Themes are literary tools used by authors to enhance their writings. When a similar theme exists in two different novels, parallels can often be drawn between the characters and structures of literary work. Such is the case for Bernard Malamud’s The Assistant and Chaim Potok’s The Chosen. Religion plays a major role in the shaping of both novels. Both books begin with the respective religious outcast (Frank and Rueven) befriending the respective character (…showed first 75 words of 765 total…

…showed last 75 words of 765 total…down, and Israel becoming a Jewish state, that Reb Saunders finally allowed his son to resume a friendship with Rueven. Bernard Malamud’s The Assistant and Chaim Potok’s The Chosen are remarkably similar with respect to topics, characters, and patterns of events. These similarities are indicative of how authors use themes to dictate the flow of the novel. In both cases religion shaped the plot, and guided the actions and emotions of the characters.