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Conflicts in The Chosen
In reading The Chosen, one is exposed to conflicts between characters throughout the book, which Potok expresses in three main conflicts — father against father, son against son, and father against son. Each variation of conflict has a very important significance to the main theme of conflicts among four Jewish males throughout the book. In post-Holocaust times, can it be assumed that all Jews would share a common belief system and have no conflicts?
In The Chosen, the father against father conflict is a result of clashes between David Malters and Reb Saunders. Each held drastically opposite views on life, parenting, religion and most every issue. This created major conflict at a time when American Jews who had escaped Germany were beginning to relay horrific stories from the Holocaust. While David Malter and Reb Saunders are both fathers and religious scholars, they demonstrate fundamentally different beliefs about disciplining children and religion. Reb Saunders and David Malter are very different in their ways. Reb is a Hasidic Jew and isolationist fanatic while David is an Orthodox Jew, more open-minded and interactive with the modern world around him. Reb’s traditionalist mindset is stubborn and parochial. For most of the novel, he refuses to consider the outside world or interpret Judaism in ways other than his own. David Malter, on the other hand, remains tolerant of other points of view, even Reb Saunders'. Most important, David Malter is willing to adapt his religious beliefs to incorporate contemporary issues. For Reb Saunders, being Jewish means one must accept a special set of obligations like studying the Torah and serving God. “We are commanded to study His Torah! We are commanded to sit in the light of the Presence! It is for this that we were created! . . . Not the world, but the people of Israel" (Potok 198)! For David Malter, being Jewish is less rigid and more about possessing a certain intellectual and spiritual mindset and honoring obligations that will, in turn, provide meaning. The statement “man must fill his life with meaning, meaning is not automatically given to life" (Potok 172), reflects David Malter's growing feeling that it is not enough to wait passively for biblical prophesy, as Reb Saunders does. Unlike Reb Saunders, David Malter believes that religion should impact politics, and that it is important for Jews to actively engage the outside world. At times, each father feels threatened by the other's views. At other times, each father displays strong respect for the other. The essence of different value systems and opposing viewpoints between these fathers is the core catalyst for conflict as the story develops.
As the old saying goes, like father like son. “I’m my father’s son, remember? I’m the inheritor of the dynasty. Number one on our catechism: Treat the son as you would the father, because one day the son will be the father” (Potok 178). It isn’t surprising that, the sons of these two strong-willed men conflict with each other in a similar fashion as their fathers [next page]