The Chosen :: essays research papers

The ChosenA. Plot SummaryThe Chosen by Chaim Potok is set in the 1940s neighborhood of Brooklyn in Williamsburg. Two boys who live a few blocks from each other but in totally different environments forge a unique relationship. Reuven Malter, the give-and-take of an Orthodox Jewish scholar, and Danny Saunders, the brilliant son of a great Hasidic rabbi, meet for the first time in a baseball game between their two Jewish parochial schools.& adenineere9Reuven is hit in the eye with a ball hit by Danny and is kept in bed for almost a month. During this time, Reuven befriends Danny as he constantly visits him due to his guilt ab let out almost blinding Reuven. Danny comes to the hospital to chat with Reuven and occasionally talk about the war or his study of the Talmud. When Reuven gets out of the hospital, Danny brings him to his home for Shabbat and to meet his father. Reuven is overwhelmed by his fathers calm and stern manner of speaking to his son. Reuven finds out that Danny must become a rabbi and cannot become a psychologist like he wants. &9Reuven and Danny grow older and they get into the same college. Due to Reuvens father support for the creation of a Jewish assert, Dannys father, who thinks a Jewish state can only be created when the Messiah comes, forbids Danny to speak to Reuven. This goes on for a while before Dannys father accepts that a Jewish states is in the best divert of Jews everywhere and allows them to be friends again.&9In an emotional lecture, Dannys father finally acknowledges Dannys dream and allows him to pursue a career of being a psychologist. B.&9Thematic Discussion&9In The Chosen, Reuven Malter and Danny Saunders form a deep, if unlikely, friendship. This relationship develops over time and also greatly affects the young mens room development. They grow up in different environments and have different upbringings, but deep down inside, they have similar lives. &9Potok is able to full stop out how similar and diffe rent Danny and Reuvens lives are. Reuven has a very open relationship with his father. Dannys father only speaks to Danny when they are studying the Talmud. Danny accepts this reality while Reuven is very fazed by this. Reuven has a hard time coping with silence when his father has a heart attack and has stay in bed for many months " aggregate silence in the apartment was impossible for me to take, and I would go.