Compare and Contrast Characters from The Chosen
Compare and Contrast Characters from The Chosen
In Chaim Potok’s The Chosen, much of the central conflict revolves around Reuven’s best friend Danny and the silence his father imposes upon him. Reb Saunders fears Danny’s brilliant mind and its resemblance to historical figure Solomon Maimon as well as Reb Saunders’s brother. The conformity of high intelligence and seemingly low empathy in all three characters allows Reb Saunders to justify his detached method of raising Danny.
Despite the congruity of traits between the characters, the paths chosen by each individual distinguish themselves from one another. For example, Maimon’s father raised his son the traditional Hasidic way; prioritizing the Talmud over any other knowledge and forbidding secular books. However, Maimon, with a brilliant mind and a thirst for knowledge, wanted to know more. Thus, he began to teach himself German, but remained dissatisfied. He then proceeded to abandon his wife and child to join a group of philosophers before dying at the estate of a Christian friend. The quick escalation in Maimon’s life from a traditional Hasidic Jew to a philosopher who abandoned his family to become a philosopher, frightened Reb Saunders. Reuven’s father agrees stating that Danny “has a mind like Solomon Maimon’s, perhaps even a greater mind,” (ch. 18) and even expresses fear that Danny’s life will end up worse due to the fact that “America is free. There are no walls here to hold back the Jews.” (ch. 18) Reb Saunders’s brother, another influence on Danny’s silent treatment took a different road. He is described by his older brother as “proud, haughty, (and) impatient with less brilliant minds.” (ch.18) Reb Saunders later describes his brother as unable to “understand pain. It was indifferent to and impatient with suffering.” (ch. 18) Of course none of this bothered Reb Saunders’s brother at the time, so he followed his aspirations by becoming a mathematician and teaching in a university. Reb Saunders hopes
In Chaim Potok’s The Chosen, much of the central conflict revolves around Reuven’s best friend Danny and the silence his father imposes upon him. Reb Saunders fears Danny’s brilliant mind and its resemblance to historical figure Solomon Maimon as well as Reb Saunders’s brother. The conformity of high intelligence and seemingly low empathy in all three characters allows Reb Saunders to justify his detached method of raising Danny.
Despite the congruity of traits between the characters, the paths chosen by each individual distinguish themselves from one another. For example, Maimon’s father raised his son the traditional Hasidic way; prioritizing the Talmud over any other knowledge and forbidding secular books. However, Maimon, with a brilliant mind and a thirst for knowledge, wanted to know more. Thus, he began to teach himself German, but remained dissatisfied. He then proceeded to abandon his wife and child to join a group of philosophers before dying at the estate of a Christian friend. The quick escalation in Maimon’s life from a traditional Hasidic Jew to a philosopher who abandoned his family to become a philosopher, frightened Reb Saunders. Reuven’s father agrees stating that Danny “has a mind like Solomon Maimon’s, perhaps even a greater mind,” (ch. 18) and even expresses fear that Danny’s life will end up worse due to the fact that “America is free. There are no walls here to hold back the Jews.” (ch. 18) Reb Saunders’s brother, another influence on Danny’s silent treatment took a different road. He is described by his older brother as “proud, haughty, (and) impatient with less brilliant minds.” (ch.18) Reb Saunders later describes his brother as unable to “understand pain. It was indifferent to and impatient with suffering.” (ch. 18) Of course none of this bothered Reb Saunders’s brother at the time, so he followed his aspirations by becoming a mathematician and teaching in a university. Reb Saunders hopes