This quote can apply to Finny because it corresponds to his dramatic decline after severely breaking his leg toward the beginning of the novel. Before Gene purposely knocks Finny off the tree branch hanging over the Devon River, Finny is the most celebrated athlete in the entire school. Gene is in awe of Finny's natural abilities; he has even witnessed him break the school swimming record on a random night with no audience. Finny is also a fierce competitor and never loses an athletic competition at Devon. During the Summer Session, the boys forget about World War II, and enlisting is the last thing on their minds.
After Finny breaks his leg, he can no longer compete with the other boys and is forced to go home for an extended period of time. Finny's inability to compete and participate in athletic activities with the other boys prevents him from evolving....
Unlock This Answer Now
Start your 48-hour free trial and get ahead in class. Boost your grades with access to expert answers and top-tier study guides. Thousands of students are already mastering their assignments—don't miss out. Cancel anytime.
Already a member? Log in here.
He realizes that he will never be the same and that his injury will prevent him from enlisting in the armed forces, which is why he refuses to acknowledge that World War II is actually taking place. Finny's optimism vanishes, and he loses hope of achieving his dream, which is to fight alongside his fellow soldiers in World War II. Tragically, Finny suffers another serious leg injury and loses his life. Overall, Finny's injury prevents him from evolving with his peers at Devon, which negatively affects his perception of the war and eventually leads to his death.
This quote "Everything has to evolve or it perishes" fits Phineas from A Separate Peace perfectly. Phineas is young, athletic, strong, and has a highly energetic personality. He looks forward to serving in the war effort because of these fabulous qualities. He has so much energy for life in him that he could accomplish anything he sets his mind to. All he has to do is pass high school and start his life's journey and he will soar like an eagle. Ironically, though, Phineas breaks his leg and is confined to a wheelchair for a few months at the beginning of his senior year. He eventually evolves to using a cane, which shows his progress in healing; but then he never gets a chance to progress past using it because he breaks his leg again!
Not only does Phineas decline physically, he also declines psychologically. After the first broken leg, Phineas realizes that he won't be able to go to the war and he becomes depressed. He doesn't admit this depression to anyone, of course, but it slowly leads him into denial about the war. Before he broke his leg for the first time, Phineas would talk about the news from the war; but after the broken leg, he outwardly declares that there is no World War II. His best friend Gene becomes very concerned about him at that point.
Referring to the Roaring Twenties, Phineas concocts a theory about the war being a lie and shares this with Gene as follows:
"Well what happened was that they didn't like that, the preachers and the old ladies and all the stuffed shirts. So then they tried Prohibition and everybody just got drunker, so then they really got desperate and arranged the Depression. That kept the people who were young in the thirties in their places. But they couldn't use that trick forever, so for us in the forties they've cooked up this war fake" (115).
Clearly, Phineas is on the decline here. He can't evolve like others in his class because he can't compete like he normally had. So he creates in his mind a world in which he doesn't feel as left out. It's as if he is using his own insecurities to create a reality in which he feels competent. The reality is, however, he is perishing, not evolving. Sadly, it all ends horribly when he breaks his leg for the second time and he physically perishes due to surgical complications.Â