ipl-logo

What Is The Theme Of Friendship In The Chosen By Chaim Potok

1147 Words5 Pages

Friendship, one of the great relationships of this world, and it goes without saying that a good friend is a true blessing. Indeed, if you have a good friend who will remain true to you throughout your life and theirs, you have received more than you deserve in this world, and a true companion, one to hear your troubles and to help you through them, and you to do the same. But imagine for a second that you and your dearest friend come from families that are complete opposites. So goes the tale of Reuven Malter and Danny Saunders, two friends in an extremely odd relationship who were brought together through an injury from a baseball game. Out of the two book of the first semester, I enjoyed The Chosen written by Chaim Potok because of three …show more content…

Reuven’s father brings him up in a normal way, advising him to be wise and act wisely and actually was the one to encourage his friendship with Danny. Danny’s father, raises him differently, and in quite a unique method to too! He brings him up “in silence,” meaning not speaking to him or answering any questions he may have. At the end of the book, he reveals why he raised him in silence, and this is the most powerful display of affection he has given in the book, and arguably the most powerful display of affection throughout the book given by any character. The reason given for this is because he believes that all people have souls and minds. Danny, however, seems to have only a mind, and how brilliant a mind that he has! It constantly seeks knowledge and absorbs it like a sponge, and it seems as if he does not have a soul, which can be dangerous to a religious person. It is revealed that Mr. Saunders had a brother just like Danny, and he went off in search of knowledge, eventually dying in a gas chamber at Auschwitz, and Mr. Saunders does not want Danny’s life to end in the same way that his brother did. So he brings him up in silence, so that Danny may reflect and develop his soul, to have compassion and not only seek …show more content…

These three themes (Friendship, parental love, and conflict) have been woven together into a wonderful journey taken together with them. As we read this book, we see that the author has written in sagacious insight into these three themes, as well as ways that we can carry out and express these three themes in out own lives. Philia, friendship, to our friends, to always help them and listen to them, though they may come from differing backgrounds. Storge, parental love, which Mr. Malter expresses the almost ideal way to bring up your child in bringing up Reuven. Conflict, that we should not avoid it completely, but we should instead try to look at things from different perspectives and constantly challenge our own beliefs to better understand them and the beliefs of others. Those three life lessons and themes have blended together to make The Chosen, my favorite book of the first

Show More
Related

Friendship Between Reuven And Danny In Antigone

270 Words | 2 Pages

Reuven was glad that Danny came to visit again despite their previous encounter. after sending Danny away, he was surprised at his own actions and had come to regret it at the end. His own father reminded him that the Talmud says that if a person is willing to apologize for his own wrongdoing, then you must at least try to understand and forgive him and that is exactly what Reuven intends to do after feeling angry and depressed with himself from what he had said to Danny. Throughout this chapter, an unlikely friendship between the two boys develop. They begin to talk and learn more about one another rather than dwelling in fateful day of the ballgame; in other words, they let bygones be bygones.

Read More

Summary Of Tim Pegler's Game As Ned

910 Words | 4 Pages

The concept that children are shaped by the troubles that they are confronted with, and eventually overcome, is explored in the novel ‘Game as Ned’ by the author Tim Pegler. However, not only is it the challenges that shape them, it is also the way they treat others, and vice versa, that affects them. In the story character development is made clear as characters are faced with difference, bullying, injustice and other obstacles. And with each experience, whether a good or bad one, it has the power to change the characters in a significant manner. Throughout his childhood Ned was faced with constant challenges all of which have changed him into what he is, his autism being one of the main obstacles that has impacted him.

Read More

Vision As A Motif In Chaim Potok's The Chosen

478 Words | 2 Pages

Reuven found a new appreciation of his health since he could have gone blind. Another example of perception change from the novel is when Reuven realizes Danny isn't how he appeared to be. During the story, Mr. Malter says “Things are always as they seem to be, Reuven?”. He says this because Reuven told him that it seemed like Danny hit him deliberately.

Read More

Examples Of Family Influence In The Other Wes Moore

1350 Words | 6 Pages

This book is a major example of how certain decisions can affect one’s life. Both Wes’ had similar lives, yet they ended up in different paths. There are few factors why they ended up having different paths and those factors are; parental support and figures, the environment style, and the social influences. In The Other Wes Moore, family ties are very strong and both families of the two boys had certain expectations for them, but one family more than the other.

Read More

The Chosen By Chaim Potok Analysis

619 Words | 3 Pages

Saying that the eyes are the windows to the soul has a special meaning in this story. When Danny hurts Reuven’s eye he is shattering the window to his soul in a infuriated way which is clear when he says, “Well that’s when I wanted to walk over to you and open your head with my bat” (page 71) However only once Danny looks into the broken windows of Reuven’s soul, he sees his ideal life. He sees Reuven with a father that loves him, and isn’t forcing him in any direction, in short he sees freedom. Although one of the small reasons that he forms this friendship I believe he wants to be friends because it is the closest he will ever have to a free life.

Read More

Spiritual Conflicts In The Promise By Chaim Potok

1558 Words | 7 Pages

In his book The Promise Chaim Potok leads the reader on a heartbreaking journey full of spiritual conflict and decision. As a sequel to The Chosen, The Promise picks up with Reuven Malter, the main character and a Jewish man now in his mid-twenties, attending Hirsch University, a Jewish seminary in Brooklyn, New York. Reuven keeps his friendship with Danny Saunders, whom he met on a baseball field during his teenage years and later went to college with, even though they now go their separate ways as Reuven becomes a rabbi, and Danny practices psychology. During the summer Reuven dates Rachel Gordon, the niece of Abraham Gordon, a man excommunicated from the Jewish society, and meets Abraham’s son, Michael, a stubborn teen with a mental issue. Also, over the same summer Reuven’s father, David Malter, wrote a controversial book about the Talmud.

Read More

Character Analysis Of Danny Saunders In The Chosen By Chaim Potok

602 Words | 3 Pages

When Reuven first meets Danny’s father Danny’s marvelous intellect is displayed when he and his father go into a game of sorts in front over everyone at the dinner. In this game, his father will say, something intentionally wrong about a religious text and Danny is to correct him from memory, out of the two times Danny and his father are shown to play this game Danny only messed up once. The sheer fact that he has only been shown to have messed up once is not the only way that shows his brilliance, later on, he says to Reuven “ I don’t mind it. I even enjoy it a little” (143). After reading that there is no argument for the lack of Danny’s brilliance.

Read More

Free Choice In Chaim Potok's The Chosen

1215 Words | 5 Pages

Unfortunately, the gift of free choice is taken for granted by those who have it, and is constantly dreamed of by those who weren’t granted such liberty. In the novel, The Chosen, Danny Saunders, the eldest son of a Hasidic tsaddik, was not granted the freedom to choose his own destiny as it was predetermined that he was to follow in his father’s footsteps. However, Danny wanted more from life, and for the majority of his childhood and adolescence, continued to struggle between straying away to make his own choices or to stick with religious and familial tradition. The novel is centered around this conflict and the choices that Danny eventually made in order to create the life he desired, even if it meant sacrificing years of tradition and responsibility. Therefore, the book’s preliminary focus of choice making and one’s ability to make choices would make “The Choice” a more suitable title for the novel.

Read More

Summary Of The Chosen By Chaim Potok

548 Words | 3 Pages

Mr. Malter explains to his son that despite pride or anger, one must show forgiveness and kindness. In addition, David also exemplifies wisdom as he quietly and subtly introduces Reuven and Danny to become more than just acquaintances. He decides to intelligently take it slow when introducing the two, in order to ensure they could develop a strong friendship. Hence,

Read More

The Multifaceted Character Of Reb Saunders

228 Words | 1 Pages

At the end of the story, Reb Saunders finally revealed the motives behind his harsh actions, showing that he was truly a complex, multifaceted character. Reb Saunders seemed to have a limited, parochial perspective, but, in fact, it was really Reuven’s view of Reb Saunders that had been limited. To everyone’s surprise, Reb Saunders was not enraged by Danny’s decision of not becoming a rabbi, and even confessed that he had already known of Danny’s feelings for quite a while. He explained that his silence toward Danny, which Reuven assumed to be reflecting a lack of love, reflected just the opposite. He stated his silence as a rather selfless act to give his son emotion and compassion, respect and empathy for others, and an awareness of the suffering

Read More

Friendship In Chaim Potok's The Chosen

476 Words | 2 Pages

“I [Reuven] saw Danny all the time in school, but the silence between us continued. We had begun to communicate with our eyes, with nods of our heads, with gestures of our hands. But we did not speak to each other.” (Pages 255-256) Reuven and Danny were not allowed to speak to each other, so they communicated without speaking. They kept their friendship alive even though Danny’s father had tried to kill it.

Read More

The Chosen By Chaim Pottok Character Analysis

814 Words | 4 Pages

He has a way with communicating the story in a way that you are immediately intrigued. Towards the end of the book, you get to see a side of Reb Saunders that is only shown in this section of the book. Danny and Reuven meet with Reb one last time before attending college. This has been hard for Reb to accept the desires of his son, Danny. In the final chapter, Reb shows approval of his son’s decisions.

Read More

The Things They Carried, By Zora Neale Hurston

1746 Words | 7 Pages

One major theme authors universally write their stories around concern the power of human relationships. Though writers may take different paths to communicate this, the strength that comes from these unique connections that exist between individuals resonates with everyone. Authors clearly articulate through a myriad of rhetorical devices that maintaining relationships is a fundamental part in personal growth and allows for a stronger sense of self. In finding companionship and comradery. people become capable of evolving and arriving at better understandings of who they are.

Read More

The Chosen: A Literary Analysis

655 Words | 3 Pages

In “The Chosen,” Chaim Potok uses the relationship between Danny and Reuven to show the social and political problems that they dealt with. Reuven didn’t fully understand the Hasidic view on things; he asked his dad, Mr. Malter, many questions, that of which his dad knew most or just gave his opinions. Reuven was drug into Danny’s father, Reb Saunders’s, synagogue multiple times, where he learned more about the Talmud and the history behind the Hasidic religion. Reb Saunders’s was considered a tzaddik, by which everyone looked upon him as a god, but a tzaddik is just a pious leader that is a messenger between God and man. Also, with Reb Saunders being a tzaddik, he will have to pass down the role to his son, Danny.

Read More

Friendship In 'The Wednesday Wars' By Gary D. Schmidt

414 Words | 2 Pages

Friendship. It is something that is essential to human life. Without it, life can be miserable. However, spoiling children is something the world should be without. It happens constantly, though.

Read More

More about What Is The Theme Of Friendship In The Chosen By Chaim Potok

Related Topics

Open Document