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Consequences Of War In John Knowles's 'A Separate Peace'

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War: Its Effects, and Disguises
Every person can be a veteran of war at times, even if it is in personal battles rather than literal war. This is the case for the Gene as well as Finny in John Knowles 's A Separate Peace. The significance of the contrast of internal conflict with external conflict highlights Gene 's multiple conflicts with himself as well as Finny, building internal and external conflict through both characters. Ultimately, Gene becomes a veteran in the literal and figurative sense of war, regardless of uniform. Gene 's victory in this war with himself portrays how war can prevail in and out of uniform.
The importance of war emphasizes not only the actual war taking place but also both Gene and Finny 's internal conflict with themselves, and their external conflicts with each other. This also expresses how even though considering the book takes place during World War II, The Devon School still tried to shield the boys from the war, that the residual effects of war can still seep through the cracks and reach everyone at the school. One person can only hide so much, especially if there is a war going on, emotionally or literally. People often try to reduce the appearance of emotions and shield personal battle scars from the public eye, similar to how Devon attempted to shield the war from the students attending. Originally, Finny is ready and waiting to either enlist or become drafted into the military, until Gene indirectly breaks his leg by pushing him out

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