Significance of Minor Characters in a Separate Peace Essays

Significance of Minor Characters in a Separate Peace Essays Significance of Minor Characters in a Separate Peace Paper Significance of Minor Characters in a Separate Peace Paper One of those aspects is Its use of minor characters throughout the book. The books minor characters are what make up a lot of the book. They are the characters that affect and help develop the mall characters, Gene and Finny. The reader Is able to find out how Finny Is able to handle situations when Mr.. Prudhoe confronts Gene and Finny on their dinner absences. You get a better idea of Fannys character when he goes for tea with the head master, Mr.. Patch-Withers, wearing the school tie as a belt. You see how Cheat Douglas affects Genes studying habits when Gene finds the need to try and beat Cheat in school marks. And you also get a deep understanding of Genes emotional side when he runs away from Leper and his flashbacks of being at the military. In the beginning of A Separate Peace, in the summer session at Devon School, there was the substitute dean, Mr.. Prudhoe, who checked up on Gene and Finny at their dormitory to find out why they missed dinner once again. So to avoid any trouble, Finny smooth-talks his way out of the situation by explaining that they were repairing for the draft. This seems Like a fairly unimportant part of the book, but It does show you how Finny handles such situations. Most people would be nervous and not able to come up with an excuse, but Finny is able to quickly and slickly, dissolve the situation. Later in the book, we discover a little bit more of Finny when he gets dressed for tea with the substitute school head master, Mr.. Patch-Withers and uses the Devon School tie as a belt. Finny, using the school tie as a belt indicates boldness and ingenuity and that he doesnt always stick to the rules. Later, when Finny and Gene are actually meeting with Mr.. Patch-Withers, again you see Fannys expertise in handling stressful situations as you see Mr.. Patch-Withers contempt of Fannys inappropriate action. There Is also Dry. Stanhope, who Is the only link between Finny and Gene during Fannys time away with the broken leg. Dry. Stanhope was the one who told Gene about how Finny wont be able to play sports ever again because of the leg injury. With that information, it pretty much changed the way Gene thought of Finny throughout the rest of the book. Later in the book, after Finny falls down the steps of the school hall, further breaking his leg, it was Dry. Stanhope who came for help. He took Finny in his car and drove him to the infirmary. And finally at the near end, it was Dry. Stanhope who broke the terrible news of Fannys death to Gene. This pretty much helped bring the book to its end, and as well help show more of Genes character. There are also the characters in the book who are a bit more involved. When Gene came up with the Idea that Finny was making him do all these activities with him, Just o bring his grades down, Gene became stronger In his studies. At that point, Gene took two factors In his need to excel In school. One was his anger that Finny did that to him and also Cheat Douglas, who was Just as a good student as Gene. And so Cheat had a profound effect on Genes life at that time because his studies at that time were pretty Important. There are also some more important minor characters like Leper and Brinier. Brinier probably brought the most significance to the book, mostly by stirring up further controversy with the whole Finny leg injury incident. In the middle of the book, when Gene comes back from the break, Brinier Jokingly accuses Gene of trying to kill Finny and later on at the near end of the book, Brinier takes Gene and Finny to the schools hall for a mock trial on Fannys fall. Thats where pretty much everything falls apart with Gene and Fannys relationship kind of breaking apart and Fannys cause of death. Leper, like many of the other characters helped further show Genes traits. When Leper asked Gene to come over his house, after Leper had been charged form the army, Leper talked to Gene about his experience. After Leper told Gene about him imaging the generals head replaced with that of a womans, Gene ran away disgustedly. In closing, this book shows how minor characters help develop other characters traits, how they change the major events and minor events as well. Though they have less of a value as the main characters, they do contribute a lot to the whole book. And not only that, it adds something to the book. Can you imagine a book with two characters?