Assignment #12

What does Gene mean when he says “I never killed anybody and I never developed an intense level of hatred for the enemy. Because my war end before I ever put on a uniform; I was on active duty all my time at school; I killed my enemy there” (204). Who/what is his enemy? Why does he contradict himself there? What was his war?

As the final chapter comes to an end, Gene tells us about how his last year at Devon has affected his entire life- so much that, fifteen years later, he can retell all this pretty accurately. I think that he contradicted himself twice in that quote- for one, if you don't feel strongly about the enemy, they are not exactly your enemy at all. It might be his community's enemy, but since he "never developed an intense level of hatred" towards them, they are not his enemy. He contradicts himself more strongly, however, when he at first states that he never killed anybody, and then says just a sentence after that that he killed his enemy.

I don't believe that the real enemy of Gene was very apparent at all- at first I thought that it was his guilt, but he never killed it. His guilt would always be there- the belief that he had killed his best friend. And then, I thought: perhaps his enemy was the jealousy and envy he felt towards Finny. Even when Finny fell off the tree and broke his leg twice, Gene never truly let go of the resentment. At the end, however, when Finny died, Gene let go of the jealousy (partly, obviously, because there was nothing to be jealous of anymore), because the impact of the death made him realize that he didn't really have anything to be envious of.

Even if Gene harbored some sort of bitterness towards Finny, the 'golden boy' was always a part of Gene. Whenever something happened with Finny, Gene was really affected by it as well. When he mentioned Finny's funeral on page 194 (this was not in the Assignment 12 reading, but rather the page right before it), Gene said that: "I did not cry even when I stood watching him being lowered into his family's... I could not escape a feeling that this was my own funeral, and you do not cry in that case." It's clear from this bit of evidence how much Finny's death influenced Gene - he even felt that Finny's death was his own.

Why does this final chapter really wrap up the book? Who- or what- do you think was Gene's true enemy, if he even had one?

(Pages 195-204) On page 201 Gene says that wars were made by something ignorant in the human heart. Do you agree with this statement?

At this point in the book Gene has lost his best friend and has had to grow up a lot. Instead of worrying about minor things, Gene now has huge issues to consider and worry about. He begins to think more of the meaning of things and the big picture. On page 201 Gene explores his feelings about war. He thinks to himself that "it seemed clear that wars were not made by generations and their special stupidities, but that wars were made instead by something ignorant in the human heart." After carefully exploring his feelings on the war Gene comes to the conclusion that war isn't to be blamed on generations; they happen because of the way people are and human nature. He comes to the conclusion that war is something that just happens and will always happen.

I think Gene could not have put it any better. After all, everyone is human and we are all programmed the same way. We all do things based off of emotions, and we are all similar. I don't think that certain groups or time periods are more likely to be involved in a war than others. It's just when things happen people react a certain way, and that is to be expected.

Do you think that war is something necessary and unavoidable, or do you think that it's something that we as a world can end for good?

As Gene Describes the war he says that he never killed anyone, hated his enemy etc. Why does he contradict himself? Who is his real enemy?

As the book comes to a close, Gene describes the war and the way he feels about his highschool experience. Gene believes that the war he fought, in his life, ended before he ever put on a uniform. The war to find himself and defeat his enemy (The subtle jealousy and hatred for finny) took place long before he was holding a gun (Pg.204) He claims that he killed his enemy. It is clear that Finny is dead. From what gene tends to imply his "enemy" died with Finny. It is not completley clear exactly what his enemy was however. Possibilities for this mystery could be the jealousy, the part of him connected to finny, the guilt, or others. Of course, every problem relates to Finny.

When one observes this book it is clear that it is not based on Gene and Finny's friendship. More clearly and precisley it is based on Gene and the effect their friendship has on him. Hence the narrator roles and the outcome. As soon as Finny died, Gene went to war, the thing Finny said didn't exist became reality for Gene as soon as Finny was dead. This makes sense because they are connected; Gene was a part of Finny. Its all ironic because Genes real enemy was himself but Finny had to die for it. The PURE part of Gene had to die for him to go to war and live his life. Its funny simply because he tells the truth when he says that he "didn't kill anybody" because he didn't; Finny was only a part of him.

Why else is it ironic? How does the way Gene reacts to Finny's death, prove the previously stated point?

Chapter 12: Explain the significance of the last paragraph: "I did not cry….you do not cry in that case."(pg. 194)

Well, as everybody knows Finny dies from operation, which makes Gene depressed and wishes he was dead. But before the operation was in action Gene and Finny had reunited their friendship by Gene telling Finny that he caused him to fall by accident which Finny forgave him for. Gene was excited that he finally told Finny that he caused him to fall off the tree and that Finny does not hate him anymore. After they made up with each other, Dr. Stanpole told him to come back around five o'clock which was when the operation was going to finish. Gene goes to classes and can't wait to see Finny again with a fixed leg. He even skips the meeting of the Commencement Arrangements Committee to see his friend Finny again. When he comes to visit Finny, Dr. Stanpole talks to Gene one on one, which gives Gene a bad feeling and the bad feeling was the horrifying message of the death of Gene's best friend Finny.

Since he heard that message he was depressed and felt that he caused all this to happen. Gene felt like he was the murderer of Gene because he felt like he caused him to die all the tension and confusion. The tension started with Gene pushing Finny off the tree, after trying to hide the truth, then Finny realizing that Gene caused his fall which made him get furious and burst out the assembly room, and fall down the stairs. When Gene says," I could not escape a feeling that this was my own funeral, and you do not cry in that case", I believe he says this because he wished he was the one who fell off the tree and died from the operation. All this guilt gets to his head and makes him wish he was dead. Wishing he was dead at the funeral of Finny he does not cry because if it is your funeral you obviously don’t cry because you are dead. Gene changes after Finny's death because he does not want to be noticed anymore and does not feel like he deserves a life.

Chapter #12: Explore the significance of the campus literally being invaded by the war.

In chapter twelve, an unused section of land from Devon is donated to the war. As said in the book, " It wasn't the essence of Devon, and so it was donated, without too serious wench, to the war." This is significant in many ways. Throughout the book, one of the major events/ themes was the war, and a conflict was that is was slowly but surely creeping into the every day life of Devon. At the beginning of the novel, in the summer session life was fun, chill, and completely war free, but as the summer session ended we started to see how the war was effecting the community of Devon. This was farther shown when the students want to enlist, when some teachers leave for the war and mostly when Leper becomes transformed by the war. But throughout all of this, the war is still separate and has not fully penetrated Devon. But now it literally has penetrated Devon every second of every day and the sight of it isn't possible to escape, due to the fact that a war camp is literally next to the school.

Something else significant about Devon being invaded by the war is that throughout the novel it was shown that the community of Devon could only find an escape from the war at Devon. At the winter carnival it was as if the war didn't exist, or in the daily conversations and just fun and games of the kids they always had moments of escape from the reality that was not shown to them at Devon. But now that the war is at Devon, there is no escape from it, and everything about the school experienced by Gene and his friends will seize to exist. "As i crossed the Far Common I saw that it was rapidly becoming unrecognizable" (this quote is then followed by a long list of things that make it different), this shows that Devon is different and will not be how Finny new it.

One question I thought of was, do you think that the war taking over Devon was one of the main reasons Gene enlisted?

4) Gene reflects on Phineas’ impact on his life at the bottom of page 202 and top of page 203. In this passage, what do you think Gene means when he s

In the beginning of this chapter Gene was stating how the war has started creeping in on there personal life an now is definitely in there life. The Devon campus has changed in many different ways. "The Far Common was different... But the bricks had been laid a little too skillfully, and the woodwork was not as brittle and chipped as it should of been." (page 195-196) This quote shows how the Gene describes the Devon campus. Then Brinkers dad, Mr. Hadley comes and talks to the boys about what they are planning to do after the graduate Devon. Gene told Mr. Hadley that he has joined the Navy and that he was being sent off to Pensacola.

“Phineas alone had escaped this.” (202) I think Gene means that Phineas does not have to have to join the war and that he escape the hardship of possibly dying due to the war. Phineas got to miss out on the war and the hard times that came with only having one usably leg. He missed out not dwelling about he can not play sports. He also escaped from Gene and his friendship. If he would of survived the surgery their friendship would have been different.

I think that he escape all the hard times by the way that he lived. Phineas was an innocent character that cared only about sports, competition, an friendships. Throughout the whole book he did not think that war was real until right before he died.

If Phineas had survived what would Gene and his friendship have been like? Would they still be friends or would Phineas had found other friends? If you were Finny before he died would you have been thinking about joining the army with only one leg?

1) At this point in the novel, the main action has wrapped up now that Finny is dead and the boys are graduating, but now the war has quite literally

"The Far Common could be seen from the window of my room, and early in June I stood at the window and watched the war moving in to occupy it. The advance guard which came down the street from the railroad station consisted of a number of Jeeps..." The war now is literally creeping into Devon high school. This is showing the falling actions of the book after Finny died. This was a good way to wrap up the story because the war has been looming in the background of the story and now after the climax and the end of the problems of Gene and Finny's friendship the war comes into the story as the main ending. This war sends off all of the friends into different directions in life.

"From my locker I collected my sneakers, jock strap, and gym pants and then turned away, leaving the door ajar for the first time, forlornly open and abandoned, the locker unlocked. This was more final than the moment the headmaster handed me my diploma. My schooling was now over." This sentence is describing Gene leaving Devon once and for all to start possibly a new life and forgetting his past. He is going to the war now, becoming a man. The troubles that Devon put Gene through were now over and he had no obstacles to overcome. He was gladly leaving Devon to the war.

What obstacles do you think would come up upon Gene in the future?

If there were to be a sequel what would it mainly be about?