The Chosen, by Chaim Potok, is a novel written about two Jewish boys growing up in Brookyln. Though they lived only five blocks from each other, Danny and Reuven lived very different lives, primarily because of the influence of their fathers. Reb...

"All the darkness in the world could not put out the light of one small candle."

These words from the headstone of a Jewish holocaust victim perfectly define Chaim Potok's use of light as a symbol of knowledge and truth in a world of tradition....

In Literature and Language we are told that literary characterization is accomplished in three ways: "The reader learns about a character through the character's words and actions,...and through what other characters say about him...(p.44)" In...

In The Chosen, the setting of each scene contributes to our understanding of the book’s central themes. The baseball field reveals the theme of conflict between two opposing forces, the hospital brings about different perceptions of the world, the...

In Chaim Potok’s The Chosen, a quote by psychologist Karl Menninger appears in the dedication. It goes, “When a trout rising to a fly gets hooked and finds himself unable to swim about freely, he begins a fight which results in struggles and...

No matter how unjust and undeserved suffering may seem, its nature is an inevitable manifestation in life. Chaim Potok explores this concept through Reuven Malter, one of the two protagonists in The Chosen. On account of a severe wound to Reuven’s...

Some people say that the difference between real life and stories, is that real life always contains loose ends, unfinished plots, and indescribable feelings. It is when authors such as Chaim Potok embody these inexpressible feelings in their...

“We can either emphasize those aspects of our traditions, religious or secular, that speak of hatred, exclusion, and suspicion or work with those that stress the interdependence and equality of all human beings. The choice is yours.” Karen...

Perception as a theme in Chaim Potok’s “The Chosen” is prominent and profoundly portrayed. Many of the chapters bear some sort of reference to visual or auditory perception- be it eyesight, watching, or listening. This begins with Reuven’s inital...

In Chaim Potok’s novel My Name is Asher Lev, Asher struggles with self-identity and going against tradition, which ultimately leads him to question whether his gift of art comes from the Ribbono Shel Olom or the sitra achra. Asher’s gift comes...