YMMV / A Separate Peace

• Accidental Innuendo: Devon, a boys-only boarding school, has a specific location in which students are permitted to smoke—called the Butt Room. This is referring to cigarette butts, of course, but in a book rife with Homoerotic Subtext, one would be forgiven for thinking it's referring to something else. The fact that Gene (the character implied to be the most sexually confused) is noted to spend a lot of time there doesn't help anything.
• Adorkable: Leper is a mild-tempered, glasses-wearing boy who loves animals and nature. Unfortunately, this trope is no longer applicable after he...loses his mind.
• Alternate Aesop Interpretation: Some people view the book's aesop as "hurting other people is okay so long as you become a better person for it afterwards." It should be noted that this is the exact opposite of the aesop as it is generally interpreted, which is that there are no true enemies in the world, and we create enemies for ourselves due to ignorance. Thus, we hurt others only because of a flaw within ourselves, and we should promote pacifism rather than violence. John Knowles clarifies this in an interview:
  John Knowles: [Knocking Finny out of the tree is the beginning] of facing up to [Gene's] own nature. The enemy he kills, of course, is his own self-ignorance, not Phineas.
• Alternative Character Interpretation:
  • The most common one: Is Gene and Finny's relationship just a strong bond created by two dedicated best friends, or is it charged with homoeroticism?
  • Finny is either a good guy, a normal kid seen through the eyes of Gene, or a bad guy who was just awesomely crazy.
  • And also concerning Finny: Exactly how much internal pain was he hiding? How much of his charismatic, happy-go-lucky behavior was real, and how much was him being a Stepford Smiler?
  • Is Leper a nice guy who loses his mind or a naive kid who grows to understand the craziness of the world?
• Angel/Devil Shipping: Gene/Finny. Finny is an idealistic, fun-loving rebel whose charm and athletic talent make him legendary to his class. Gene is a cynical intellectual driven by competitiveness and jealousy. It helps that Finny and Gene are compared, respectively, to Jesus and Judas, as well as to Cain and Abel. Even after Finny is revealed to be a Stepford Smiler, members of the fandom generally agree he's less messed up than Gene.
• Angst? What Angst?: Finny is still his optimistic, humorous self after he breaks his leg and becomes unable to play sports ever again, even though sports are his passion. However, this is most likely a facade, considering his serious denial about Gene causing the incident and breakdown near the end of the book.
• Anvilicious: Blitzball is an allegory for war—the players compete ferociously, everyone is each other's enemy, and nobody ever wins. Thankfully the book doesn't dwell on this and the whole scene is still pretty funny.
• Applicability: This book has been subject to many interpretations by readers, pretty much all of which can be considered valid. These include but are not limited to:
  • The book is about adolescence, specifically the feelings of euphoria, rebellion, and innocence involved, as well as the gradual loss of that innocence as one makes their way into maturity and adulthood. This particular interpretation is somewhat indisputable.
  • Another indisputable interpretation, due to how overt it is: The book is about war, peace, and the role human ignorance plays in both of these concepts. It also deals with the idea that we only make enemies out of each other because of flaws in ourselves.
  • The book is about the consequences of emotional repression (in some interpretations, this is also connected to the idea of toxic masculinity). Gene attempts to stay as stoic as possible because boys during this time period are taught guys who display their feelings aren't "real men." His extreme bottled-up jealousy and self-loathing leads to a tragic act of violence against his best friend, which indirectly causes said friend's death.
  • The book is a retelling of various stories from The Bible: Adam and Eve (with Finny as the former and Gene as the latter), Jesus and Judas (with Finny as the former and Gene as the latter), Cain and Abel (with Gene as the former and Finny as the latter), etc. Most of these interpretations revolve around the book's themes of lost innocence and Gene's betrayal.
  • The book is about homosexuality. It's worth noting this interpretation usually combines with the "consequences of emotional repression" interpretation described above. There's a massive amount of Homoerotic Subtext in the book as a whole, and Gene's obsession with Finny often seems to go beyond the typical best friend bond. In addition, practically every event in the book (since so many of them are left ambiguous regarding Gene's feelings and motives) can be perceived as connected to Gene's potential homosexuality without it seeming like a stretch.
  • The book is about the dangers of codependency. Beyond their close friendship, Gene and Finny actually seem to need each other in their lives, and their relationship ultimately leads to one of their deaths. People who support this interpretation also tend to believe that Gene knocked Finny out of the tree to force codependency because he thought Finny didn't need him as much as he needed Finny.
• Audience Awareness Advantage: Some readers say that Finny is stupid to trust Gene. By this point, most readers are aware Gene is an Unreliable Narrator who is extremely uncomfortable with his own identity and constantly lies to other characters as a result. Although Finny is certainly naive, it's important to remember that Gene may possibly be a Consummate Liar in-story, and the two of them are living emotional crutches.
• Base-Breaking Character:
  • Gene. Those who like him see him as a troubled boy who is inwardly kind but doesn't know how to express his emotions, thus resorting to the extreme repression that results in a violent outburst. Those who don't like him see him as a whiny, obsessive borderline sociopath.
  • Brinker as well. Those who like him say he was just trying to do the right thing during the "trial," pointing out that he couldn't have possibly known the consequences of holding it. On the contrary, those who don't like him say his nosiness essentially killed Finny.
• Big-Lipped Alligator Moment: During the film version of the "trial," the boys sing "Hitler Has Only Got One Ball" to their own tune for no apparent reason.
• Faux Symbolism: Most things in this book are considered extremely symbolic, and often blatantly symbolic as well. However, oddly, John Knowles stated he included no intentional symbolism other than the two rivers near the Devon School.
• Hard-to-Adapt Work: The book centers around the presence of emotions that are largely implied or repressed, which does not bode well for a film adaptation. The two film adaptations that were made unsurprisingly received mixed to poor reviews. Since it's incredibly difficult for a movie to capture the underlying tensions in character relationships and atmosphere, the rather mundane plot becomes almost banal.
• Memetic Mutation: The incredible amount of Ho Yay between Gene and Finny has become this in itself, especially to modern readers.
• Periphery Demographic: Since the book is about teenagers in an all-boys boarding school, the Target Audience is, unsurprisingly, teenage boys. However, John Knowles has stated that interestingly, he has received more fan letters from girls than boys.
• Platonic Writing, Romantic Reading: It's extremely common for readers to interpret Gene and Finny as gay. It's not surprising, since the two are incredibly close and seem to love each other beyond what typically makes up a platonic friendship. However, when asked about this, John Knowles gave what seemed to be Word of Straight.
• Signature Scene: The scene in which Gene jounces the branch, knocking Finny out of the tree.
• Tear Jerker: The entire book, to some extent, but a special mention goes specifically to the last segment of the book, from the "trial" onward. The book has some funny, wholesome moments, but there's a constant undercurrent of loss, longing, and just overall sorrow.
• They Changed It, Now It Sucks!: How a lot of people feel about the 2004 movie, which changed multiple major aspects of the book and significantly expanded upon or reduced the roles of several side characters.

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