John Phillips

Seeing is believing, or so many say, but what truly is “seeing”? John Knowles touches upon this subtle relationship between truth and illusions in his book A Separate Peace. The book describes the fictional life-story of, Gene, a teenage boy, and the trials and tribulations he undergoes with his so-called friend, Phineas, at Devon, the academy they attend. Knowles heightens the tension between the various characters in the book, by setting the story in 1942, deep in World War II, with confusion…

Cold War, America was plagued by controversies involving its presidents, and several of those controversies are spelled out in A Prayer for Owen Meany. The first of these controversies that appears in the novel was the scandal surrounding President John F. Kennedy’s alleged affair with Marilyn Monroe. Johnny becomes frustrated with the moral controversy created by the rumors of the affair, because he thinks Americans should be more concerned about the true political issues than with the…

In an ever changing world, what is promised initially may not always go as planned when it is put to the test. John Irving’s A Prayer for Owen Meany, tells the story of Johnny Wheelwright, a boy growing up in Gravesend, New Hampshire, struggling with identity and faith. But one cannot tell the story of Johnny Wheelwright without including Owen Meany, the tiny, dwarflike boy who is the only reason Johnny believes in God. Owen is a major spiritual character and his actions have direct correlations…

In Separate Peace the characters battle with their identity. Gene is one of the many characters that struggles to be himself, instead he tries to be other people. Given that Gene has a hard time with his identity, he tries to be someone he is not: Gene tries to be Finny. Finny can be described as athletic, outgoing, and a risk taker, all things that Gene does not possess. Although Gene is far from Finny’s qualities he tries to duplicate them. Gene said “I decided to put on his clothes…

In his work A Prayer For Owen Meany, John Irving delves into the fundamentals of faith through his narrator, Johnny Wheelwright, and Johnny’s best friend Owen Meany. Johnny and Owen are best friends as they grow up in Gravesend. Owen and Johnny spend nearly every waking minute with each other, often at Johnny’s grandmother’s house. During one of their many childhood sleepovers, Owen comes down with a fever. After Owen wakes Johnny up, Johnny sends him down the hall to his mother’s room. Johnny’s…

God’s Instrument After years of typing away on his antique typewriter for hours on end, the Oscar winning storyteller John Irving triumphantly finished his seventh novel A Prayer For Owen Meany in 1989. The emotional tugging that the novel forces upon its audience made it one of the most read novels of the 20th century (McCarthy 2). This humorous yet heart wrenching tale tells of an unlikely friendship between two boys just before the Vietnam era. As a time full of war, death, and lost hope;…

“Who so would be a man, must be a nonconformist.” In the novel A Separate Peace written by John Knowles brings us back in time to Devon School in New Hampshire. Gene Forrester is top student of his class at Devon school and cares about many things such as fitting in with his best friend Phineas. In the novel, Gene loses his best friend to his jealous actions and suddenly jealousy turns to hatred. The envy Gene has for his friend and roommate Finny shows up most of the time as possessiveness.…

American Novelist, John Knowles, in his book "A Separate Peace" describes the flashback of a friendship among two boys in rural New Hampshire. Phineas and Gene's bond becomes stronger through the course of the story as they spend more time together. As the story progresses, Gene becomes envious of Phineas' talents and his happiness. Because of this, Gene shakes the branch that him and Phineas perform their ritual on, and Phineas' leg snaps for the first time. When the novel comes to a close…

In the novel A Separate Peace, John Knowles utilizes the three levels of war, interpersonal, internal, and international, to influence and develop the protagonist’s character. Gene, the main protagonist, has internal conflicts as well as interpersonal conflicts with his best friend Finny during their stay at the Devon School. Firstly, John Knowles uses the interpersonal war of jealousy between Finny and Gene to drive Gene’s character development. When Finny has dressed in a bright pink shirt and…

for Owen Meany, John Irving writes a story about two boys growing up and learning the works of the world. The protagonist, John Wheelwright, is narrating the book about his life as an adult and sharing details about his childhood. In his childhood, he writes about his closest companion, Owen Meany. Owen leads John to become an anti-American, pessimistic, all girls private school teacher in Canada. As John is going through college and Owen is serving the Vietnam war in Arizona, John comes across…