The Fantastic Father
In his critically acclaimed novel The Chosen, Chaim Potok highlights the fascinating friendship between Reuven Malter and Danny Saunders. These two Jewish teenagers manage to nourish an intimate relationship despite their sharply contrasting backgrounds. Reuven's father, David Malter, certainly plays no small part in facilitating the boys' friendship. Despite the teens' apparent hatred for each other at first, Mr. Malter strongly encourages Reuven to befriend Danny. He recognizes Danny's intense loneliness and compassionately supplies him with a faithful friend, his son. A loving father to Reuven and an upright role-model to Danny, David Malter exhibits compassion, wisdom and firmly-held opinions.
Throughout the book, David Malter exudes a great deal of compassion. Though he has suffered the loss of his wife and experienced the hardships of the Great Depression, Mr. Malter still possesses a tender heart. Reuven especially benefits from his father's loving sympathy. After Reuven damages his eye playing baseball, Mr. Malter's deep concern for his son clearly evidences itself. Indeed, Potok paints a beautiful picture of the heartfelt relationship between this father and his son: "He looked at me, and I saw him blink his eyes …show more content…
The way he raises Reuven evidences his discernment. Unlike Danny's father, Mr. Malter maintains a strong and open relationship with his son. Reuven possesses the privilege to consult his father for encouragement and judicious instruction at any time. A more subtle instance of Mr. Malter's wisdom occurs in the hospital when Reuven recovers from the baseball injury. When his son complains about his confinement to the hospital, David Malter wisely instructs, "No one knows he is fortunate until he becomes unfortunate" (73). Without a doubt, Mr. Malter demonstrates a personality built upon pure
In his critically acclaimed novel The Chosen, Chaim Potok highlights the fascinating friendship between Reuven Malter and Danny Saunders. These two Jewish teenagers manage to nourish an intimate relationship despite their sharply contrasting backgrounds. Reuven's father, David Malter, certainly plays no small part in facilitating the boys' friendship. Despite the teens' apparent hatred for each other at first, Mr. Malter strongly encourages Reuven to befriend Danny. He recognizes Danny's intense loneliness and compassionately supplies him with a faithful friend, his son. A loving father to Reuven and an upright role-model to Danny, David Malter exhibits compassion, wisdom and firmly-held opinions.
Throughout the book, David Malter exudes a great deal of compassion. Though he has suffered the loss of his wife and experienced the hardships of the Great Depression, Mr. Malter still possesses a tender heart. Reuven especially benefits from his father's loving sympathy. After Reuven damages his eye playing baseball, Mr. Malter's deep concern for his son clearly evidences itself. Indeed, Potok paints a beautiful picture of the heartfelt relationship between this father and his son: "He looked at me, and I saw him blink his eyes …show more content…
The way he raises Reuven evidences his discernment. Unlike Danny's father, Mr. Malter maintains a strong and open relationship with his son. Reuven possesses the privilege to consult his father for encouragement and judicious instruction at any time. A more subtle instance of Mr. Malter's wisdom occurs in the hospital when Reuven recovers from the baseball injury. When his son complains about his confinement to the hospital, David Malter wisely instructs, "No one knows he is fortunate until he becomes unfortunate" (73). Without a doubt, Mr. Malter demonstrates a personality built upon pure