The desperate search for a place to express one's true personality and background is a major factor in creating internal conflicts. Furthermore, as they approach adulthood, they are generally placed in a competitive environment surrounding them with their peers. At private boarding schools, students experience greater pressure, feeling the weight of their family's dependence on their success, the need to excel above others, and the knowledge that their future will be shaped by their experiences as they progress into adulthood. This essay analyzes how both the novels, A Separate Piece, by John Knowles, and Old School, by Tobias Wolff, illustrate the internal struggles of the main characters as they deal with the pressure of maintaining a false personality to interact with their classmates. To achieve their goals of success, both Gene and the narrator's internal conflicts are presented as they obsess over gaining positive recognition, become paranoid about how their peers view them, and unconsciously succumb to jealousy. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Once you begin to rely on the approval of others, you can become insecure, expecting to always succeed and attacking yourself whenever you fail. While he initially develops a sense of accomplishment whenever he is completed by his best friend, Gene, from A Separate Piece, he gradually interprets Phineas' praise as a form of jealousy. When he first receives a bad grade on a test after being taken to the beach by Phineas, Gene begins to suspect that any innocent action he took was a form of sabotage, stating, "Finny had deliberately set out to ruin my studies ... It was all cold deception, all calculated, all enmity.” Gene's immediate reaction to believing this conclusion shows his internal conflict, first committing himself to believing that his best friend was conspiring against him, rather than simply congratulating himself. with him. Furthermore, during the chapters preceding the accident, Gene is forced to repeatedly remind himself that Phineas is his best friend, later hoping to preserve his faltering friendship by pretending that he did not cause it narrator shows a similar reaction in his jealousy towards his classmates and belief of hypocrisy in his actions Furthermore, the narrator's internal conflict expands and makes him appear ignorant, outwardly rejecting the idea of ​​telling others about his heritage. Jewish and believing in an imaginative form of superiority. Rather than dedicating himself to naturally writing his own story, the narrator also expects to create a masterpiece within the last few days of the deadline by copying various works on his typewriter. Later, this form of practice causes the narrator to unintentionally plagiarize another student's work, and when accused of stealing the story, he apologizes by saying, "I'm sorry... I don't understand... Even with the evidence in hand, even knowing that someone named Susan Friedman had written the story, I still considered it mine.” Because she is initially unaware of her wrongdoings, this scene from the novel describes how internal conflict can cloud perception and make ultimately damaging mistakes. the reputation. Keep in mind: this is just one example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers nowBasing their reports on suspicions and developing a narcissistic view of.