Thursday, April 16, 2020

Assignment #5 (72-85) What is the significance/symbolism of the Devon River?

The Devon River signifies friendship, childhood, and growth for Gene. He has had many memories with Finny on the Devon River. He thinks it is a beautiful river and much better than it's neighboring one which signifies adulthood, the war, and the hardships of life. As Gene is rushing to his crew practice he stops to glance at the river and all the memories it holds. As he stares he says, "As I had to do whenever I glimpse at this river, I thought of Phineas... each muscle aligned in perfection with all the others to maintain this supreme fantasy"(Knowles 75). This quote shows the connection that the Devon River has with Gene and Finny's friendship. This river also holds some bad memories such as Finny's fall which Gene feels truly guilty about. However, when Gene stares into the river he decides to ignore all the bad memories. He says, "I thought of Phineas. Not of the tree and pain but one of his favorite tricks (Knowles 75). All in all, the Devon River is really important to both Gene and Finny because of the timeless memories they've made there.
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3 comments:

  1. AnonymousApril 16, 2020 at 2:14 PM

    I agree that the Deven River signifies growth and childhood for Gene since he's had so many memories there. while Gene is on his way to crew he looks at the river and thinks, "Was nothing like the fresh-water Devon above the dam where we'd had so much fun, all the summer" (Knowles 76.) Gene is describing all the fun he had at river and how many memories it holds with him. The river resembles Gene and Finny's adventures together.

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  2. AnonymousApril 16, 2020 at 2:17 PM

    I agree with Antrias that the Devon River is a symbol of Gene’s time at The Devon School when he was younger. The river also signifies how much Gene is turning into Finny after the accident at the tree,”As I had to do whenever I glimpse at this river, I thought of Phineas” (Knowles, 75). This quote signifies that the Devon School is bringing back a lot of memories about Finny and Gene, with their differences and their similarities.

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  3. AnonymousApril 16, 2020 at 3:47 PM

    I totally agree with Antrias, the river can symbolize many things including all of the good times but what if the bad times begin to out weigh the good times. They did have fun there overtime but Finny ended up shattering his leg not allowing him to ever play sports again. Now Gene just got in a fight with Quackenbush by the riverside. "Quackenbush had clamped his arm in some kind of tight wrestling grip around my neck, and I was glad in this moment not to be a cripple" (Knowles 79). Two bad things have occurred a the river, one life changing. The Devon River is becoming more of a negative to Gene than a positive.

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