Argumentative Essay the Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz
A man must pursue his dreams. This is certainly true for everyone in humankind, for if there were no dreams, there would be no reason to live. Duddy Kravitz understands this perfectly, which is why he is one of the most ambitious young men of his time. From the moment he hears his grandfather say, "A man without land is nobody,"(44) he is prepared to seek the land of his dream, no matter what the cost would be. This ambition of his is very respectable, but unfortunately his methods are damnable. Duddy is a relentless pursuer, a formidable competitor but also a ruthless manipulator. It is true that he has obtained all the land that he desires at the end, but he succeeds through immoral, despicable and contemptible means. It is clear then, that Duddy has failed in his apprenticeship and has become the "scheming little bastard" that Uncle Benjy has warned him against.
There is no doubt that Duddy is very shrewd and clever, but his lack of moral principles attributes to his final failure. In fact, his immorality can be traced back to a very young age. During his study in the parochial school, he already earns money through methods that hardly comply with virtues of any kind. Taking advantage of the fact that minors cannot be sued in Canada, Duddy defrauds stamp companies and sells stolen hockey sticks. Perhaps he cannot distinguish right from wrong; perhaps he does not care, but nonetheless it is improper for him to engage himself into these kinds of activities.
Duddy emerges himself deeper into the sea of corruption when he establishes Dudley Kane Enterprises. With his limited knowledge of movie making and his mistaken trust in John Friar, his firm produces bar-mitzvah films of extremely poor quality. The bar-mitzvah film for Mr. Cohen, for example, is obviously a failing product. "Duddy didn't say a word all through the screening but afterwards he was sick to his stomach,"(149). After the screening, Duddy says to Mr. Friar, "I could sell Mr. Cohen a dead horse
There is no doubt that Duddy is very shrewd and clever, but his lack of moral principles attributes to his final failure. In fact, his immorality can be traced back to a very young age. During his study in the parochial school, he already earns money through methods that hardly comply with virtues of any kind. Taking advantage of the fact that minors cannot be sued in Canada, Duddy defrauds stamp companies and sells stolen hockey sticks. Perhaps he cannot distinguish right from wrong; perhaps he does not care, but nonetheless it is improper for him to engage himself into these kinds of activities.
Duddy emerges himself deeper into the sea of corruption when he establishes Dudley Kane Enterprises. With his limited knowledge of movie making and his mistaken trust in John Friar, his firm produces bar-mitzvah films of extremely poor quality. The bar-mitzvah film for Mr. Cohen, for example, is obviously a failing product. "Duddy didn't say a word all through the screening but afterwards he was sick to his stomach,"(149). After the screening, Duddy says to Mr. Friar, "I could sell Mr. Cohen a dead horse