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The Chosen (Chaim Potok)
Encyclopedia
The Chosen is a novel
written by Chaim Potok
. It was published in 1969. It follows the main character Reuven Malter and his friend Daniel Saunders, as they grow up in New York in the 1940s. A sequel featuring Reuven's young adult years is titled The Promise.
, Brooklyn
, New York City
. The story takes place over a period of six years, beginning in 1944 when the protagonists are fifteen years old. It is set against the backdrop of the historical events of the time: the death of President Roosevelt
, the end of World War II
, the revelation of the Holocaust in Europe, and the struggle for the creation of the state of Israel
.
Danny and Reuven meet for the first time as rivals in a softball game between their school teams that turns into a spiritual war. Danny's batting style is such that the ball is sent speeding back up the middle of the field, and so he receives a reputation of trying to kill pitchers. Angered by unsuccessful attempts to hit Reuven's previous pitches, Danny hits a line drive toward Reuven, shattering his glasses and sending him to the hospital with an injured eye.
.)
for the world," Reb Saunders tells Reuven. Saunders then finally, after many years, truly talks to Danny, asking him to forgive him for the pain he caused, bringing him up as he did. The words finally spoken, he leaves the room, and both boys burst into tears.
. Danny tells Reuven that his younger brother Levi will take his place as his father's successor, and his own relationship with Reb Saunders has completely changed. "We talk now," he says quietly. Danny is finally set free, and Reuven and Danny taste profoundly the pain in life, and the consolation of deep friendship. Danny goes on to study psychology.
Danny:
Danny's phenomenal mind compels him to seek knowledge other than that permitted by his father, and he spends his spare time reading voraciously in secret in the public library. (Danny tells Reuven about an older man he met there who has been recommending books for him to read; both are astonished when the man turns out to be Reuven's own father.) Danny does not want to inherit his father's position as leader of their sect, as is expected of him; he desires instead to become a psychologist. He learns to read German just to read a book by Freud. Another great conflict in his life is that his father does not speak to him, except when they study Jewish law together; this has been so since he was a toddler.
Reb Saunders:
Reb Saunders welcomes Reuven as his son's friend, even though he disapproves of his father's work. "You think it is easy to be a friend?" Reb Saunders says to Reuven when they first meet. "If you are truly his friend, you will learn otherwise." Reuven does learn as he is put in the position of being a buffer between father and son. Reb Saunders forces Reuven into a position to tell him of his son's secular studies even though Reb Saunders had known about it for a while already. Reuven impresses Reb Saunders by his understanding of Jewish law and tradition. Reb Saunders impresses Reuven in turn, as Reuven sees the important role he plays to the people of his congregation. He raised his son in silence, which allowed him to learn to find his soul.
He was a very difficult man to understand, but a great one at that.
Daniel (Danny) Saunders: a Hasidic Jew
, who is also a teenager. Brilliant; with a photographic memory, and interested in psychology (particularly Freudian psychoanalysis
). He wants to become a psychologist, but he feels trapped by the Hasidic tradition which forces him into the role as next in line to succeed his father as Rabbi.
David Malter (Reuven's father): a Talmud
ic scholar, teacher, Zionist. Considered a heretic
by fundamentalist Hasidim. Supports the creation of the state of Israel because of his belief in the Messianic Age, rather than a literal Messiah.
Rabbi
Isaac Saunders (Reb Saunders): Rabbinic sage and tzaddik. He is Danny's father. Rebbe (spiritual leader) of a Hasidic sect, whose role is dynastic (passed on from father to son). He moved his congregation from Russia to the United States before the October Revolution
. He is against a secular Jewish nation-state, because he believes this supersedes God's will.
Another important theme is the contrast of tradition to modernity. Reb Saunders insulates and isolates himself from the modern world from the method used to study Talmud to the creation of the state of Israel. It is the struggle that many immigrants have experienced coming to America.
in 1981, and a short-lived off-Broadway musical was produced in 1988. It closed after a week of performances. The book was adapted into a straight play by Potok and Aaron Posner and premiered at the Arden Theater in 1999. Potok wrote a sequel titled The Promise.
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
written by Chaim Potok
Chaim Potok
Chaim Potok was an American Jewish author and rabbi. Potok is most famous for his first book The Chosen, a 1967 novel which was listed on The New York Times’ best seller list for 39 weeks and sold more than 3,400,000 copies.-Biography :Herman Harold Potok was born in The Bronx, New York City, to...
. It was published in 1969. It follows the main character Reuven Malter and his friend Daniel Saunders, as they grow up in New York in the 1940s. A sequel featuring Reuven's young adult years is titled The Promise.
Plot
The Chosen is set in the 1900s, in WilliamsburgWilliamsburg, Brooklyn
Williamsburg is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, bordering Greenpoint to the north, Bedford-Stuyvesant to the south, Bushwick to the east and the East River to the west. The neighborhood is part of Brooklyn Community Board 1. The neighborhood is served by the NYPD's 90th ...
, Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. The story takes place over a period of six years, beginning in 1944 when the protagonists are fifteen years old. It is set against the backdrop of the historical events of the time: the death of President Roosevelt
President Roosevelt
President Roosevelt can refer to two different people who were President of the United States:*Theodore Roosevelt , 26th President from 1901 to 1909, see Presidency of Theodore Roosevelt...
, the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the revelation of the Holocaust in Europe, and the struggle for the creation of the state of Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
.
Baseball Game
In Chap. 1:Danny and Reuven meet for the first time as rivals in a softball game between their school teams that turns into a spiritual war. Danny's batting style is such that the ball is sent speeding back up the middle of the field, and so he receives a reputation of trying to kill pitchers. Angered by unsuccessful attempts to hit Reuven's previous pitches, Danny hits a line drive toward Reuven, shattering his glasses and sending him to the hospital with an injured eye.
Zionism
Reuven comes to experience the pain of silence himself, while the two young men are in college together. Though accepted as family after he stays with the Saunderses while his father is recovering at the hospital, he incurs Reb Saunders's wrath when he speaks favorably of the struggle to establish a secular Jewish nation in Palestine, which Saunders vehemently opposes. When Mr. Malter makes a speech at a pro-Israel rally that makes the newspapers, Saunders forbids his son to speak to Reuven, or even mention his name. (Danny breaks this order once, to let Reuven know, but tells him "I won't go against my father. I won't!") The ban lasts for two years, during which time Reuven experiences anguish, rage, and depression (particularly after his father suffers a second heart attack), before learning to cope with being alone.Friendship resumed
Their friendship resumes after modern Israel is founded; Danny explains to Reuven that Reb Saunders has relented, since the new nation is "no longer an issue; it's a fact." Reuven finds that Danny has come to terms with the silence imposed by his father, having discovered that silence can be a teacher, and a source of beauty as well as pain. Danny himself waits in fear for the day following graduation, when he must tell his father that he does not wish to succeed him. (Reb Saunders already knows this to be true, after Danny receives an acceptance letter from Columbia UniversityColumbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
.)
Father and son reconciled
Reuven again finds himself a buffer between father and son when, in the novel's climax, the two friends learn Reb Saunders's purpose for raising his son in silence: Reb Saunders had discovered early on that his son's dawning intelligence was far outstripping his sense of compassion for others. He wanted his son to understand the meaning of pain, so he shut him out emotionally. Finding the grown-up Danny indeed has a heart, and cares deeply about other people, Reb Saunders is willing to give his blessing to Danny's dream of studying psychology. "He will be a tzadikTzadik
Tzadik/Zadik/Sadiq is a title given to personalities in Jewish tradition considered righteous, such as Biblical figures and later spiritual masters. The root of the word ṣadiq, is ṣ-d-q , which means "justice" or "righteousness", also the root of Tzedakah...
for the world," Reb Saunders tells Reuven. Saunders then finally, after many years, truly talks to Danny, asking him to forgive him for the pain he caused, bringing him up as he did. The words finally spoken, he leaves the room, and both boys burst into tears.
Ending
Danny visits Reuven on his way to Columbia University, his Hasidic locks shorn and his clothing up to date. Reuven has definitely decided he wants to be a rabbi, and is going on to study at a yeshivaYeshiva
Yeshiva is a Jewish educational institution that focuses on the study of traditional religious texts, primarily the Talmud and Torah study. Study is usually done through daily shiurim and in study pairs called chavrutas...
. Danny tells Reuven that his younger brother Levi will take his place as his father's successor, and his own relationship with Reb Saunders has completely changed. "We talk now," he says quietly. Danny is finally set free, and Reuven and Danny taste profoundly the pain in life, and the consolation of deep friendship. Danny goes on to study psychology.
Context
Danny:
Danny's phenomenal mind compels him to seek knowledge other than that permitted by his father, and he spends his spare time reading voraciously in secret in the public library. (Danny tells Reuven about an older man he met there who has been recommending books for him to read; both are astonished when the man turns out to be Reuven's own father.) Danny does not want to inherit his father's position as leader of their sect, as is expected of him; he desires instead to become a psychologist. He learns to read German just to read a book by Freud. Another great conflict in his life is that his father does not speak to him, except when they study Jewish law together; this has been so since he was a toddler.
Reb Saunders:
Reb Saunders welcomes Reuven as his son's friend, even though he disapproves of his father's work. "You think it is easy to be a friend?" Reb Saunders says to Reuven when they first meet. "If you are truly his friend, you will learn otherwise." Reuven does learn as he is put in the position of being a buffer between father and son. Reb Saunders forces Reuven into a position to tell him of his son's secular studies even though Reb Saunders had known about it for a while already. Reuven impresses Reb Saunders by his understanding of Jewish law and tradition. Reb Saunders impresses Reuven in turn, as Reuven sees the important role he plays to the people of his congregation. He raised his son in silence, which allowed him to learn to find his soul.
He was a very difficult man to understand, but a great one at that.
Main characters
Reuven (Robert or Bobby) Malter: a Modern Orthodox Jew, and a teenage boy. He is smart, popular in his community, and has a head for mathematics. His father wants him to be a mathematician when he grows up.Daniel (Danny) Saunders: a Hasidic Jew
Hasidic Judaism
Hasidic Judaism or Hasidism, from the Hebrew —Ḥasidut in Sephardi, Chasidus in Ashkenazi, meaning "piety" , is a branch of Orthodox Judaism that promotes spirituality and joy through the popularisation and internalisation of Jewish mysticism as the fundamental aspects of the Jewish faith...
, who is also a teenager. Brilliant; with a photographic memory, and interested in psychology (particularly Freudian psychoanalysis
Psychoanalysis
Psychoanalysis is a psychological theory developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries by Austrian neurologist Sigmund Freud. Psychoanalysis has expanded, been criticized and developed in different directions, mostly by some of Freud's former students, such as Alfred Adler and Carl Gustav...
). He wants to become a psychologist, but he feels trapped by the Hasidic tradition which forces him into the role as next in line to succeed his father as Rabbi.
David Malter (Reuven's father): a Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
ic scholar, teacher, Zionist. Considered a heretic
Heresy
Heresy is a controversial or novel change to a system of beliefs, especially a religion, that conflicts with established dogma. It is distinct from apostasy, which is the formal denunciation of one's religion, principles or cause, and blasphemy, which is irreverence toward religion...
by fundamentalist Hasidim. Supports the creation of the state of Israel because of his belief in the Messianic Age, rather than a literal Messiah.
Rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
Isaac Saunders (Reb Saunders): Rabbinic sage and tzaddik. He is Danny's father. Rebbe (spiritual leader) of a Hasidic sect, whose role is dynastic (passed on from father to son). He moved his congregation from Russia to the United States before the October Revolution
October Revolution
The October Revolution , also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution , Red October, the October Uprising or the Bolshevik Revolution, was a political revolution and a part of the Russian Revolution of 1917...
. He is against a secular Jewish nation-state, because he believes this supersedes God's will.
Literary themes
Literary themes within the book include widespread references to senses (especially sight), the pursuit of truth in a gray world, the strength of friendship, and the importance of father-son bonds. Many themes common to Potok's works prevail such as weak women and children, strong father figures, intellectual characters, and the strength and validity of faith in a modern secular world. Potok accentuates the importance of silence, and its form as a medium of communication. Throughout the book, there are numerous instances where both Danny and Reuven both receive and process information in a non-verbal form. Potok explicitly introduces this topic by alluding to the relationship between Danny and his father, where there is no verbal communication except for argumentative discussions of a religious nature. The two-year long silence between Danny and Reuven, imposed by Reb Saunders, is also rich in communicative interactions between the two friends; however, it effectively shows the constraints that silence can impose between individuals.Another important theme is the contrast of tradition to modernity. Reb Saunders insulates and isolates himself from the modern world from the method used to study Talmud to the creation of the state of Israel. It is the struggle that many immigrants have experienced coming to America.
Film, TV or theatrical adaptations
The Chosen was made into a movieThe Chosen (film)
The Chosen is a 1981 drama film directed by Jeremy Kagan, based on the bestselling book of the same name by Chaim Potok published in 1967. It stars Maximilian Schell and Rod Steiger. It won three awards at the 1981 Montréal World Film Festival.-Plot:...
in 1981, and a short-lived off-Broadway musical was produced in 1988. It closed after a week of performances. The book was adapted into a straight play by Potok and Aaron Posner and premiered at the Arden Theater in 1999. Potok wrote a sequel titled The Promise.
Release information
- 1967, USA, Simon and Schuster (ISBN 0-671-13674-7), Pub date 28 April 1967, hardback (First edition)
- 1967, UK, Heinemann (ISBN ?), Pub date ? ? 1967, hardback