A Separate Peace 675Gene has suffered and caused suffering. The hatred,
jealousy, guilt, and self-denial have left him. For the
first time in his life, he can grow into adulthood,
symbolized by the war that all of the boys face after
graduation. He can now live his life without fear or
resentment.
Ryan Neighbors
Guilt in A Separate Peace
John Knowles’s A Separate Peace focuses on school-
boys at fictional Devon School in New Hampshire.
It plays out as a flashback when the adult Gene
reminisces about his time spent at the school, par-
ticularly his relationship with a boy named Phineas,
or Finny. The pair become fast friends. Despite their
contrasting personalities, they spend most of their
free time together, break the school rules together,
and even form a secret society, centered on jumping
from a tree branch into the river. However, most of
their relationship, particularly in the last half of the
book, revolves around the guilt Gene feels toward
Finny.
Their relationship changes at the end of the
summer session where the adult Gene begins his
flashback. This change is what leads to Gene’s guilt.
After becoming friends with Finny, Gene begins to
feel jealousy and resentment toward him because
of his charismatic and non-conforming nature. He
also begins to think that he is in a competition with
Finny to be the best boy in the school and that the
latter is intentionally trying to sabotage Gene’s stud-
ies to win the competition. Eventually, Gene realizes
that Finny is above his petty jealousy, which makes
him angry. The next time the pair perform the cer-
emony of their secret society by jumping from the
tree into the river, Gene jostles the limb, causing
Finny to fall and break his leg.
Gene immediately feels guilty about his action,
particularly after hearing that Finny will never play
sports again. He tries to confess his guilt to Finny at
the infirmary and later at Finny’s house, but Finny
won’t believe it. He has absolute faith in his friend.
Gene has to rescind the confession.
Gene, however, continues to feel guilty when
he returns to Devon for the winter session. When
Finny returns weeks later, he pressures Gene into
taking his place as the star athlete since Finny can
no longer play. It is implied that Gene’s guilt plays
into his consent to train. They even plan for Gene
to compete in the 1944 Olympics.
Gene’s guilt returns to the forefront of his mind,
however, after a friend, Leper, enlists in the military.
He leaves the military shortly after enlisting, having
gone slightly mad. When Gene goes to visit him in
Vermont, Leper says that he knows what really hap-
pened to Finny. This accusation causes the school-
boys to have a mock trial to decide if Gene is really
guilty. Finny says that his memory of the event is
blurry; Gene says that he does not remember. Leper,
however, accuses Gene of causing the accident.
Finny says that he does not care, leaves angrily, and
falls down the stairs, re-breaking his leg.
It is only after Finny and Gene talk in the hos-
pital that they are able to reconcile. Gene assures
Finny that there was no hatred in his action; he
acted blindly on impulse. Finny forgives him, and
they are able to resolve the situation. Even though
Finny dies during his surgery, Gene finds peace and
forgiveness, freeing himself of the guilt that he felt
for so long.
As has been shown, guilt is central to the conflict
of the novel. Gene’s guilt stems from the first major
incident that occurs in the story, Finny’s breaking
his leg. From then on, that guilt determines how
the pair relates to one another. This focus on guilt
culminates in the mock trial, Finny’s reinjuring his
leg, and Gene eventually gaining forgiveness from
Finny.
Not only is Gene’s guilt central to the conflict,
but it also serves as the central catalyst for Gene’s
change in the novel. It promotes his coming-of-
age. Gene begins the novel as an immature and
self-centered person. However, he grows from his
early vindictiveness, experiences guilt about hurting
Finny, and finally gains redemption and feels better
about himself. By the end of the novel, he is a more
mature, well-rounded person because of the guilt
that has plagued him and his ordeal with Finny.
Ryan Neighborsviolence in A Separate Peace
John Knowles’s A Separate Peace deals with the
relationships between two boys at a fictional school
in New England during World War II. These two