Who is responsible for Finny falling off the tree?

• A. Gene
• B. Leper
• C. Cliff Quackenbush
• D. Finny

Answer: (A)

The moment tests how responsibility is tied to motive and choice, not just the outward result. In this scene at Devon, Gene feels secretly threatened by Finny’s natural athleticism and charm, and that jealousy pushes him to act. He deliberately jostles the tree limb while Finny is perched on it, hoping to disrupt Finny’s confidence or to assert himself in their fragile friendship. The fall is the direct consequence of that deliberate act, and Gene later admits he did it, which confirms his responsibility. The other characters—Leper, Cliff Quackenbush, and Finny himself—aren’t the cause of the accident. Finny’s fall, therefore, stems from Gene’s choice and the tangled mix of rivalry and guilt Gene carries.