a Seperate peace: The Fatality of Idealism
The tragic flaw: one of Shakespeare's most recognized trait of his characters. They could be the most perfect being, but their tragic flaw would always overcome them in the end. Although he wrote a great many poems and plays, throughout all these writings, one flaw Shakespeare did not address was perfection itself. However, this was addressed by John Knowles in A Separate Peace. A main character, Phineas, or Finny, was one of those boys that was liked by everyone. He was more than talented at sports, and easy to get along with. He could make anything fun; he was an ideal friend. But the summer he was sixteen, his world began to change; with World War II, as well as the difficulties of entering manhood; he was confronted with many new challenges. Through his tribulations, the reader discovers that idealism, which is so positive in childhood, can become a tragic flaw when one matures.What made Phineas appear so ideal and attractive to others was his ability to seemingly make anything positive. The majority has this ability in childhood, but lose it when they mature and become cynical. Finny continued to posses these special abilities (as well as invent a few of his own) throughout adolescence was both entertaining and soothing;
Gene is Finny's best friend, and they greatly enjoy each other's company. Gene excels in academics like Finny excels in sports; so they are both successful in their own ways. It is because Finny is so perfect that doubts begin to invade Gene's trust. It seems to Gene as if Finny feels no one else can be as good, in any other field. Gene thinks that Finny purposefully tries to interfere with his studying so that Finny will be successful in sports, and Gene will be successful in nothing. "Finny had deliberately set out to wreck my studies...that way he, the great athlete, would be way ahead of me. It was all cold trickery, it was all calculated, it was all enmity." But that is very far from the true reason that Finny diverts Gene from his studies. Finny just does not understand the concept of studying; he thought that Gene could just naturally ace his tests, as Finny naturally excelled at sports. Gene began to see the conflict in his mind as a twisted and unspoken competition that he must work his hardest at to win. Gene feels as if it is no accident at all, and that he did it to Finny on purpose. Gene tries to tell Finny that he caused his fall, and Finny even admits to having a feeling that it was so, but denies it to himself. "...I did have this idea, this feeling that when you were standing beside me, y- I don't know, I had I kind of feeling. But you can't say anything for sure from feelings...It was just a crazy idea, I must have been delirious. So I just had to forget it. I just fell." This instance is the first noticeable sign of Finny's flaw. Even when Gene comes right out and says that he caused Finny's fall, i
Some common words found in the essay are:
Gene Finny, War II, Sports Finny's, Finny Gene's, Gene Finny's, , Phineas Finny, Finny Finny, Finny Gene, Separate Peace, gene finny, tragic flaw, sports gene, finny perfect,
Approximate Word count = 1099
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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