Date sent: Mon, 29 Apr 1996 18:40:10 -0400 A Separate Peace FCA's 1. Introduction 2. Body 3. Conclusion 4. Transition 5. Quotation "Holding firmly to the trunk, I took a step toward him, and then my knees bent and I jounced the limb." This is a quotation from the novel A Separate Peace, written by John Knowles. My focus in the following will be on Man's Inhumanity to Man. There is a strong relation of this to the novel for which I read. My first point which I will talk about is about Finny's tragic fall and how Gene was the cause of it. My support from the story is Finny's desire to jump from the tree. Gene said that he was coming to join him but Finny reminded him about studying. Gene's thoughts on the matter were, "He had never been jealous of me for a second. Now I knew that there never was and never could have been any rivalry between us, I couldn't stand this." My second support is Gene's actions leading to the accident. He took a step toward the trunk, put his knees and jounced the limb. Thus, Finny lost his balance and tumbled to the ground. My third support goes back to the scene of the accident after Gene watches Finny fall. And he thinks to himself, "It was the first clumsy physical action I had ever seen him make." More less, this is a sign of pride within Gene as he watches the good athlete, Finny fall out of the tree. My second point is on the scene where Brinker brings Finny and Gene to the mock trial to let everyone know the real truth about the cause of the accident. In other words, it was a way of blasting away Gene and shoving his reputation as a respected individual into the ground. My support from the story is when Brinker and three acquaintances come into Gene and Finny's dorm and pull them out. After they entered the Assembly Room, Brinker remarks, "You see how Finny limps." This phrase was the beginning of his plan to set the truth loose, or primarily break the friendship link between Finny and Gene. Brinker chose the Assembly Room as the setting for this trial since there is nothing humorous about the place. It is a place which would be terrible for Gene's sake to talk about the cause of the accident. My second support is Brinker's remark in consociation to the accident. He says to Gene, "There is a war on, here's one soldier our side has already lost. We've got to find out what happened." A powerful remark by Brinker which ignites the trial. This indicates a strong reason for the trial, Brinker uses this republican tactic to have the truth let out. The truth that will undoubtedly break the strong bond between Finny and Gene. The truth in which will lead to another tragic fall of Finny. My third support is during the trial when Brinker and Gene are talking about the accident. Brinker asks Finny, "Have you ever thought that you didn't just fall out of that tree?" This inquiry from Brinker sets Finny into a different focus which will open up the accident, a focus which will narrow it all down to Gene being questioned. These are the examples of Brinker's inhumanity to let the truth loose. His focus is not on just getting the truth out, but breaking Finny and Gene's Friendship. My third point is about when Leper calls Gene to visit him in his Vermont home and Gene runs away. This falls under the Man's Inhumanity to Man category because Gene runs from Leper because he cannot face the fact that Leper has gone crazy. My support for this is when Leper tells Gene, "You always were the lord of the manor, weren't you?" This statement is an example of pushing Gene. It gets Gene upset. My next support is Leper's quote to Gene which resulted in Gene's physical outburst on Leper. Leper says "like the time you knocked Finny out of the tree." This provokes Gene because it is reminding him of his inhumane action to Finny. Thus, resulting in Gene being inhumane to Leper and knocking him out of his chair. My final support is when the scene finally ends. Gene says to Leper, "Do you think I want to hear every detail, I don't care what happened to you Leper." This quote from Gene is after Leper explained to him the details of his insanity. Gene cannot hear anymore of Leper's talk about his insanity and runs away. This is my final argument in regards to the involvement of Man's Inhumanity to Man in the story "A Separate Peace." My conclusion is that "A Separate Peace" was a story about friendship, loyalty and dishonor. Man's Inhumanity to Man was very high in this story. Another example was when all of the fellow peers were making fun of Leper. Friends who have a bonding with one another actually feel jealousy, and they let the jealously connect within their conscious. This jealousy moves the what's right and what's wrong part out of the picture. This isn't just an issue of this novel, it's an issue of life. People, family, friends, etc.. do things to one another which are inhumane. These actions can result in death and/or destruction. For example, Hitler's hatred of a particular group resulted in the massacre of thousands of people. The reason for my choosing this topic was because I felt that the examples of Man's Inhumanity to Man in the story had a profound effect on me when reading the story. This is because these situations dealt with things which occur in life. People are always betraying, cheating, and lying to people in every means possible. Other effects on life may even include adultery, crime, murder, along with theft. From my personal experience I strongly agree with Man being inhumane to Man. People have lied, and conned me into doing things. Along with the fact that people have used me for their advantage. This is why I choose this subject.