Friendship Exposed In Chaim Potok's The Chosen

Chaim Potok grew up in the Bronx, New York. Born to two Jewish immigrants, Chaim was very religious and grew up to become a rabbi. He also took up the passion of writing, by which he was inspired to write many fiction novels and later, The Chosen. By understanding the author’s purpose, contrasting diction, and the main character’s growth in Chaim Potok’s The Chosen, one can analyze the relationship between Hasidic and Orthodox Jews, the underdeveloped climax, and the value of friendship that the novel displays between Reuven Malter and Danny Saunders.
The Chosen was written to show the value of friendship and it’s overbearing force on those it affects. The main characters, Reuven Malter and Danny Saunders are near-opposites. They have contrasting interests, as well as beliefs. This is trumped by the friendship that grows despite their differences. Their friendship was solely built because Danny wanted to “understand why he wanted to kill Reuven” (Potok 66). Despite this, they become very close and important in each other’s lives. Chaim obviously wanted to display that message in the writing of this book, but in a way he could understand- with the clash of Hasidism and Modern Orthodox ‘apikorism’.

Reuven is inspired by Danny to become more involved in his religious community, and become a rabbi. The character transitioned from someone with a burning anger towards the Hasidics, who were incredibly religious, to someone near that level. While this is interesting to watch across the pages of the novel, it leads to a simple and basic plot line. Despite the lack of plot, the characters incite some build up in the story. There is a visible inciting incident, but the climax is difficult to define because of the lack of build up the book exhibits. By no means does this limit the intrigue of the novel, but it’s something to consider when analyzing the