A Separate Peace

Chapters 1-3

Reading Check

1. A tree (Chapter 1)

2. Summer school session of Devon School, 1942 (Chapter 1)

3. As an emblem to celebrate the Allied bombing in Central Europe (Chapter 2)

4. That “Finny had practically saved [his] life” (Chapter 2)

5. Blitzball (Chapter 3)

Short Answer

1. The Devon School is located in a New England town, comprised of brick buildings, Colonial architecture, and “small areas of order…living together in contentious harmony.” He notes that some aspects of school seem different from what he remembers—for example, some buildings look newer, and some things seem smaller upon his return. (Chapter 1)

2. Finny jumps from a large tree and into a river in front of Gene and their group of friends. Initially hesitant, Gene is inspired to jump as well, while the other friends excuse themselves from the task. The two become the first underclassmen to jump from this tree. (Chapter 1)

3. The first reason is Finny’s personality, which projects a combination of “a calm ignorance of the rules with a winning urge to be good.” Gene believes the second reason was that the underclassmen boys reminded the staff of “what peace was like, of lives which were not bound up with destruction.” (Chapter 2)

4. At a tea with the interim headmaster of the school, Finny is caught wearing a tie for a belt. Although Gene does not believe that Finny will be able to get out of this predicament, Finny is able to charm the headmaster by relating his outfit choice to the war effort. (Chapter 2)

5. Created by Finny and Gene on a whim, The Super Suicide Society of the Summer Session is a nightly society in which new members must jump from the famed tree into the river. Although Gene realizes that in retrospect he did not want to go, he attends the meetings every night. (Chapter 3)

6. After learning that no one had broken the school record in swimming recently, Finny decides to try. He manages to do so on the first try with only Gene as his witness; however, he decides just to do so for that moment, without any fanfare. (Chapter 3)

Chapters 4-6

Reading Check

1. Because Gene “didn’t want Finny to understand [him] as [Gene] understood [Finny]” (Chapter 4)

2. By putting on his clothes (Chapter 5)

3. Because Gene did not get the chance to tell Finny that he believed he is responsible for Finny’s injury (Chapter 5)

4. By telling him that he deliberately caused Finny’s accident (Chapter 5)

5. “Continuity” (Chapter 6)

Short Answer

1. Gene realizes that Finny would be jealous of him if he achieved his goal of being the head of the class, and that Finny has been attempting to distract Gene with athletic activities in order to negatively affect Gene’s grades. After an initial emotional wave of nausea, Gene feels better, realizing that they “were even after all, even in enmity.” (Chapter 4)

2. As a result of a bad fall from the tree, Finny is sent to the infirmary with a leg injury. Although he will be able to walk again, he will no longer be able to play any sports. (Chapter 5)

3. Quackenbush is the crew manager, and Gene is the assistant crew manager. Gene does not like Quackenbush, and the two begin to quarrel after Quackenbush mocks him. (Chapter 6)

4. After his tussle with Quackenbush, Gene returns to the dormitories to learn that he has a long-distance call from Finny. They chat about the first day of the new term, and Finny tells Gene he wants Gene to play sports for him. (Chapter 6)

Chapters 7-10

Reading Check

1. “[S]o he could have the whole room to himself” (Chapter 7)

2. “The War/Is a bore” (Chapter 7)

3. Saying his prayers (Chapter 8)

4. They train each other in their respective strengths. (Chapter 8)

5. An enlistment propaganda film about the US skiers (Chapter 9)

6. That he has escaped and needs assistance at his home in Vermont (Chapter 9)

Short Answer

1. Following an on-edge conversation, Gene and Brinker visit the Butt Room, where students go to smoke. Brinker begins to tease Gene for harming Finny, to which Gene initially responds defensively and then playfully. (Chapter 7)

2. Gene and his school peers are hired to clear snow from nearby railroad tracks. When a train finally passes through, the Devon boys see that the passengers are not that much older than them but instead are in uniform and “going places.” The Devon boys reflect that they “seemed to be nothing but children playing among heroic men,” and they discuss the importance of enlisting. (Chapter 7)

3. After arguing with Brinker about the possibility of enlisting, Finny convinces Gene to skip class and go to the gym with him. While reveling in the athletic atmosphere, Finny tells Gene that the war is not real but instead just a conspiracy created by “the fat old men who don’t want us crowding them out of their jobs.” (Chapter 8)

4. In order to escape the dreary late-winter weather, Finny suggests to Gene that they organize the first Devon Winter Carnival. The Devon boys prepare for the Carnival using handmade and personal items for the games and prizes as well as alcoholic cider to serve guests. As the boys become more inebriated, the Carnival becomes a joyous and debaucherous affair, with Finny continually referring to the Carnival as the Olympics. (Chapter 9)

5. After receiving the telegram, Gene travels to Leper’s home in Vermont, where he learns that Leper “escaped” from the military before he could receive a Section 8 discharge because he began to experience hallucinations during his service. Leper briefly angers Gene by saying that he made Finny fall from the tree. (Chapter 10)

Chapters 11-13

Reading Check

1. A snowball fight (Chapter 11)

2. “[A]n officer-training program the Navy had set up in many colleges and universities.” (Chapter 11)

3. Caesar of the ancient Roman Empire (Chapter 11)

4. Because he “could not escape a feeling that this was [his] own funeral, and you do not cry in that case” (Chapter 12)

5. “Wars were made…by something ignorant in the human heart.” (Chapter 13)

Short Answer

1. As the war gets closer to the Devon School, Brinker and Gene have different approaches to the impending enlistment; while Brinker fabricates a variety of different plans, Gene chooses not to do anything. (Chapter 11)

2. Brinker brings Finny and Gene to the School’s Assembly Room along with a group of their peers in order to “investigate” the true nature of Finny’s accident. As there are too many differing opinions of the timeline of the events of Finny’s fall from the tree, the group decides to bring in Leper to clear any misunderstandings. Gene is silently relieved since he knows Leper is now “crazy” and therefore unlikely to remember accurately or reliably. (Chapter 11)

3. Finny is “unpleasant” with Gene upon his visit. Gene broaches the subject of his potential responsibility for Finny’s initial injury; however, Finny changes the subject to his failure in trying to enlist in the war. (Chapter 12)

4. In a conversation among Brinker, his father, and Gene, the two boys share that they have enlisted in the Coast Guard and Navy, respectfully, in order to avoid what they consider more dangerous branches of deployment. Brinker’s father cautions the boys from holding back from more dangerous branches simply for their “comfort.” Brinker is embarrassed by his father’s patriotic speech and believes that it is his father’s generation who is responsible for a war that the younger generation is forced to fight in. (Chapter 13)