The Chosen Danny Saunders: An Analysis

At the start of The Chosen Danny Saunders is a fifteen year old Hasidic boy, the son of

the tzaddik Reb Saunders and thus destined to follow in his father's footsteps as the leader of his

Hasidic sect. Yet Danny Saunders possesses a monumental intellect that cannot be satisfied by his

instructions, which are almost primarily in religion, and instead wishes to study psychology despite the

obvious conflict between the irreligious tenets of Freudianism (of which he is a great admirer) and his

Hasidic belief. Danny's study of Freud also takes on a different dimension; Freud becomes a metaphor

for religion for Danny, who approaches his study of psychoanalysis just as he studies the Talmud.

Psychoanalysis thus becomes a religion for Danny, replacing his Hasidic studies as the intellectual
After injuring Reuven Malter in the softball game, Danny Saunders becomes his

friend and thus finds greater access to a more secular society, but still must face the conflict between

his father's wishes and his Hasidic background on one hand, and the more secular life that he desires