A Separate Peace
..., forbidden, completely out of all bounds. Going there risked expulsion, destroyed the studying I was going to do for an important test the next morning, blasted the reasonable amount of order I wanted to maintain in my life, and it also involved the kind of long, labored bicycle ride I hated. "'"All right,"'" I said. (46) Every time Finny does something, Gene has the urge to follow, even if he doesn"'"t like what he"'"s about to do. Without Finny, Gene is bland, he doesn"'"t think well. Right before chapter 8, Gene and his colleagues are working on the railroad to shovel snow for the WWII trains. While walking home, he thinks of enlisting in the war, and unlike other students, is determined to do so. '"'Others…could calmly watch the war approach them and jump into it at the last and most advantageous instant…. But I couldn"'"t'"' (101). But after having a talk with Finny and Brinker, he completely changes his opinion. '"'"'"Enlist!"'" [Gene] drove on, "'"I wouldn"'"t enlist with you [Brinker] if you were Elliott Roosevelt"'"'"' (108). This might mean that Gene would rather be with Finny than off at war on his own. But he changes his opinion on whether to enlist or not very abruptly now that his friend is back. It must be understood that when Finny left Devon, it put a large gap in Gene. The real reason Gene every thought of enlisting was to fill in that gap. Gene himself also claimed he was a part of Phineas, that his goal in life was to be a part of him: '"'"'"Listen [Gene], if I can"'"t play sports, you"'"re going to play them for me,"'" and I lost part of myself to him then…this must have been my purpose from the first: to become a part of Phineas'"' (85). This is a very blunt statement about what"'"s really going on between Gene and Finny. While it is still too early for Gene to make any real assumptions, in realizing that his goal was to become a part of Phineas, he tries to accomplish this by being as close to him as much as he can. In addition to that, because he feels guilt of causing Finny"'"s injury, he tries to make it up to him by spending even more time together. This leads to the two striving to make the Olympic team. Phineas coaches Gene to become stronger and make the Olympic track team. Every passing moment of the weeks they spent training brings them closer and closer together, until they are more or less one. Finally, Finny creates a sort of peace of well being inside of Gene. These little moments of peace are scattered all throughout the book, from the night at the beach (47-50), to the last chapter when Gene describes how he felt towards his friend, but the most prominent of these moments is the ...