).
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