"But one which seemed to interrupt the beating of my heart" (82)
"To become part of Phineas" (85)
"I put on a pair of chocolate brown slacks, a pair which Phineas had been particularly critical of when he wasn't wearing them" (86)
"Definite and substantial buttocks" (87)
"Who discovers a sexual secret of yours and promises not to tell a soul" (90)
"I couldn't keep from staring at him" (94)
All of these quotes from A Separate Peace lead to one specific question: Does Gene like Phineas more than just a friend? Surprisingly, the answer is NO. In Literature class, when I asked Mr. McNamar this very question, he explained that one of John Knowles' readers who had a chance to converse with the author, actually asked him about Gene's feelings. It turns out that the boys have no deep feelings for one another, even though the author makes it so believable. John Knowles' novel isn't about a relationship between two boys. The narrator is trying to trick his readers. He succeeds efficiently. Now...the next question is: How else will John Knowles trick most of us?
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