Gene’s Slowly Growing Green-Eyed Monster “It is the green-ey'd monster, which doth mock. The meat it feeds on.” This quote from William Shakespeare’s “Othello” portrays jealousy in an accurate way. In John Knowles’ novel, “A Separate Peace,” Gene Forrester is the host body of this “green-the eyed monster.” When I first read this novel, I noticed that as Gene’s emulousness grows, more beleaguered he becomes. Gene’s best friend Phineas is an extraordinary athlete. Gene instinctively caused him to fall out of a tree, hindering him from participating sports forever, which later contributes to his cause of premature death. Gene’s world becomes shambolic. He has always admired Phineas, and maybe if he wasn’t aware of it, he has been emulous. Because Gene causes Phineas to fall due to his emulousness possessing him, he becomes beleaguered. Gene Forrester may not be aware of it, but he is emulous. Early in the novel, when Phineas has gotten himself into some trouble, he used his charm to avoid punishment. After this occurrence, Gene says, “Phineas could get away with anything. I couldn’t help envying him a little, which was perfectly normal. There was no harm in envying even your best fried a little.” This evidence shows that even in the beginning of the novel, he envied …show more content…
This later causes Gene to become beleaguered. After the accident, when other characters in the book ask him about it, Gene becomes a little defensive. This is because he is stressed out about what has happened and feels the need to protect himself. This shows that even a miniscule amount of jealousy can go a long way. In the beginning of the novel, Gene has a spark of envy, which later is fueled and turns into a massive bonfire that engulfs his entire life. When the fire of envy simmers down and only the ashes are left, it is obvious to see that the stress caused by this jealousy is not worth the initial