The Chosen Memory and the Past Quotes Page 1
Citations follow this format: (Chapter.Paragraph)
| Quote #1 When I told him about Danny Saunders’ photographic mind, he nodded as if he had known about that all the time. (4.15) |
Danny’s photographic mind is symbolic of some of the novel’s obsessions, like history, the past, remembering the dead, and remembering our ancestors. And, it helps make Danny a fascinating character.
| Quote #2 "I have no choice," he said again. "It’s like a dynasty. If the son doesn’t take the father’s place, the dynasty falls apart. The people expect me to be their rabbi. My family has been their rabbi for six generations now." (4.129) |
This passage shows that memory and the past can be a burden. The novel struggles with the dilemma of how to honor the past and still be true to one’s self.
| Quote #3 "This is what happened to Polish Jewry. By the eighteenth century, it had become a degraded people. Jewish scholarship was dead." (6.11) |
Did David’s big history lesson help you understand the novel, or did you find it boring, and tedious and just skip through it? It’s a really long speech but Reuven doesn’t want his father to stop. His friendship with Danny has awakened his desire to "remember" the past of his people. The history becomes almost a shared memory.
