Journal entree one: Gene Forrester goes back to the Devon School in New Hampshire fifteen years after being a student there. He walks around the campus and sees that everything seems well preserved, as if a coat of varnish had been applied to the buildings, keeping them just as they were during his time there. He remembers how scared he was in those days the early 1940s while World War II raged in Europe and decides to visit the two places that he most closely associates with that fear. The first is a marble staircase in one of the academic buildings. After staring at these steps for a time, he goes back outside, passing the dormitories and the gymnasium. He finally reaches the river and searches for a specific tree on its banks. He locates with some trouble in a grove of trees similar to each other. He finds his tree by scars on its trunk one of the branches sticks out over the river. He thinks that this tree now seems so much smaller than it did during his younger age.  I think that Gene is afraid to go back because what happen to his friend Finny. But also he is excited to come to this school to member his friends and good memories.

 Journal entree two: He flashes back to the summer of 1942 when he is sixteen and standing at the foot of the same tree. Gene is there with his roommate Phineas, or Finny, and three other boys Elwin Leper Lepellier, Chet Douglass, and Bobby Zane. Finny tries to persuade them to jump off a branch of the tree into the river something that no student of their age has ever tried before. The jump is done by the older boys in the school as part of their physical training for their graduation and departure for the war. I think that they are all afraid to jump off the tree but want to do it so bad.

                Journal entree three: Finny jumps first jumping up out of the river to show them how fun the jump is. He then sends Gene up the tree for his turn. Gene finds himself in a state of shock once he reaches the limb.  Gene jumps but the other three boys won’t do it. They head back to the center of campus. Finny tells Gene that he only did it because he was made to do it. Gene and Finny wrestle and make them late for dinner they skip dinner and go straight to their room to do homework. I think Finny was trying to show off and when Gene jumped i think Finny got kinda mad cause he wanted to be the only one to do  it.

Journal entree four:  Mr. Prud’homme comes by the next morning to punish Gene and Finny for missing dinner but he is distracted by Finnys talkativeness and leaves without giving a punishment. Finny decides to wear a bright pink shirt for a celebration of the first allied bombing of central Europe. Gene envies him slightly for being able to get away with wearing this color and tells him he looks like a fairy. Finny is capable of getting away with anything he wants to get out of. I think that Finny doesnt care what people think and knows how to get his way out of anything.

Journal entree five: Mr. Patch Withers holds tea that afternoon. Students and teachers talk awkwardly with eachother. Finny and Gene leave the party and go back to the tree.  Finny wants to jump from the tree and pushes Gene toward the river. They swim in the river and Finny asks if Gene is still scared of the tree. Gene says that he is not and they want to form a new secret society the Super Suicide Society of the Summer Session. When they get out on the limb Gene turns back to Finny to say something and loses his balance. Finny catches him and saves him. I think that Finny presures Gene to do alot of stuff.

Journal entree six: Gene starts thinking back on the near disaster. Gene decides that Finny may have saved his life but he wouldn’t have been up in the tree in the first place if it weren’t for Finny. He feels that he owes Finny no real thank you. That night the Super Suicide Society gets off to a good start as Finny convinces six other boys to sign on. Finny makes a list of rules, including one that requires him and Gene to start each meeting by jumping out of the tree. Gene hates this rule and never loses his fear of the jump. Gene attends every one of the nightly meetings and never contests the rule. Finny,is upset with summer session ‘s athletics program especially the inclusion of badminton and makes a new sport called blitzball one afternoon. The game has no real winner.Blitzball gains popularity and Finny shows the most skill in it. Finny and Gene are at the swimming pool and Finny decides to challenge one of the school’s swimming records. He breaks it on his first attempt but only Gene sees it. Finny will not try again in public and tells Gene to tell anyone about it. I think that Finny is a very presuring person and bossy. I think that Finny is very sporty but doesnt want anyone knowing.

Journal entree seven:  He and Finny sleep on the beach Gene wake up really early. Finny wakes up soon after and goes for a quick swim before they head home. They arrive just in time for Gene’s ten-o’clock test in trigonometry which he flunks. It is the first time that he has ever failed a test. They play blitzball all afternoon and have a meeting of the Super Suicide Society after dinner. That night, Gene tries to catch up on his trigonometry and Finny tells him that he works too hard. Finny says that Gene is trying to be class valedictorian which Gene denies. he realizes that he does in fact want to be valedictorian so that he can match Finny and all of his athletic awards. I think Gene starts slacking on his school work because him and Finny are going out and having fun. Gene always gives in to Finny.

Journal entree eight: Gene works to become an exceptional student and begins to surpass his only real rival, Chet Douglass. Finny cannot compete with Gene academically. One night, as Gene studies for a French exam Finny comes into the room and announces that Leper Lepellier is planning to jump from the tree by the river that night and thus become a full member of their society. Gene doesn’t believe that Leper would ever dare the feat he thinks that Finny must have talked him into the attempt in order to interrupt Gene’s studying. Gene complains that his grade will not be good and begins to leave when Finny tells him that he doesn’t have to come along if he wants to study. Finny says that he didn’t realize that Gene ever had to study he thought his academic prowess came naturally. He tells Gene to stay and study  but Gene replies that he has studied enough and is going to see Leper jump. As Finny seems incapable of being actively jealous of anyone. I think that Gene finally realizes that he need to focus on his grades. Finny is alwasy jealous and always has to have attention.

Journal entree nine:  Finny proposes a double jump with Gene. Finny goes out onto the limb first and when Gene steps out, his knees bend and he moves the limb causing Finny to lose his balance and fall on the bank. Gene then jumps off the limb to see if Finny is ok. Finny shattered his leg. Everyone asks Gene about the fall and ask if he did it on purpose. None is allowed to go see Finny. Gene stay in his room for a while questioning himself. The doctors goes and talks to Gene and tell him that Finny is not gonna be able to play sports anymore. The doctors said Finny wants to see Gene. Gene goes and sees him and they talk about him falling. After Gene vacation he goes and sees Finny they get into a argument about the fall. I think that they shouldnt have been doing the double jump I also think Gene feels really bad about he did.

Journal entree ten: Gene goes back to school and gets a job as assistant senior crew manager and has to work for Cliff Quackenbush a bullying type. After that he gets a call from Finny asking him about the room and school. Finny says that he just wanted to be sure that Gene is no longer crazy like he was when he visited Finny and claimed that he jounced the limb. Finny then asks about sports and throws a fit when Gene tells him that he is trying to be assistant crew manager. Finny tells Gene that he has to play sports for him and Gene feels happy to think that he must become a part of Finny. I think that Gene kinda loses his mind with out Finny he has nothing to do at school so he trys to work to get Finny off his mind.

Journal entree 11: Brinker comes across the hall see Gene he jokes him and says that he did away with Finny so he could get this big room to his self. The boys by his room start saying that he pushed Finny off the branch. Gene gets upset and goes to his room to study French. The boys go shovel snow and Binker tells Gene that he wants to enlist and go in the military. When Gene gets back to his room he finds Finny standing in his room. In chapter eight Brinker bustes in about to ask if Gene is ready to enlist when he sees Finny. He starts to make a joke about Gene’s plan to kill Finny and get the room for himself but Gene cuts him off and explains to Finny about Brinker’s suggestion to enlist. Finny gets sad and doesn’t want Gene to leave him. The other boys start to joke Gene about changing his mind to stay. The next day Gene and Finny head to class and take Finny to look back at the school. The next day him and Gene go running the headmaster stops them and ask them what they are doing Finny says training for the Olympics the headmasters says the only training can be for the army Finny says no. I think that Gene gets very offensive about the accident with Finny and doesnt like to talk about it. I think he is also happy about Finny coming back to school and getting to hang out with him.

Journal entree 12:  One day Finny decides to stage a winter carnival and starts assigning tasks. Brinker organizes the transfer of equipment from the dormitory to a park on the river and has his roommate Brownie Perkins  guard several jugs of hard cider buried in the snow. The boys arrange a little ski jump, snow statues, and prizes, and Chet Douglass provides music on his trumpet. As the carnival begins the other boys wrestle the cider away from Brinker. Everyone seems intoxicated with cider and life itself especially Finny does wild and graceful dance on the prize table with his good leg. Leper has written to Gene to say that he has escaped and that his safety depends on Gene coming at once to his Christmas location. Gene head out to Vermont to see Lepers. Leper stands at the window. Gene gets there and ask him to come into the dining room. Leper tells Gene that he has deserted.  He did it because the army was planning to give him a Section Eight discharge for insanity. He says would have prevented him from ever finding work or leading a normal life. He and Gene get into fight. Lepers start telling Gene that he was the reason for Finny to fall of the limb. Gene kicks the chair over causing Lepers mom to come into the room. His mom starts yelling then ask him to stay for lunch. After lunch Leper and Gene go for a walk Leper starts complaining and Gene gets tired of it and runs into the snowy field. I think that Gene is very stressed and takes out alot of anger out on Leaper.

Journal entree 13: Gene gets back to Devon from Lepers everyone is in a snowball fight. Finny starts talking to Gene about his bone. Brinker comes and to ask about Leper Gene tells them what happen. Brinker says that Leper cracked. Time passes, and all of the eligible boys, except for Gene, take steps toward enlisting in some relatively safe branch of the military. One day, Brinker takes him aside and tells him that he knows that Gene has decided not to enlist because he pities Finny. Later that morning Gene and Finny start talking about Caesar. Leper arrives back at Devon. Brinker and the boys go get Gene and Finny and take them into the Assembly hall to talk about Finnys accident. They start talking about Leper and he comes into the hall they all start asking him questions. Finny gets upset and runs out crying and falls down on the marble staircases. I think that Gene is very mad at Leaper for quiting the army and Finny gets sad when everyone starts talking about him breaking his leg. I think Gene is very mad at Leaper and he doesnt want leave his bestfriend at school by hisself.

Journal entree 14:  Finny breaks his leg again. Him and Gene talk about his accident and Finny bursts in to tears to ask Gene why he shook they tree. He and Gene work things out. The doctors comes in to tell them that he will be setting the bone tomorrow. The next day Gene comes to see Finny. He sees the doctor outside the room. The doctor tells Gene that Finny has passed away. A marrow escaped from the bone as he was setting it entering Finny’s bloodstream and stopping his heart. Gene didn’t cry then or at his funeral he felt like it was his own funeral too. I think that Gene is very upset about Finnys leg but also make Gene feel bad about breaking his leg the first. I dont think Gene really knows whats going on or why its happen to him and Finny.

Journal entree 15: The school year ends and Genes class graduates. Brinker comes and gets Gene to go meet his dad. They talk about the army and how his dad wishes he was younger so he could go in the army. His dad starts to lectures them. Then Gene starts to talk about Finny and the war. I think Gene really doesnt know what to do or how to feel about what has happen to him.

A seperate peace literary summary and analysis:http://voices.yahoo.com/a-separate-peace-literary-analysis-symbolism-7898194.html