Characters and Quotes
Which character is known for his authority and seriousness, often representing structure and justice at Devon?
Who is Brinker?
What activity do Finny and Gene start that involves jumping from a tree into the river?
The Super Suicide Society of the Summer Session
What season at Devon represents innocence and carefree youth?
What is summer?
What archetype does Gene’s personal journey best represent?
What is Bildungsroman (coming-of-age).
Who organizes the mock trial that leads to Finny’s second accident?
Who is Brinker?
Who says, “I don’t believe in enemies”?
Who is Finny?
What happens when Gene jounces the limb during the tree scene?
What is Finny falls and breaks his leg.
The tree at Devon can symbolize what?
What is temptation or risk?
Which character fits the “tragic hero” archetype?
Who is Finny?
What happens to Finny after he storms out of the trial?
What is he falls down the marble stairs and re-injures his leg?
Gene says, “It was only after dinner that I realized this had been my purpose from the first: to become a part of Phineas.” What does this reveal about his feelings toward Finny?
What is he both admires and wants to merge with Finny, showing his dependence and envy.
What sport does Finny invent to replace traditional games?
Blitzball
What does water often symbolize in the novel, especially when Gene jumps into the river alone?
What is Cleansing, transition, or rebirth.
What is Finny’s tragic flaw?
What is his inability to see anyone as an enemy / his innocence and denial?
How does Finny die?
What is bone marrow from the surgery enters his bloodstream, causing a fatal complication?
Which character’s worldview most strongly contrasts Gene’s cynical perspective, and how?
Who is Finny — he is innocent, trusting, and refuses to see evil, contrasting Gene’s insecurity and suspicion.
What does Finny accuse Gene of when Gene tries to tell him the truth in the infirmary?
What is Finny refuses to believe Gene would cause the fall and accuses him of trying to make him feel bad.
Which early description foreshadows Finny’s fall later in the novel?
What is the ominous description of the tree in Chapter 1 and Gene’s hesitation foreshadow the accident.
How does Gene fit the archetype of the “rival”?
What is he experiences jealousy, competition, and betrayal toward Finny despite their friendship?
What realization does Gene have after Finny’s death about “the enemy”?
What is he realizes his real enemy was inside himself—his jealousy and insecurity?
Who does Gene truly “battle” throughout the novel, and how is this reflected in his interactions with others?
What is himself? His jealousy, guilt, and insecurity shape his behavior toward Finny and others; his “enemy” is internal.
Why does Gene decide not to enlist with Brinker?
Finny’s return pulls Gene back into their shared world, making him abandon the enlistment plan.
How does the changing setting from summer to winter mirror Gene’s internal development?
What is summer mirrors innocence and freedom; winter mirrors guilt, isolation, and the encroachment of adult realities (the war).
How does Gene’s “war within” fulfill the classic structure of a bildungsroman?
What is he begins naive, faces inner and moral conflict (his jealousy and guilt), experiences crisis (Finny’s fall and trial), and reaches maturity through reflection and acceptance?
Why is the presence of soldiers on campus at the end of the novel significant?
What is it symbolizes the end of innocence and the intrusion of the adult world (war) into their once-peaceful space