A Separate Peace Dialectical Journal Directions
 You will be keeping a dialectical journal (notes) for A Separate Peace. This will be a MAJOR
GRADE!
 This may be on loose sheets of paper; however, you will have to keep up with them until
we are finished with the novel.
 Your dialectical journal entries will be in the Cornell Note format!
 You will need to record all characters and their descriptions (as they are introduced).
 For each chapter (1-13), you will need to make AT LEAST 7 journal “entries.” AT LEAST 2 of
the entries should be important/pivotal quotes that are analyzed and interpreted by you,
and they MUST include author’s purpose!
 The other 5 entries for each section may include: Characterization, Diction, Figurative
Language, Elements that are Specific to the Time Period/Society, Tone & Mood, Author’s
Purpose, Theme, etc.
 Each entry should be at least 3 sentences!
 Overall, you will end up having at least 1 page per chapter.
A Separate Peace Dialectical Journal Directions
Chapter 1
 What to look for:
 Point of View (reliable vs. unreliable narrator)
 Atmosphere/Mood (how it makes the reader feel)
 Tone & Diction (what types of words are used so that you KNOW the speaker’s
attitude toward the subject?)
 *Think of the descriptions of the seasons vs. the speakers state of mind
 Description of the School
 Characterization: Names and Descriptions
 Purpose (or potential reasons) for the Flashback
 Description of the Tree (what could a tree symbolically represent?)
 Why does Gene spend so much time reminiscing about the tree?
 Evidence of antithesis/foil and the dynamics of the relationship
 Presence of War
A Separate Peace Dialectical Journal Directions
Chapter 2
 What to look for:
 Point of View (reliable vs. unreliable narrator)
 Atmosphere/Mood (how it makes the reader feel)
 Tone & Diction (what types of words are used so that you KNOW the speaker’s
attitude toward the subject?)
 Characterization: Names and Descriptions
 Evidence of antithesis/foil and the dynamics of the relationship (Envy)
 Presence of War
 The importance of eating ALL meals at Devon
 Definition of a “leper”
 How is Phineas “the essence of this careless peace”?
 Describe Finny’s charisma
 Gene’s feelings about Finny getting “caught” (tie for a belt incident)
 Super Suicide Society of the Summer Session
 Finny saving Gene’s life
A Separate Peace Chapter 2-3 Quiz
Chapter 2
 1. What happens with Phineas and Mr. Prud’homme?
 2. What is Phineas’ emblem?
 3. What happens at the traditional tea?
 4. Why is the narrator disappointed by these events?
 5. What happens when the two boys go out on the branch
together?
Chapter 3
 6. How often does the society meet? How do all meetings begin?
 7. What is blitz ball? Who creates this and makes up the rules?
 8. What happens at the pool? What does the narrator want to do
about that? How does Finny react?
 9. How do the boys get to the beach? How long does it take?
 10. What activities do they partake in while at the beach?
 11. What does Finny tell the narrator while on the beach?
A Separate Peace Dialectical Journal Directions
Chapter 4
 What to look for:
 Point of View (reliable vs. unreliable narrator)
 Atmosphere/Mood (how it makes the reader feel)
 Tone & Diction (what types of words are used so that you KNOW the speaker’s
attitude toward the subject?)
 Characterization: Names and Descriptions (why would the author describe
them in this manner?)
 Evidence of antithesis/foil and the dynamics of the relationship (Envy)
 Presence of War
 Sunrise
 Biblical allusion: Lazarus
 Chet Douglass
 Leper Lepellier’s jump
 Enmity***
 Finny’s jump– “unnatural thud”
 Predictions?
A Separate Peace Dialectical Journal Directions
Chapter 5
 What to look for:
 Point of View (reliable vs. unreliable narrator)
 Atmosphere/Mood (how it makes the reader feel)
 Tone & Diction (what types of words are used so that you KNOW the speaker’s
attitude toward the subject?)
 Characterization: Names and Descriptions (why would the author describe
them in this manner?)
 Evidence of antithesis/foil and the dynamics of the relationship (Envy)
 Presence of War
 Gene’s word choice (diction) when discussing Finny’s possible injuries
 Gene’s imitations of Phineas, and how it makes him feel
 Hospital room conversation– complexities of both characters
 Suspense (about to confess)
 Admission of guilt: how was Gene hurting Finny even worse?
 “The biggest lie of all”
A Separate Peace Dialectical Journal Directions
Chapter 6
 What to look for:
 Point of View (reliable vs. unreliable narrator)
 Atmosphere/Mood (how it makes the reader feel)
 Tone & Diction (what types of words are used so that you KNOW the speaker’s
attitude toward the subject?)
 Characterization: Names and Descriptions (why would the author describe
them in this manner?)
 Evidence of antithesis/foil and the dynamics of the relationship (Envy)
 Presence of War
 Parallel between Finny’s absence from Devon and the scenery of Devon (look
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at how it is described in his absence).
Comparison of the previous summer’s events to “gypsy music” and “gypsy
ways.”
Gene’s description of one of Finny’s great moments: the canoe. (Look at the
diction and how he describes the event.)
Cliff Quackenbush
Mr. Ludsbury’s accusations and Gene’s thoughts about them
Long-distance phone call conversation (what does this say about Finny?
Gene?)
Gene’s purpose: what does this mean (other than having a “creepy”
connotation)?
A Separate Peace Dialectical Journal Directions
Chapter 7
 What to look for:
 Point of View (reliable vs. unreliable narrator)
 Atmosphere/Mood (how it makes the reader feel)
 Tone & Diction (what types of words are used so that you KNOW the speaker’s
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attitude toward the subject?)
Characterization: Names and Descriptions (why would the author describe
them in this manner?)
Evidence of antithesis/foil and the dynamics of the relationship (Envy)
Presence of War
Presence of Finny despite his absence from school.
Brinker’s accusation and Gene’s reaction.
Connection of winter and the war’s presence.
The boy’s treatment of Quackenbush vs. their treatment of Leper
Gene’s power in enlistment.
Finny’s return
A Separate Peace Dialectical Journal Directions
Chapter 8
 What to look for:
 Point of View (reliable vs. unreliable narrator)
 Atmosphere/Mood (how it makes the reader feel)
 Tone & Diction (what types of words are used so that you KNOW the speaker’s
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attitude toward the subject?)
Characterization: Names and Descriptions (why would the author describe
them in this manner?)
Evidence of antithesis/foil and the dynamics of the relationship (Envy)
Presence of War
Finny’s return and saying prayers
“Hand me my crutches, will you?”
Enlistment and Finny
Peace vs. war at Devon
The Olympics: Finny’s hope for himself, or Gene
Shift in Gene’s view of Finny (after the run)
A Separate Peace Compare & Contrast
Expository Essay
 Essay Prompt:
Write an essay in which you compare and contrast the
personalities of the characters Gene and Phineas. Use
evidence from the novel to support your claims.
 This essay will be completed in steps.
 1. Decide how Gene and Phineas are alike and different.
 2. Gather evidence from the novel to prove how they are
alike and how they are different.
 3. Create a thorough outline to structure your essay (this
will broken down into smaller steps, i.e. thesis statement,
introduction, etc.) .
 4. Put the outline into essay format using MLA
guidelines.
A Separate Peace Compare & Contrast
Expository Essay
 Essay Prompt:
Write an essay in which you compare and contrast the
personalities of the characters Gene and Phineas. Use
evidence from the novel to support your claims.
 Step 1: Decide how Gene and Phineas are alike, and
decide how they are different.
 Step 2: Gather the evidence.
 Directions:
1. Find 3 quotations from the novel that shows how
Gene and Phineas are alike.
2. Find 2 quotations from the novel to show Gene’s
differences and 2 quotations to show Phineas’
differences.
3. You MUST have the page numbers written down!
A Separate Peace Compare & Contrast
Expository Essay
 Essay Prompt:
Write an essay in which you compare and contrast the
personalities of the characters Gene and Phineas. Use
evidence from the novel to support your claims.
 Good Format for Cataloguing Info:
Similarities:
1. Quality (the way in which they are similar)
“Evidence here” (68). Make sure you put the page!
2. Quality
“Evidence here” (22).
3. Quality
“Evidence here” (11).
A Separate Peace Compare & Contrast
Expository Essay
 Essay Prompt:
Write an essay in which you compare and contrast the
personalities of the characters Gene and Phineas. Use
evidence from the novel to support your claims.
 Formatting for Inserting Quotations:
1. Gene and Phineas have the similarity of ________.
This is shown when “________________” (68).
2. Gene is a _______ character. This personality trait is
shown when “_______________” (22).
3. *You may choose to rearrange the words or place
your examples in a different format (as long as it
contains the same information).
A Separate Peace Dialectical Journal Directions
Chapter 9
 What to look for:
 Point of View (reliable vs. unreliable narrator)
 Atmosphere/Mood (how it makes the reader feel)
 Tone & Diction (what types of words are used so that you KNOW the speaker’s
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attitude toward the subject?)
Characterization: Names and Descriptions (why would the author describe
them in this manner?)
Evidence of antithesis/foil and the dynamics of the relationship (Envy)
Presence of War
Leper’s enlistment
Phineas’s lack of enthusiasm regarding Leper’s enlistment.
The Devon Winter Carnival
Brinker and the cider (Brinker’s breaking of rules)
The telegram
A Separate Peace Dialectical Journal Directions
Chapter 10
 What to look for:
 Point of View (reliable vs. unreliable narrator)
 Atmosphere/Mood (how it makes the reader feel)
 Tone & Diction (what types of words are used so that you KNOW the speaker’s
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attitude toward the subject?)
Characterization: Names and Descriptions (why would the author describe
them in this manner?)
Evidence of antithesis/foil and the dynamics of the relationship (Envy)
Presence of War
The journey to Leper
Gene’s sudden disregard for rules (Gene’s character’s development)
Change in Leper: “Psycho”
Leper’s accusation
Reality of war
A Separate Peace Dialectical Journal Directions
Chapter 11
 What to look for:
 Point of View (reliable vs. unreliable narrator)
 Atmosphere/Mood (how it makes the reader feel)
 Tone & Diction (what types of words are used so that you KNOW the speaker’s
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attitude toward the subject?)
Characterization: Names and Descriptions (why would the author describe
them in this manner?)
Evidence of antithesis/foil and the dynamics of the relationship (Envy)
Presence of War
Gene’s need to see Finny
“No one was going to win or lose after all”(Knowles 154)
“Sure. There isn’t any war” (Knowles 158)
Brinker’s plan
Finny’s realization about the war.
The trial
Irony of the last witness
White marble stairs
A Separate Peace Dialectical Journal Directions
Chapter 12
 What to look for:
 Point of View (reliable vs. unreliable narrator)
 Atmosphere/Mood (how it makes the reader feel)
 Tone & Diction (what types of words are used so that you KNOW the speaker’s
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attitude toward the subject?)
Characterization: Names and Descriptions (why would the author describe
them in this manner?)
Evidence of antithesis/foil and the dynamics of the relationship (Envy)
Presence of War
Gene’s lack of help during the crisis
“He was by nature someone who carried others” (Knowles 179)
Gene’s vigil through the night
“You want to break something else in me” (Knowles 184)
Finney’s forgiveness
“An operating room and a war” (Knowles 193)
Why does Gene not cry?
A Separate Peace Dialectical Journal Directions
Chapter 13
 What to look for:
 Point of View (reliable vs. unreliable narrator)
 Atmosphere/Mood (how it makes the reader feel)
 Tone & Diction (what types of words are used so that you KNOW the speaker’s
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attitude toward the subject?)
Characterization: Names and Descriptions (why would the author describe
them in this manner?)
Evidence of antithesis/foil and the dynamics of the relationship (Envy)
Presence of War
The invasion of Devon
“Why talk about something you can’t do anything about?” (Knowles 197)
Mr. Hadley- symbolism
“Nothing…had broken his harmonious and natural unity. So at last I had”
(Knowles 203)
Phineas-filled nature
A Separate Peace Socratic Seminar Directions
 What to bring Thursday, December 13th:
 Three questions, written down and answered by yourself, that you had about
the novel.
 Think deeper than surface level. Use the journals as a guide
 One question you had about the novel that you would like answered, written
down on the same piece of paper.
 How grading works:
 Your questions: daily grade
 Each question will be worth 25 points
 If one of the first three have no answer, 10 points will be deducted for each
 Participation in Socratic Seminar: major grade
 Everyone starts with a 70
 Each time you ask a question (that is a higher level question) you gain 10 points
 Lower level questions receive no points
 Each time you add to someone else’s discussion (not just parrot their answer) you
will gain 10 points
 If you do not raise your hand and are called on before speaking, you will gain no
points for that answer
A Separate Peace Socratic Seminar
Possible Question Stems
 What is the importance of the passage beginning on . . . page . . . ?
 What is the narrator’s attitude toward . . . ?
 What does the narrator/a character (name) mean when he says . . . on
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page ?
What is the narrator’s purpose in . . . ?
What is the significance of . . . ?
Clarification (e.g., “What did it mean when…?”)
Cause-Effect (e.g., “Why did … do that?”)
Multiply-Causes (e.g., “What else might have caused…?)
Empathy and Transfer (e.g., “What would you do in …’s place when?”)
Alternatives (e.g., “What could be done to change…?” or “What else
could…have done when…?”)
Principles, Values, Attitudes, Transfer (e.g., “How did you feel when …?”
or “What can be learned from …?”, etc.)
Application: (e.g. Judge the effects of…, cause and effect, etc.)
Analysis: (e.g. What was the role of…, How or why did this lead to…, etc.)
Evaluation: (e.g. What was most important…, Compare…, Judge…, etc.)