Assignment #11 (178-194): Explain what Gene means when he says, "Phineas, you wouldn't be any good in the war, even if nothing had happened to your leg." Do you think this is true? Why?

            When Gene said, "Phineas, you wouldn't be any good in the war, even if nothing had happened to your leg" (Knowles 190), he meant that Finny was too friendly and innocent for the brutality of the war. Gene thought that Finny would not understand the rules of battle. “Next thing anyone knew you’d be over with the Germans or the Japs, asking if they’d like to field a baseball team against our side” (Knowles 190). Finny would be in denial about assault and killing, and he might pity the enemy, which Gene knew would not end well. “You’d make a mess, a terrible mess, Finny, out of the war” (Knowles 191). This statement would be logical as Finny was soft-hearted and preferred problem solving to violence. Gene favored this kind side of Finny, but realized that it was not fit for conflict.

Blog Post 11: Is Finny's fall, and ultimately his death, something you can blame on Gene? Why or why not? If he is not to blame, then who is?

I do not believe that you can blame Finny's second fall and death on Gene. I actually believe it was Brinker's fault. Gene did not push him, Finny "plunged out the doors" and went down the stairs himself (Knowles 177). If it is anyones fault it is Brinker's. Gene and Finny had come to an understanding that they were still going to be friends, even though both of them knew that Gene had jounced the limb. If Brinker hadn't constantly been bugging Gene about admitting to it, Finny never would have been out in in the first place, therefore Finny wouldn't have fallen down the stairs. "'We're taking you out' he said flatly" (Knowles 165). "His friends half-lifted us half roughly, and we were hustled down the stairs" (Knowles 165). This shows how obnoxious Brinker was. He would not let Gene and Finny rest in their room. Brinker forced them to go to the trial, because he was so obsessed with having Gene admit to breaking Finny's leg the first time. Then on page 176 Brinker keeps eagerly questioning Leper about what happened on the day of the tree accident. He bugged Leper so much that Finny said "'I don't care…I just don't care. Never mind, ' and he started across the marble floor toward the doors" (Knowles 176-177). Not only did Brinker force Finny to come, but he pushed him so hard that he left the trial room and then fell down the stairs. I believe it was Brinkers fault that Finny fell for the second time and died.
-Carly Newell

Assignment #10 (152-177): Explore Brinker’s role in the trial and his motivation. Why does he orchestrate the trial?

Brinker orchestrates the trial because he is committed to finding every single fact that there is in the school, and can not stand not knowing the truth of how Finny got hurt. "You get all your facts! You collect every f---ing fact there is in the world!" (Knowles 177). Brinker also acts as though he is a true patriot and says that along with Leper, Finny is another man who cannot fight in the army. "There is a war on. Here's one soldier our side has already lost." (Knowles 168). Brinker's true motivation is to have the limited knowledge that only Gene, Finny and Leper share of the fall that Finny had. Brinker's role in the trial is to ask the main questions and to ensure that order is being kept. Brinker cuts of Gene when he starts to raise his voice and keeps the process of the trial running relatively smoothly. Throughout the trial Brinker never raises his voice, but breaks the silence with his speech making the words that he says more dramatic, and powerful. In this second trial scene in the Assembly Hall, we see how Brinker is power hungry and looking for the truth with his criminal like actions.  

Assignment #10 (152-177): Discuss the irony of the dialogue between Finny and Gene on the second half of page 155.

            It is ironic that Finny does not believe there was a war as he stated that he would not be drafted in the war because of his broken leg, which caused Gene to give up on his goal. Brinker stated there were, “two men sidelined for the Duration . . . of course [Finny] is [one of the two]” (Knowles 157). Once hearing this remark, Gene immediately used Finny’s theory about how the war does not actually exist. “Not that there’s anything to be out of . . . Just this dizzy war, this fake, this thing with the old men” (Knowles 158). When Finny replied with “Sure. There isn’t any war” (Knowles 158), Gene realized that Finny was loosing hope in his original conjecture about the war and the old men. Gene then began to acknowledge that the separate peace and dreams he had at Devon were just a false sense of reality. Finny becoming reacquainted with the truth of the war made Gene recognize the false hopes that the school supplied. 

Discuss Leper’s return and its impact on Gene and Finny before Brinker’s trial. What does Leper represent now that he is back at Devon and what conversation does his return trigger between Finny and Gene? (see pages 163-164). (Tayseer)

When Finny and Gene are talking about what the war had done to Leper, they realize that, "the war was real, this war and all the wars. If a war can drive somebody crazy, then it's real alright" (Knowles 163). Leper has come to represent the pain that the war can cause, the things that the war can do to someone who joins the army, and that the war is a serious and real thing. It's not a joke, like they would like to think, but it is something important, something that has hurt someone they had known. Now that they know this, they can not just back away from it now. It will be surrounding them for the next few years. But, while they still can, they joke about how Gene had won every Olympic metal, and how Finny had collected every newspaper on it.

Assignment #9 (138-151) Gene spends the first part of the chapter traveling to Leper’s house. Choose two or three phrases of description about the landscape (location, weather, temperature) and explore how Knowles is using them. Why does he include these details here and why at this time? What does it reveal about Gene at this time?

Knowles use of imagery and detailed description at the beginning of this chapter sets the tone for the scene that is about to take place. Gene has set off to meet Leper, who has just summoned him with an obscure and urgent telegram. While the boys were in a sheltered bubble of peace and harmony at Devon, Leper was out in the “real world” where the reality had become being at war. In the hope that he was safe, Gene and his classmates spent the time Leper was away fabricating stories of his magnificent adventures to help make light of the dark times they were in. Now that Leper has supposedly returned, Gene is unsure about what state he is in, yet he only wishes to think positive thoughts.

Although the harsh winter cold of Vermont is surrounding him, Gene chooses to feel only the hint of warm sunlight behind him. Gene describes the sun as “the blessing of the morning” that had no real purpose except to spread its comforting warmth. Gene explains, “As I walked briskly out the road the wind knifed at my face, but this sun caressed the back of my neck,” (Knowles 141). The contrasting feelings of warmth and coldness show how Gene is choosing to interpret the situation. He refuses to accept that Leper could be in trouble with the army. Gene believes that Leper's "escape" must have a good explanation behind it. This could very well be because he cares for his friend, but it may also be because he too will one day enter in the War. If Leper was alright, Gene might have a chance at surviving the War too. As Gene travels towards Leper’s home and describes the surrounding area, he says, “That natural state of things is coldness, and houses are fragile havens, holdouts in a death landscape, unforgettably comfortable, simple though they are, just because of their warmth,” (Knowles 139). He is presented with a “death-landscape,” yet once again he chooses only to seek and accept the warmth within it. This is representative of his frame of mind– the general denial of the apparent truth that Knowles’ descriptions suggest. Through all of the descriptions of the desolate landscape around Gene, there is a sense that what lies ahead for Gene isn’t very promising. Still, Gene reaches back into his past at Devon and finds a hope that Leper’s escape will only be positive.

Does Gene's choice to see the warmth in the cold Vermont landscape remind you of another time Gene chose to only see the light in a situation? How might Gene living in his "separate peace" be affecting the way he perceives the world?

Assignment #9: What causes Gene to attack Leper? The answer needs to involve a literal and figurative exploration of what occurs here (middle 145).

When Gene arrives at Leper's house he finds that there is something different about him.  "If Leper was psycho it was the army which had done it too him" (Knowles 144).  Leper shows more anger and aggressiveness and has also developed a twitch in his lip.  Leper brings up that he almost received a "section eight discharge."  He begins to talk about how its for the psycho people and he makes a connection between the "psychos" and Gene, saying that he was always a savage underneath.  He says to Gene that he knows that he pushed Finny off the tree.  This enrages Gene and he attacks Leper.  Gene attacks Leper because he realizes that deep down he knows that he did jounce Finny off the limb.  This is the first point in the book where Gene actually is able to admit this to himself.  At this point he realizes that he is actually a savage beneath.  "She must have thought, 'a terrible temper, no self-control, but he's sorry and he is a good boy underneath.' Leper was closer to the truth" (Knowles 146).