A Separate Peace and Finny

Phineas Honesty, Super Human, and a superb athlete are qualities many people would use to describe Phineas. Finny (Phineas) was an honest teenager with amazing athletic talent. His great talent was his downfall because people envied his achievements. In A Separate Peace Finny is the most memorable character because of his qualities as a person, his injury, and also his tragic death. Phineas was the best athlete at Devon High. First, Finny broke the school swim record but in a non-boastful way he decided not to tell anybody. Next, besides having great athletic talent he also had exceptional sportsmanship. “He had won and been proud to win the Galbraith Football Trophy and the Contact Sport Award, and there were two or three other athletic prizes he was sure to get this year or next” (Knowles, 51). So besides being a phenomenal athlete he showed great sportsmanship as well. Not only was Finny defined by his actions in sports but outside of sports too. He believed Gene never pushed him off the tree, but when Gene admitted he forgave him. He’s adventurous by making up his own games and trying them. Lastly, Phineas never doubts himself. He sets his mind on a goal and accomplishes whatever it is. He pushes other people to succeed. Phineas is truly memorable because he displays an all-around great personality.
“Holding firmly to the trunk, I took a step toward him, and then my knees bent and I jounced the limb” (Knowles, 60). It was clear from the beginning that Finny’s best friend Gene was jealous of him. Once Phineas was told he could never play sports again he slowly moved on from it. But being a humble person Finny set his mind to a new goal: Gene making the Olympics. Later on, Phineas falls in the assembly room resulting in breaking his leg again. In the infirmary, Finny calms down and Gene apologizes for pushing him out the tree. Through all of this Finny still did not have resentment towards Gene. Finny’s injury was the beginning of the end for him. Gene