Importance of violence in a Separate Peace

World War II was a period of violence across globe, and many works of literature of the time reflect this. While works such as All Quite on the Western Front and The Soldier Spies focus on the violence of the war itself, other novels of the period are more about the home life during the war, and have little to do with the hostility in the war. And, while violence does exist in the book A Separate Peace by John Knowles, the scenes contribute to the overall meaning and themes of the story.
There are three essential scenes of violence in the story, each of which helps to emphasize the growth of the main character Gene Forrester throughout his life at Devon school, a school very similar to one Phillips Exeter Academy that Knowles attended as a youth.
The first scene of violence, which happens to be the first of two climaxes, occurs when Gene shakes the limb that he and Finny are standing on, causing Finny to fall to the ground, shattering his leg. The fall seemed to be an a...