Essay1

By: Kevin I van Leeuwen

I want to compare ‘The Chosen’ and the short text ‘My dear Palastrina’. I want to take a look at the subject of believe. Both storeys are about believing. Believing that there is something more. In the case of the two storeys, they are supporters of Judaism. Judaism is among the oldest religious traditions still being practised today. Judaism is a monotheistic religion based upon principles and ethics embodied in the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh), as further explored and explained in the Talmud and other texts. According to Jewish tradition, Judaism begins with the Covenant between God and Abraham. For most Jews this is a set fact, but in the storeys that we are comparing it is not. They both want to know more about why they believe what they believe. The boy in the story ‘My dear Palastrina’ wants to know why the Jews believe what they believe. He wants to know or it is true what the rabbi tells them. Reuven, the boy in ‘The Chosen’, really studies the secret scrolls and he knows what they are about. Reuven also takes a dislike from some passages in the scrolles and tells this to his father. He doesn’t question faith, he just questions his own sometimes. Conclusion: The storeys can not be easily compared. They are both storeys that are writhen with a different background. That is one of there differentness. The storeys both have the subject faitrh and believe in them. That is where they meet.