A Separate Peace

When Finny puts on a bright pink shirt, Gene warns him that other boys might call him a “fairy” (20). Finny, however, is unconcerned. He concocts a ridiculous story in which the shirt represents his patriotism in honor of the bombing of Central Europe. But as Gene points out, only Finny could wear such a shirt “without some risk of having it torn from his back” (20). The shirt represents Finny’s mischievousness, his challenge not only to authority but to the social conventions that dictate US/American masculinity during World War II. He attaches patriotism to the shirt in a way that is clearly ironic. Finny is a star athlete and very popular at school. He is a born leader. Although, as Gene points out, he would make a terrible soldier because his nature is oriented toward peace, these qualities are highly prized in a militarized society. His masculinity is difficult to impeach.

Many critics have raised the question of encoded homoeroticism between the two boys. The pink shirt would certainly seem to point toward this idea. However, Finny’s determined preservation of childhood innocence precludes sexual exploration. Associating the pink shirt with the bombing of Central Europe dares Finny’s classmates to call him feminine, since this would also mean associating femininity with the war. This sort of prank and daring requires the level of social cachet that Finny has achieved. Were Gene or Leper to wear the shirt, they would undoubtedly be bullied. But Finny rises above those who might consider bullying him. He is unaffected by suggestions that his sexuality might be questioned because he doesn’t care what others think about him. Finny’s lack of insecurity bolsters his ultimate security.

The novel begins during the Summer Session at the Devon School. It is the first time that the school has held a summer semester, and it came into being as a way to incorporate more military training into the curriculum. Being robbed of summer vacation pushes those who have begun training across the bridge between childhood and adulthood. But for Gene, Finny, and their classmates, the summer semester occurs in a liminal space. They are not yet in training, but they are still at school. Certain elements of their experience share qualities with a boyhood summer. The atmosphere and presiding faculty are more relaxed than during the rest of the year. The boys invent games, play sports, and go swimming. But the Summer Session ends in spirit when Finny falls out of the tree.

The Winter Session has a very different pace from the Summer Session. With a different faculty and administration, the winter semester is much stricter. Mr. Ludsbury, who presides over their dorm, complains that the summer administrators allowed the boys to do whatever they wanted. In the winter semester, physical activities become training, and sports for the sake of fun are considered frivolous. For Finny, when he returns to campus on crutches, the winter presents danger, as every step is precarious in the ice and snow. For Gene and his class, the Winter Session is a bullet train to graduation and induction into the military. It is preparation for the war.