Separate Peace Themes

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When the present generation is asked about World War II, minds wander toward Hitler, the Nazis, and possibly one of the many movies “based” on true events. This generation is completely unattached to the naive soldiers who fought against the notorious Hitler and Nazis. The horrors that young persons experienced during this time are completely unimaginable, except when told through a realistic story highlighting the emotional trauma young boys endured during that time through the novel A Separate Peace. A Separate Peace, by John Knowles, highlights the multiple meanings of “separate peace” as both a title and theme. These areas are symbolized by the setting, characters, and plot elements within the story, showing the true trauma of growing up in a war-torn …show more content…

During one of the most important scenes, the Winter Festival shows that all three boys had used the setting to create a fictitious Olympics after the real ones were canceled because of the war. The winter carnival is the perfect piece for peace for the boys to go back to their pre-accident. Furthermore, this scene also includes one of the biggest symbols of the novel which is burning the Iliad. Burning the Iliad meant for the boys that they would not accept the war and would prefer to live in their separate peace that they have created than endure war. The text states that, “Seizing the Iliad. He sprinkled the pages with cider to make them more inflammable, touched a match to them, and a little jet of flame curled upward.” This quote exhibits how much the characters value their separate peace through various aspects of the novel and of their lives. Through plot points, the characters find more out about themselves and the world around them evolving their separate peace into a more complex, dark world matching the rest of humanity while also, providing comfort and

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