The Chosen Reading Schedule- 2012

Week One (11/19-11/26) - Chapters 1-2 (pages 1-53)

Quiz 11/26

Week Two (11/26-11/30) - Chapters 3-4 (pages 54-92)

Quiz 12/3

End Book One

Week Three (11/30-12/5) – Chapters 5-7 (pages 95-148)

Quiz 12/5

Week Four (12/5-12/12) – Chapters 8-12 (pages 149-203)

Quiz 12/12

End Book Two

Week Five (12/12-12-20) – Chapters 13-14 (pages 207-254)

Quiz 12/20

Week Six (12/20-1/4) – Chapters 15-18 (pages 255-291)

End Book Three

The Chosen Work Packet

Chapters 1 & 2 H.O.T. (Higher Order Thinking) Questions

  1. Identify the time and place of the action in the story so far. Explain how the setting influences the plot.
  1. Explain why Danny considers Reuven and his classmates “apikorsim”.
  1. Describe how and why the softball game is comparable to a war. Why was winning so important to the two teams?
  1. On page 24, Reuven explains that the reason his father is annoyed by the Hasidic Jews is because of their “fanatic sense of righteousness, their absolute certainty that they and they alone had God’s ear, and every other Jew is wrong, totally wrong, a sinner, a hypocrite, an apikoros, and doomed, therefore, to burn in hell.”

What does it mean to be a fanatic? Does the word have a positive or negative connotation? Do you think being a religious fanatic is dangerous? Why or why not? What are your opinions about or experiences with people who are “fanatic” about their religion?

  1. Based on what you’ve read so far, evaluate the relationship between Reuven and his father. Use evidence from the text to justify your response.

Chapters 34 H.O.T. (Higher Order Thinking) Questions

  1. What do Danny and Reuven want to be when they grow up? How might these future jobs impact the story?
  1. After Danny’s first visit to Reuven in the hospital, Reuven’s father reminds him of something that the Talmud says. What is it? Why is it relevant?
  1. What did Danny not understand about the ball game, and what made him feel better? Why might that have made him feel better?
  1. What is Danny’s gift from God, according to his father?
  1. The Talmud says that a person should do two things for himself/herself. What are those two things? Why should a person do those two things, in your opinion?
  1. How does Reuven’s father know Danny?

Answer the following questions in complete sentences and cite examples from the text. You may need to use the back of this sheet or a separate sheet of paper.

  1. In chapter 3, Reuven describes his feelings about Danny. This passage begins with the sentence, “I looked at him, and suddenly, I had the feeling that everything around me was out of focus…” (Reuven Malter, The Chosen, p. 67) Why did this situation appear that was to Reuven? There was an incongruity in Danny’s appearance to the way he spoke. What was that and why would it be confusing from Reuven’s perspective?
  1. Hints towards the book’s title are given in chapter 4. Danny and Reuven have begun to revise their attitudes about each other, providing opportunity for a possible friendship. While they are talking, some information about Hasidim comes out. Does the “chosen one” have a choice? Support your answer from the text.

Chapters 5-7 H.O.T. (Higher Order Thinking) Questions

  1. What are your impressions of the Hasidic community in which Danny lives? Explain.
  1. After Reuven meets Danny’s father, Danny says to him, “You think he’s a tyrant.” What is your reaction to Reb Saunders and his method of raising Danny?
  1. How is Danny’s religion a source of both conflict and strength in his life?
  1. Mr. Malter believes that it is natural for Danny to break his father’s rules and to read forbidden books. Why? Do you agree? Explain.
  1. What are RebSaunder’s views on:
  1. the world and what it does to Jews
  2. life on earth
  3. the study of the Torah

Explain RebSaunder’s assertion that “we are only half alive in this world.”

Chapters 8 - 12 H.O.T. (Higher Order Thinking) Questions

  1. What does the great Jewish scholar Graetz call Hasidim? How do you feel about this statement?
  1. What language is Danny teaching himself? If you could teach yourself a language, what language would it be and why?
  1. Reuven is forced to tell Reb Saunders a secret. What is the secret? How would you feel if a friend’s parent forced you to tell a secret about your friend?
  1. Danny realized that he needed to study Freud, not read Freud. Explain the difference.
  1. What important person died in Chapter 11? Why would this be a significant event during that time?
  2. According to Reb Saunders, why did the Holocaust happen? What is now the responsibility of American Jews, according to David Malter? How do their reactions differ from each other?
  1. How does Danny believe he can escape becoming a tzaddik?

Chapters 13 - 14 H.O.T. (Higher Order Thinking) Questions

  1. Compare and contrast Danny’s feelings after the first week of college with Reuven’s feelings after the first week of college.
  1. Why does Reuven suggest that Danny have a heart to heart talk with Professor Appleman?
  1. Briefly, explain what Zionism means.
  1. David Malter discusses his health with Reuven. What does he say to Reuven that makes cold sweat run down his back? Why might Reuven have such a reaction to his father’s words?
  1. Reuven’s father delievered a speech at a pro-Zionism rally at Madison Square Garden. His speech was printed in Yiddish newspapers. What did Reb Saunders do after he read the speech?
  1. Book Three begins with the quote, “A word is worth one coin; silence is worth two.” –The Talmud

Do you believe this quote is applicable to The Chosen? Why or why not? (5-7 sentences)

  1. What does Reuven’s father mean when he says, “A man must fill his life with meaning, meaning is not automatically given to life.” Do you agree or disagree? Why? (5-7 sentences)

Chapters 15 - 16 H.O.T. (Higher Order Thinking) Questions

  1. After Reb Saunders anti-Zionist league seemed to have gone out of existence, what happened between Danny and Reuven? Why is that an important event in the book?
  1. What is the first thing that Reuven says to Danny? Why do you think he said this?
  1. Why does Reuven have such a dislike for Reb Saunders?
  1. “You can listen to silence, Reuven. I’ve begun to realize that you can listen to silence and learn from it. It has a quality and dimension all its own. It talks to me sometimes. I feel myself alive in it. It talks. And I can hear it.” (pg. 267) What does this quote mean to you? Why is this quote relevant to the story?
  1. In Chapter 18, Reb Saunders explains to Reuven his reason for raising Danny in silence. Explain that reasoning. Do you agree or disagree with Reb’s choice to raise Danny in silence? Would you ever do the same? (Answer in short answer form- you’ll need at least 3 5-7 sentence paragraphs to completely answer this question.)

Setting

Setting is the time and place of the action in the story. The setting of a story may be a real or imaginary place in the past, present, or future. The Chosen is set in a real place – Williamsburg in Brooklyn, New York- in the 1940s. Potok helps bring this setting to life by providing details about particular places.

Pick two of the places listed below, and give descriptive details from the novel that help you visualize the setting.

  1. Streets of Reuven’s neighborhood
  2. Streets of Danny’s neighborhood
  3. The Malter’s apartment
  4. The Saunder’s synagogue and apartment

Theme

The theme of a literary work is an insight about life or human nature that the writer presents to the reader. In The ChosenPotok shares some ideas about religion, tradition, relationships with family and friends, and education.

Come up with two themes from the first four chapters of The Chosen. Write them down and include details from the story that led you to these themes.

Characterization

Characterization is the method the writer uses to create a character. There are four different methods of characterization:

  • description of physical appearance
  • the character’s own thoughts, feelings, speech and actions
  • other character’s thoughts, feelings, speech, and actions
  • the narrator’s direct comments.

Describe the character (personality and physical traits) of Reuven and Danny. Give specific examples of characterization from the text to support your description.

Conflict

Conflict is the struggle between opposing forces in a story or book. There are two types of conflict: internal and external. An internal conflict occurs within a character and an external conflict occurs between a character and an outside force.

Identify one internal and one external conflict in the book The Chosen. Explain each of the conflicts using specific evidence from the text to support your explanation.

Plot

Plot is the sequence of events in the story.

Summarize, in chronological order, the main events that happened in The Chosen. You should include one event from each chapter. You may create a timeline, if you would like.

Comic Strip

Create a comic strip showing the plot of your novel. For The Chosen, use chapters 1-5.

  • Your comic strip must be 12 cells or blocks.
  • It must be colored.
  • It must have dialogue or narration.
  • No stick figures!!!

Farcebook

Using the Farcebooktemplate, create a Farcebook (fake Facebook) page for a character from The Chosen. The Farcebook templates are on the website for you to print.