Assignment #9 (138-151): 4.) Since Leper is “section 8” (“for nuts in the service”), explore the irony of Leper’s statement “always were a savage unde

In chapter 10, when Gene goes to Leper's house in Vermont, he sees Leper's transformation. Leper has gone from a peaceful naturalist to a moody, insane, "psycho" young man. Leper first accuses Gene of causing Finny's fall (p. 145), and then states that he was "always a savage underneath. (p. 145)" Leper's symbol in the book has changed drastically. He was the symbol of calm and peace. The new, post-war Leper is a lunatic. That is the reason he was given a "Section 8 Discharge", for the "nut cases". An example of his craziness is on page 145 when he accused Gene. When Gene kicks him to the ground he keeps laughing and crying. Another time is on page 149 ("Would they bother you if you did.........would they bother you.") He is thinking of the image of an arm of a chair being a human arm. The final time in the chapter when he is bonkers is on pages 150-151. He just can stop spewing out the gory details of the army. It is as if he is just talking without knowing. Even when Gene tells him to shut up and leaves him, he is still talking to himself. Leper has now emerged as a new figure in the book. The crazy toll the war takes on everyone.

Answer 2 or 3 of these questions:

Will Leper be cured?

Will Leper and Gene ever be friends again?

Is Leper going to tell everyone about the truth of Finny's fall?

What is Leper a symbol of now in your opinion?

Will this affect the reality of the war to Gene?

Chapter 10: Why might the mention of Brinker trigger Leper’s violent reaction? Think about what you know about role so far.

The reason that Leper broke down into sobs when Gene brought up Brinker's head on a woman's body was because the idea went against the idealistic views that Leper has in his head. It reminded him of an incident in the army that ended up getting him discharged for a mental illness. The same mind that always appreciated the perfection in trees and beaver dams couldn't handle such a backwards thought as a mans head on a woman's body, so he just broke down. This was the reason that Leper couldn't handle being in the army. Once he starteed realizing that war is not all just skiing around, and that there are some harsh realities that one has to face, he says "Everything began to be inside out." (P. 150). He begins wondering "Am I [psycho], though, or is it the army?" (P. 150), which shows that he's questioning the army's diagnosis of him.

I think the reason Leper saw weird things in the army, and not at Devon, is because he was comfortable at Devon. When he went to the army, everything became tougher and more stressful than back at Devon, and that made him nervous. This nervousness made him imagine things, which made him more nervous, completing a vicious circle. In the end, he had a series of big hallucinations, which he handled by screaming as loud as he could, and thats what got him kicked out of the army. Do you think leaving the army was best for Leper? Do you think that if Leper returns to Devon, he'll stop hallucinating?

What is so ironic about Leper being the first boy at Devon to enlist in the war?

In chapter 9 Leper decides to enlist in the army. After seeing a film on the ski troops, Leper is lured into enlisting. I think that it is very ironic that Leper was the first boy to enlist because he is usually quiet, and enjoys collecting snails, and spending as much time as he can in nature. Leper hadn’t really thought about the war until he saw the movie about the ski troop. Once he saw the film, he was immediately drawn into the idea of joining the war. To him, the ski troop looked like “skiers in white shrouds, winging down virgin slopes, silent as angels” (pg. 124). All wars are bloody, dark, and times of sorrow, but this film made the ski troop look like heaven to Leper. Not only is it ironic that Leper was the first boy to join the army, but it is also ironic that his image of the war was, in a way, peaceful.

Nobody thought that Leper would be one of the first boys to join the war. I thought that Brinker would be the first to enlist. I viewed Leper as quiet, nerdy, and mainly interested in nature. I pictured Brinker as strong, tough, and prepared for the war. Leper, in my mind, is the last person I would’ve expected to join the war. On page 95, Leper, describing his experience of skiing, says, “I just like to go along and see what I’m passing and enjoy myself.” This quotes shows me that Leper likes to take time to notice his surroundings. I think that during the war, Leper will have no time to notice the scenery around him. On page 93, Gene says “Leper stands out for me as the person who was most often and most emphatically taken by surprise.” This quote foreshadows what the war will be like for Leper. I think Leper will be shocked when he realizes what the war is really like.

How will Leper's decision to join the war affect the rest of the characters, and how will his enlistment affect the rest of the book?

What do you think Leper's experience be like in the war?

If Gene or Brinker had been the first to enlist in the war, how would our understanding of the book be different?

Chapter 9: Why is it ironic that Leper is one of the first to enlist?

When the Devon boys are shown a video of ski troopers, Leper is almost immediately drawn to them. It has been made quite obvious in the book, the Leper enjoys skiing, but none of the Devon boys ever thought that he would enlist in the Ski Troops. Leper has been characterized as a boy who loves nature and peace. When all the other boys were shoveling snow at the railroad tracks, he didn't go because he was searching for a beaver dam. He would collect snails, and Finny even states that Leper is "good with plants and shrubbery,"(p.129). It is ironic that Leper enlists because the nature-loving, peaceful, almost hippie-like boy is the last person you would expect to enlist to a war.

Even thought it doesn't seem like Leper to enlist, the reason why he enlists seems to be a little more like him. When he says "Everything has to evolve. Or else it perishes," (p.125), you can begin to figure out why he would enlist. Leper was referring to himself in that phrase. He's saying that he's meant to go to war. He's saying that going to war is the only way that he can, in a sense, "survive". Leper thinks that war will help him learn about life, and give him experiences that he wouldn't be able to have elsewhere. When Leper says this, he's saying that he wants, or has, to change, in order to become who he's truly meant to be.

Do you think Leper made the right decision to enlist?

Do you think he will last in the war? Or do you think he will be taken out because of his peace-loving ways?