A SEPARATE PEACE Study Guide
Chapter 1
1. What is the point of view in the novel?
2. Who is the narrator?
3. What is Devon? Where is it located?
4. How long has it been since the narrator left Devon?
5. What had been going on when the narrator was last at Devon?
6. What two “fearful sites” does the narrator visit?
7. How does the second place appear to him now?
8. What is the time of year for this return visit?
9. Does the narrator feel Devon has changed? Have his perceptions of Devon
changed?
10. In what season of the year does the action of the narrator’s remembrance begin?
11. Who jumps from the tree?
12. Describe Phineas (Finny). What is he like? Why does he refuse to lie about his height?
13. In his own words, tell how the narrator feels as he jumps from the tree.
14. Why does Finny say the narrator jumped?
15. How does Finny feel about authority?
16. What three rules do the narrator and Finny break that afternoon?
Chapter 2
1. Why does Prud’homme stop at the boys’ room?
2. To what other crime does Finny confess while he is there?
3. Why does Finny press hard to be forgiven by Mr. Prud’homme for being late for dinner
and jumping from the tree?
4. Why does Finny say they jumped from the tree?
5. The narrator believes the summer session boys remind the faculty of ___?
6. What is the “emblem” symbolize for Finny?
7. Where do Finny and the narrator go for tea, and at whose invitation?
8. Where do Finny and the narrator go for tea, and at whose invitation?
9. What does finny use for a belt?
10. What does Finny use for a belt?
11. What society does Finny suggest they form?
12. What is the membership requirement of this society?
13. How does Finny save the narrator’s life at the end of the chapter?
Chapter 3
1.Why does Gene decide that he doesn’t really owe Finny a great amount of gratitude
for saving his life?
2. How often does the Super Suicide Society meet?
3. How do each of the meetings begin? How does Gene feel about these meetings?
4. What are the first three of Finny’s “commandments”?
5. What is Finny’s attitude toward sports? Why isn’t it possible for this to be true of all
participants?
6. What is a “blitzkrieg”?
7. What game does Finny invent?
8. What is Gene’s” moment in history,” his “reality” for all time?
9. What impression does Gene have of the U.S. during that period?
10. What school sport’s record does Finny break?
11. Does Gene want to go to the beach with Finny? Why or why not?
12. What confession does Finny make to Gene while they are at the beach? Why does
this surprise Gene? How does he respond?
Chapter 4
1.What is the first thing Finny thinks of when awakening on the beach? Of what does
Gene think about at the same time?
2. What causes Gene to fail his trigonometry test?
3. What is Gene’s secret ambition?
4. To this point in the novel, how has Gene responded to Finny’s “victories”? Give at least
two examples.
5. What conclusion does Gene reach about the true nature of his friendship with Finny in
this chapter? Why does this realization somewhat comfort him?
6. Who is Chet Douglas?
7. In what way does Gene decide he and Finny are even?
8. Why does Finny think Gene doesn’t have to study to achieve good grades?
9. What does Finny do that forces Gene to realize there had never been any rivalry
between them?
10. How does Gene feel after this realization?
11. Who is suppose to make a first jump at this night’s meeting?
12. What causes Finny to fall from the tree?
Chapter 5
1. What was Finny’s injury after falling from the tree?
2. What devastating news does Dr. Stanpole tell Gene about Finny? What does he think
Gene should do?
3. What does Finny say caused him to fall?
4. What is Finny’s fourth commandment?
5. When and where does Gene tell Finny the truth about his fall from the tree?
6. How does Finny react to this confession?
7. Why does Gene decide to “disown” the confession?
Chapter 6
1. In what ways was the summer session different from the winter session that is about to
begin?
2. Why doesn’t Gene visit Brinker in his room?
3. Name the two rivers that flow through Devon. Compare them.
4. Why does Gene go to Crew House?
5. With whom does Gene fight? Why?
6. Why does Finny call Gene on the telephone at the end of this chapter?
7. Why had Gene decided not to play sports, but to manage?
8. What does Finny ask Gene to do for him?
9. What does Gene realize about himself at the end of this chapter?
Chapter 7
1.What does Brinker Hadley suggest in his conversation with Gene?
2. Where do Gene and Brinker Hadley go to smoke?
3. What happens in this room?
4. What are the two things the boys do to help with the war effort?
5. What is Leper doing when Gene first encounters him in this chapter? What is he
looking for?
6. How does Gene feel about Leper?
7. What causes Gene and Brinker to want to enlist?
8. Whom does Gene find in his room when he returns? How does this affect him and his
decision to enlist?
Chapter 8
1.What does Finny complain about on returning to school?
2. Why does Gene change his mind about enlisting in the army?
3. What is Finny’s comment on love? Does Gene agree with him?
4. Where do Gene and Finny go when they cut class?
5. Who does Finny feel has “made up” the war?
6. What does Finny say he is training Gene for?
Chapter 9
1. Why did Leper spend the night on Mt. Katahdin in Maine?
2. What is the name of the celebration Finny organizes?
3. What is the name of the celebration Finny organizes?
4. What events are held at the carnival?
5. What are the prizes to be given at the carnival?
6. What prize does Finny sacrifice in order to have fire?
7. What does Gene feel they achieved with their carnival? (pg.128)
8. To whom is Leper’s telegram addressed? Who is the first to read the telegram?
9. What has Leper done? What does he want from Gene?
Chapter 10
1. Where is Gene going as this chapter opens?
2. Why does Gene never actually fight in the war?
3. Why is Leper at home?
4. Of what does Leper accuse Gene? What does he want from Gene?
5. What are some of the problems Leper encountered in the army?
6. Describe Leper’s hallucinations.
7. What does Gene do when Leper tells him the details of his hallucinations?
Chapter 11
1.After the snowball fight, what does Finny tell Gene about his leg?
2. What picture does Finny have over his cot?
3. What pictures does Gene have over his cot?
4. Who guesses what has happened to Leper in the army?
5. Whom does Brinker mean when he says, “We’ve already got two men sidelined for the
Duration”?
6. What is Brinker’s attitude toward Finny’s injury? What does he suggest doing about the
accident?
7. What convinces Finny that the war is real?
8. In what does Finny profess to believe?
9. Who does Finny see ducking into Mr. Carhart’s office?
10. Who comes for Gene and Finny at night? Where do they take them?
11. What is the inscription over the main door of the First Building?
12. What do the boys do once inside the Assembly Room?
13. How does Finny explain his fall from the tree?
14. Where does Gene claim to have been at the time of Finny’s fall?
15. What other witness to the accident is questioned? How does he describe it?
16. What happens to Finny when he rushes from the room?
Chapter 12
1. How do the boys move Finny to Dr. Stanpole’s car?
2. Why doesn’t Gene help?
3. What is Dr. Stanpole’s initial diagnosis of Finny’s latest injury?
4. What does Finny accuse Gene of when he comes to the window?
5. Where does Gene spend the remainder of the night?
6. Why does Gene go to the infirmary the next morning?
7. How does Finny manage to forgive Gene? To what does he attribute his accident?
8. What do we learn in this chapter concerning Finny’s feelings about the war?
9. Why does Gene say Finny wouldn’t be any good in a war?
Chapter 13
1. What are the soldiers carrying in their Jeeps as they arrive on the Devon campus?
2. Do Gene’s friends ever accuse him of hurting Finny? Why or why not?
3. What is the subject of Mr. Hadley’s discussion with Brinker and Gene?
4. What branch of the service does Gene join? Brinker?
5. What does Brinker say is the cause of the war?
6. What does Gene feel is the cause of the war?
7. Why does Gene say he is now “ready for the war”? p.195
8. What does Gene mean when he says, “I killed my enemy there”?
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