Literary Quote of the Day: Finny's Fall

The novel’s protagonist, Gene, has issues. His best friend has a limp, a permanent limp probably and Gene is the one who caused it. Don’t you hate it when in a fit of jealousy you cause your best friend to fall off a tree limb and he becomes permanently crippled?

At this point of the novel, Gene debuts as the assistant crew manager on the rowing team. He remarks on the occasion.

Quote: "I supposed that Quackenbush was studying me to see if he could detect a limp. But I knew that his flat black eyes would never detect my trouble" (77).

Analysis: Gene knows that Quackenbush likes to assert his authority over those whom he considers inferior, on account of his own inferiority. It was common for the assistant crew manager, Gene's position on the rowing team, to have some physical malady that prevented him from participating in a sport. Gene's true limp, however, existed metaphorically in his soul. By expressing his deficiency in this manner, Gene highlights his desire to be just like Finny, whose limp is real, and whose limp he caused.

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