A Separate Peace Book Review

In the book A Separate Peace by John Knowles Finny, one of the main characters, falls from a tree and again down a flight of stairs. While there are many differences between these falls there are also many similarities.

One similarity between the falls is that Gene, the narrator in the book and one of Finny's friends, is involved somehow in causing each of the falls. The fall from the tree is caused by Gene shaking the branch forcing Finny to fall. Gene was also involved in the second fall because he didn't tell Finny that he had caused the fall and when Finny learned this he was very shaken up and that caused him to fall down the stairs.

A difference between the two falls is Finny's mood just before the fall. Before falling from the tree Finny is very happy and is having fun because jumping from the tree is a game which he enjoys. This is very different from the way he feels before his second fall. Prior to falling down the stairs Finny is in "court" where the rest of the boys are accusing Gene of causing Finny to fall the first time. When Finny realizes that was what had actually happened he was upset and in a state of shock. The feeling of shock he had before the fall could have been a large factor in why he fell at all.

Another difference between the falls is what damage they do. The first fall causes Finny to shatter his leg and not be able to play sports. Also this fall causes Gene and Finny to become somewhat better friends because Gene feels responsible and wants to help Finny as much as possible. Finny wants Gene to take his place by being more athletic and begins to train him for the Olympics. However, the second fall does much more damage to their friendship. Finny doesn't even want to see Gene at first and once he does they still are not as good of friends as they had used to be. The physical damage from the second fall seems minimal at first. Finny shattered his leg again and was going to need surgery, but when he was having his operation some bone marrow got into his bloodstream and then to his heart killing him. The second fall in a way killed Finny. Gene was somehow responsible in each fall, ultimately causing Finny's death. Gene's involvement in each fall was a negative role and Finny being in a good mood or feeling shocked didn't change that he fell each time. Gene caused the falls directly and indirectly and they resulted in various injuries to Finny leading to his death. Gene whether he meant to or not was the cause of Finny's death and is Finny's killer