Phineas
Finny is a static character because he does not change over the course of the novel. He only has one personality and doesn't change anything about himself. For example he is a poor student and never bothers to get better, he is a loyal friend, even when he suspects Finny shook the tree, and he is positive throughout the novel.
One internal conflict that Finny has is his struggle with the idea that Gene shook the branch of the tree on purpose. After Phineas breaks his leg, Gene comes to see him and admits that he shook the branch. Finny doesn't want to believe him and tells him that he didn't do it. The topic of whether or not Gene shook the branch is discussed throughout the novel and it frustrates Finny because he doesn't see why there needs to be a conclusion if he doesn't believe Gene did it. One external conflict that Finny has is that he broke his leg and won't be able to perorm as well while doing sports. Finny claims he always wanted to be in the olymics, but now that he has this injury he cannot do so. To solve this conflict he trains Gene so he can fill in the gaps for him.
Character Traits
Optimistic
-"He had never been jealous of me for a second. Now I knew that there never was and never could have
been any rivalry between us. I was not of the same quality as he" (51). What this means is that Gene was competing with Finny and thought Finny was competing with Gene, but really Finny was never jealous because he was just happy to have a friend like Gene.
-"'Listen, pal, if I can't play sports, you're going to play them for me'" (77). Even though Finny cannot play sports anymore and should feel devistated, he stays positive about it and tells Gene that he can do it for him.
Naive
-"Sure. There isn't any war". When Gene brings up the topic of war Finny does not want to believe and tells him there isn't any war going on. He doesn't want to accept the fact that something bad is occuring so he says it's not real.
-“Of course you didn’t do it. You damn fool. Sit down, you damn fool”. This is when Gene tells Finny that he shook the limb that made him fall. Gene doesn't want to believe Gene did such a thing because he is his best friend. Again, he doesn't want to bad is occuring so he doesn't believe it.
Relation With Other Characters
-Even though Finny suspects Gene shook the tree, he still stays loyal to him. Instead of pushing him to confess that he shook the tree like the other boys he lets him be an does not discuss the topic with him. At the end of the novel when Gene confesses that he did shake the branch of the tree, Finny is understanding because he is a loyal friend and doesn't want a mistake to get in the way of their friendship. Finny says to Gene,“Then that was it. Something just seized you. It wasn’t anything you really felt against me, it wasn’t some kind of hate you’ve felt all along. It wasn’t anything personal” (182). This quote shows that he forgives Gene and wants him to know it wasn't out of hatred to make Gene feel better about what he had done.
-Even though Finny is a positive person, he tends to get annoyed when people tell him things that he doesn't believe. For example when Gene first tells Finny he shook the limb, Gene tells him to shut up because he doesn't believe he did it. Also at the end of the novel at the meeting he gets so annoyed with all the boys bickering about him falling out of the tree that he claims he doesn't care and storms out of the room. Also when the topic of war is discussed he says he does not believe in it, and does not want to change his opinion on it, even though everyone talks about it and is affecting all of them.
Finny is a static character because he does not change over the course of the novel. He only has one personality and doesn't change anything about himself. For example he is a poor student and never bothers to get better, he is a loyal friend, even when he suspects Finny shook the tree, and he is positive throughout the novel.
One internal conflict that Finny has is his struggle with the idea that Gene shook the branch of the tree on purpose. After Phineas breaks his leg, Gene comes to see him and admits that he shook the branch. Finny doesn't want to believe him and tells him that he didn't do it. The topic of whether or not Gene shook the branch is discussed throughout the novel and it frustrates Finny because he doesn't see why there needs to be a conclusion if he doesn't believe Gene did it. One external conflict that Finny has is that he broke his leg and won't be able to perorm as well while doing sports. Finny claims he always wanted to be in the olymics, but now that he has this injury he cannot do so. To solve this conflict he trains Gene so he can fill in the gaps for him.
Character Traits
Optimistic
-"He had never been jealous of me for a second. Now I knew that there never was and never could have
been any rivalry between us. I was not of the same quality as he" (51). What this means is that Gene was competing with Finny and thought Finny was competing with Gene, but really Finny was never jealous because he was just happy to have a friend like Gene.
-"'Listen, pal, if I can't play sports, you're going to play them for me'" (77). Even though Finny cannot play sports anymore and should feel devistated, he stays positive about it and tells Gene that he can do it for him.
Naive
-"Sure. There isn't any war". When Gene brings up the topic of war Finny does not want to believe and tells him there isn't any war going on. He doesn't want to accept the fact that something bad is occuring so he says it's not real.
-“Of course you didn’t do it. You damn fool. Sit down, you damn fool”. This is when Gene tells Finny that he shook the limb that made him fall. Gene doesn't want to believe Gene did such a thing because he is his best friend. Again, he doesn't want to bad is occuring so he doesn't believe it.
Relation With Other Characters
-Even though Finny suspects Gene shook the tree, he still stays loyal to him. Instead of pushing him to confess that he shook the tree like the other boys he lets him be an does not discuss the topic with him. At the end of the novel when Gene confesses that he did shake the branch of the tree, Finny is understanding because he is a loyal friend and doesn't want a mistake to get in the way of their friendship. Finny says to Gene,“Then that was it. Something just seized you. It wasn’t anything you really felt against me, it wasn’t some kind of hate you’ve felt all along. It wasn’t anything personal” (182). This quote shows that he forgives Gene and wants him to know it wasn't out of hatred to make Gene feel better about what he had done.
-Even though Finny is a positive person, he tends to get annoyed when people tell him things that he doesn't believe. For example when Gene first tells Finny he shook the limb, Gene tells him to shut up because he doesn't believe he did it. Also at the end of the novel at the meeting he gets so annoyed with all the boys bickering about him falling out of the tree that he claims he doesn't care and storms out of the room. Also when the topic of war is discussed he says he does not believe in it, and does not want to change his opinion on it, even though everyone talks about it and is affecting all of them.