A Separate Peace: Chapter 2  Summary & Analysis

Finny’s charming nature comes to the forefront of the novel in this moment, as he proves himself capable of enchanting teachers even while acknowledging his own wrongdoing. His ability to captivate people is an important thing to keep in mind, since A Separate Peace is largely about Gene’s admiration for Finny and his discomfort surrounding the fact that he both appreciates and envies his best friend’s beautiful way of moving through the world.

Finny challenges himself by seeing if he’ll be able to win over Mr. Prud’homme after admitting to an even more incriminating offense. To do this, he references his respect for the war and reminds Mr. Prud’homme that he and Gene are on the cusp of entering it. In this regard, he uses the war to his advantage, acting like jumping out of the tree is an admirable act of patriotism—which, to be fair, he apparently thinks it is, eager as he is to become involved in the war. Once again, then, readers see just how much the war has already influenced the Devon environment, even for students like Gene and Finny, who are still too young to be in the military.

Although Finny likes to act like his various exploits are somehow related to the war, the adults in his life appreciate his innocence and naivety, clearly seeing his casual misbehavior as the last vestiges of youthful purity. Because Finny and his peers haven’t yet been forced to enter the military and haven’t been subjected to the harsh realities of life during war, they stand for a simpler, more innocent time in the educators’ minds. This, in turn, gives them a certain leeway to do what they want.

When Finny puts on a pink shirt, he’s unbothered by the idea that people might make fun of him. This demonstrates just how comfortable he is with his own identity. Unlike Gene, he is unconcerned with how other people see him. Of course, it’s worth considering that Gene is horrified by the idea that someone might think Finny is a “fairy”—a word that underlines his own homophobia. Given that A Separate Peace is a novel about two young men who are very close, Gene’s moment of homophobia and insecurity suggests that he is perhaps struggling with his own sexual identity, possibly questioning whether or not he himself is attracted to men. Many scholars and commentators have debated this element of the novel, but the exact nature of Finny and Gene’s relationship is ambiguous. Suffice it to say, Gene can hardly fathom what it would be like to accept himself for who he is in the same way that Finny accepts himself, ultimately calling attention to his struggle to come to terms with his own identity.

As Gene watches Finny scramble to explain why he’s using the Devon tie as a belt, he finds himself hoping that Finny will finally get in trouble. Although Gene admires his best friend’s ability to charm his way out of seemingly any situation, he apparently yearns to see Finny fail. This suggests that Gene’s relationship with Finny isn’t as simple as it might seem. Rather than wanting his friend to excel under all circumstances, Gene wants proof that Finny is capable of failure. As a result, it becomes clear that he feels threatened by Finny’s infallibility and probably jealous of it.

Finny and Gene doubt the latest developments in the war because everything feels so far removed from their immediate environment. Although the students one year older than them are all rushing toward the war, they themselves have yet to encounter it in any real or tangible way. For this reason, they are free to focus on more innocent matters, like jumping from the tree, solidifying their bond, and forming secret societies.

When Finny casually saves Gene from falling, he proves himself as a friend, demonstrating that he will always be there when Gene needs him. This, it seems, is what true friendship looks like.