In Chaim Potok’s novel The Chosen, readers are introduced to a friendship that stems from the unlikeliest of circumstances. Danny Saunders and Reuven Malter first meet at a baseball game as members of opposing teams. The game quickly turns ugly -- and deadly. But as the two get to know each other through the subsequent months, they discover that they have much in common. Readers also discover the differences between Danny and Reuven that make them interesting and complex characters. Danny Saunders’ intelligence, loneliness, and tenseness are all characteristics with which readers can readily identify. As a young teenager struggling to find his way amidst the oppressive religious environment around him, Danny Saunders’ intelligence is apparent. The author describes him as having both a photographic memory and an exceptional curiosity about the world around him. In fact, Danny wants to study psychology, instead of continuing in his father’s tradition and becoming a rabbi. He spends long hours in the library, studying primary-source material such as the writings of Sigmund Freud. To this note, Danny says to Reuven, “I’m teaching myself German, so I can read him [Freud] in the original. He discovered the unconscious, too” (156). Danny’s intelligence and strong …show more content…
There is literally no one in the world he can talk to. He needs a friend” (110). Mr. Malter’s description of Danny sounds quite harsh, but it was the unfortunate reality for Mr. Saunders’s eldest child. Danny exemplifies the stereotype of a “loner”, choosing to spend long hours alone studying in the library. Perhaps he finds an escape from his complicated world between the pages of a textbook, or maybe he just does not enjoy socializing. Whatever the case, Danny and Reuven bond over their shared disconnection from the world around them, although Danny’s social struggles seem more significant than Reuven’s. Indeed, Reuven may well be Danny’s only