The most memorable moment for section four of A Separate Peace is without a doubt when Finny passes away. This was the most memorable moment for more reasons than one. The most obvious would be that it is the most memorable because it is the only death contained in the novel, not to mention it being the death of one of the main characters. Finny's character was something special and unique, the likes of which the school (Devon) had never seen. With that said, it was an understatement to say that Finny was well-known throughout the school, not only by his peers-both younger and older-but by the teachers and headmasters as well. When Finny died, the sorrow of the entire school could be felt as if a personal blow had been dealt, in which everyone in the school was victim. It was also quite shocking because no one was expecting a fatality due to the commonness of his injury.
Besides the fact that he died, the events prior to, and following his death were moments of epiphany for the two main characters, Gene and Finny. In other words, Finny's death was a key event in the plot. Gene and Finny had been living in denial; an illusion of innocence that they together had concocted in order to avoid the dark truth of what truly happened that summer day where things took a turn for the worst. Gene-on impulse-had pushed Finny out of the tree, which put a sudden halt to Finny's athletic future forever. Finny-knowing the truth all along-refused to believe that his best friend would intentionally hurt him the way that he did. The moments leading up to Finny's unfortunate death consisted of a final confrontation of the truth, in which Finny was forced to face the fact that Gene was to blame for his incident the past summer while Gene was forced to take responsibility for his malicious act against his best friend and the reasoning behind doing so. Finny was finally "broken" and what that means is that his illusion of peace was shattered which caused his entire being to respond. Finny was the type who did not believe in fighting, but rather competition. He convinced himself and partly Gene as well that Gene was not responsible for him falling out of the tree. He did this because he did not want to face the truth, which meant hating his best friend. When finally he had no choice, all his frustration and hatred-which he had pent up inside of him and denied-were unleashed. The last time Finny and Gene speak, Finny confides how angry he is at Gene, and Gene, for the first time, formally apologized for what he had done. Finny had accepted that Gene had acted purely out of impulse and soon after, died. It was almost as if Finny thrived off of the innocence of the Summer Session, and now that it was gone he was waiting to pass, but could not because he had to settle the relationship between Gene and himself.
When Gene was confronted with the truth, he was also subconsciously battling his own inner demons. The death of not only his best friend but also his idol preceded the death of the struggle between him and himself. With the death of Finny, he came to the realization that although the war was raging on, and he would soon be drafted into it, that the only battle that truly mattered was over; the battle in which he had destroyed his true enemy during his time at Devon-himself.
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