Wednesday, February 25, 2009

THE CHOSEN - Ch. 2 - Characters

Which of the characters introduced in chapter 2 do you find the most interesting? In your opinion, what does this character "add" to the novel?

17 comments:

jack3335 said...

I find Billy the most interesting. He seems really sweet and sincere. Although he is blind he seems really positive and interested in the people around him. He adds a sort of mystery to the novel; it makes you wonder how did Bily become blind, what happened to him? Was he just blind because of what happened? i guess the father sort of gives it away when he looks at Billy and his eyes start to water. You can pretty much assume that billy and his father went through the same thing; he had surgery and lost his sight. Billy adds a lot to the story in the way that the other characters are always watching him or thinking about what its like to be like him and blind knowing that he can't see anything. so yeah that's it!!

Philip said...

i completely agree with jackie once again on this one. he does seem extremely nice kid and very polite. he adds a sort of nervousness to it because just the fact that reuven has a "messed up" eye and billy is blind, it kind of makes you think a little bit. it makes you think of the outcome of Reuven with his eye. whether or not he might become blind in that eye or not. Because Billy is blind, it makes you think about how he became that way. Why is he blind? it just adds a lot of mystery to the story and makes you want to keep reading to find out if Reuven will become blind or not.

Ashley Casas said...

I really like the character Billy, he really seems nice and caring for Reuven. Though he is blind, he was concerned on how Reuven was doing, and i thought that was very nice of him. I completely agree with Jackie and Phillip on how Billy does add a sort of mystery; because you come to wonder why he is blind, how long he's been at the hospital, and you wonder why is that little boy billy in the book. could the same thing be happening to Reuven? I'm sure in the beginning Reuven would probably wonder how it's like to be blind, and not be able to see anything. Now that Reuven's dad told him that the tissue in the eye was not very strong, he then started to think you know "oh my gosh, i'm gonna be blind." That's when he started to pay more attention to Billy, and was really scared because he started to think maybe billy went through the same process reuven and his dad are going through.
Another character is Tony, the man next to Reuven. He seems nice and he's known billy for a little while, because billy asked him when they got out of the hospital he would show him something from wrestling, so he was good friends with tony. Tony has also been very nice to Reuven, but you can also tell that he is sort of picky, because he didn't want chicken for dinner, like he had the day before. Mr. Galanter was another character that i really liked because he really cares for Reuven, and he was very worried about him, and he took good care of him, while they were waiting for the doctor, and for his dad to come. I hate Danny Saunders, and i'm positive that he's not sorry about hitting him. Overall i really liked all the characters and billy just stood out the most because he kind of symbolizes something. but we'll see when i read ch.3!!!

Alyssa A. said...

Hmm....I'd have to go with Jackie, Phillip, and Ashley. Billy does add the mystery to the story. I was also wondering the same thing. What happend in the accident that made him blind? How long has he been blind? His relationship with his father is very intresting. There seems to be a lot of love between Billy and his Dad that I think Reuven wishes he has with his dad. His father (Reuven's) seems kinda dry. He's on the uptight side however still caring. Since he worries about his little baseball player. Oh yeah, so what happend to Reuven's mom? After reading the part about Billy's accident and the hospital visit made by Billy's DAD, I began to wonder where's his mom? Which led to where's Reuven's mom? hmmm....guess we'll just have to continue reading. Mr. Savo aka Killer (he has too many names, I thought there was 3 different characters all into boxing. :p ) Anyways, he's an intresting guy. He talks like a veteran. I guess he is in a way. A veteran of the ring. He likes to repeat some of the same phrases he says. He also talks A LOT of his boxing days. So he was also intresting. However, there is a genuine character that Billy has he's so caring and his apperance reminds me of an angel looking face. There is a lot of imagery to describe the characters. So yes, Billy is the character that i found intresting.

JohnRnhoJ said...

Well for starters, I most likely won’t have as long of an answer like last time, since the question is “choose A character,” and I’ll go ahead and do that. I am going to have to disagree with all of you guys (who would have thought) and say that Tony Savo is the most interesting character. Tony is definitely the one who adds the mystery to the chapter; not Billy, at least in my opinion. When Tony Savo is introduced we obviously have no idea who he is or where he came from, but right away he catches your interest and makes you wonder. As you keep on reading you learn that he was a fighter and has a patch over his eye because he was in some sort of fighting accident where he got clopped. When we first met Tony he was playing cards, during his card game he tucks the card into one of the rows while saying, “Ah, so I cheat a little. So what?” When I went on to find out he was some sort of fighter, I recalled him saying this, and the thought came into my head; did he do some type of cheating during his fight which caused him to end up getting injured? Later on, when the food comes, the orderly begins to call him “Killer” and Tony is talking about how you never get food like you do in training camp. Tony is constantly referring everything to fighting. When the orderly tells him that they are having chicken Tony replies with, “Who can do a ten-rounder on chicken?” When they come around to pick up the food he asks the question again. So after he repeated the question it made me wonder if he had some sort of mental problems, or if he had a brain injury when he was clopped. You also wonder how long Tony has been in the hospital because he and Billy talk about how he has promised a three-rounder once Billy gets his operation; so this also shows that Tony is nice. Reuven also mentions that the first time Tony says “who can do a ten-rounder on chicken” he has heart, but the second time he says it he has lost the heart he had before. Tony is obviously going through a lot of pain and it really catches my interest and makes me wonder what really happened in his fight and whether he has some sort of mental problems. I think Potok doesn’t just give these characters random names, I think that their names have meaning. I feel like Tony Savo means something and Potok chose something by giving him this name, I haven’t quite figured it out though. Another example of when Potok made a good name choice was in the first chapter with Dov Shlomowits and “Dov” is the Hebrew word for bear. Good chapter, enjoyed it, left me wanting more.

Oh and completely random but i laughed when Reuven was talking about how they get the lights to change in the elevator.

KB said...

I have to agree with John, actually. I think Tony Savo is the interesting one. Don't get me wrong, Billy is a genuinely nice guy, but "Killer" adds a more comical(don't know if thats really the word)...something...to the chapter. I think what John said about Mr. Savo being brain-damaged is right. He was repeating himself, which probably means short-term memory loss. Also This is the first time we are introduced to Rueven's father. I think he is a very interesting character. He sees to be a frail almost sickly man, and if I'm not mistaken a teacher?, which means alot of stess already.(I'm too lazy to go back and check.) He seems to be a very loving father, if not a little uptight. (sorry for "borrowing" your word,Alyssa.)

Sorry if its not quite long enough Mr. Ingram but I"m just not thinking properly right now. I've got to get my uniform ready for tomorrow and I still have to pack. Well, since I won't see you guys till Monday, and I know you'll miss me something fierce, I just wanted to say bye! ^_^

Katherine said...

The character that I have to say is the most interesting to ne is Billy. He is just this sweet and caring boy, who even though is blind gives alot to the world. It makes you wonder, like Jackie said, how did become blind, and even though he is blind how does he have so much love for the world and the people around. It's obvious that he has a great relationship with his dad. He seemed liked he loved to joke around with him when he came to visit him, and they seem like really good friends. Billy even takes the time to get to know Reuven, and Reuven seems to have a liking towards him to. But the guy next to both the boys, Tony Savo, seems to be kind of a negative person, well towards some things, but Billy still takes the time to talk to him about boxing and different things. That really says alot about a person. Billy is just such an amazing character who I think will start to become very good friends with Reuven, even when Reuven's continues to heal and get better.

JohnRnhoJ said...
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JohnRnhoJ said...
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JohnRnhoJ said...
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Dora said...

In this chapter i got really into the character Billy like most of you all. It just amazed me to see someone like him in his condition and the way he is lovable and he faces his blindness and still helps people and the love for life. But i am wondering too on how did he get blind. And i wanted to keep on reading to find out but i can't. (grr.) I am just glad that he is very close to his dad. I felt like he really like to play around with him and make him laugh whenever he came to see him and i am so happy that they have this bond. ( i feel like crying) Billy is starting to become friends with Reuven so i saw that as a good thing. I really hated that kid that was close to them his name was Tony Savo, he is so negative. He needs to be charged with positive electrons. Billy still talks to him about little things like boxing. I feel like this says that Billy is someone who just wants to get along with everyone and this says a lot about his character and wanting everyone to have a friend. I think as the book progresses Billy and Reuven will start to develop a close bond and probably they will get them selves into some weird situations.

JC said...

I agree with John that Tony Savo is the most interesting character, i think it's interesting that all three patients have something wrong with their eye, but it has to lead to some where on one side you have billy who is blind, then you have tony who is getting better, then bobby who we have yet to find out what is going to happen. I view Savo as the more outoing character, the character who can offer relief to a situation of tension. And i think that fact that he's a fighter makes his journey to the hospital all that more interesting.

Leslie said...

I completely agree with jackie. Billy is so sweet and adorable. Even though he's blind, you still want to just hold him. And I also agree with her mystery point. it does make you wonder if he was born that way or if he became blind. But I guess if he's in the hospital he recently became blind. He's also a very caring kid. He's concerned with Reuven. He asks if he's doing better. And for a blind kid, that's kinda cool becuase, well he can't see him, so how does he know he's there? I guess the staff told him. I also liked Tony. Though I couldn't understand what he was talking about most of the time. He seemed funny and maybe intelectual. The fact that one of the food delivery people (can't remember their name) called him killer, he's obviously easy to get along with and is entertaining. His stories about boxing? they were kinda sad becuase he was knocked "on his back for a whole month." So he kinda knows what Reuven is going through and is slightly compassionate.

Elena said...

Billy. I really liked Billy. The impact he had on Reuven was pretty awesome. I liked the way he opened Reuven's eyes to imagine what it would be like to be blind. Now that he knows there's a possibility that his scar tissue may grow over his pupil and cause to be blind on one side, he begins to think about how he wouldn’t be able to read, and that was his favorite thing to do. He starts questioning his ability to learn without reading. He doesn't like the idea of being closed off from the world around him; not knowing what's going on.

Alyssa A. said...

Ok, answering Leslie's question about Billy being blind. It said that there was a car accident and that his dad was driving but it wasn't his dad's fault. He also says it happend a long time ago. Billy didn't give any other details other than that. (its page 34)

:)

The Yellow Dart said...

In Chapter 2, it's hard for me to decide which character is more interesting to me. I liked Billy and Tony the man on the other side of Reuven. Both of them kind of add a sense of mystery, as Potok was vague on the details of their accidents. Tony, a boxer, who talks relating things to boxing instead of war like Reuven's coach, possibly got injured because he cheated or tried to cheat? And Billy the young blind boy, will his surgery work? Or what will happen to him? I think both of these characters will end up being good friends with Reuven later in the book, especially Billy.

Roland Ingram said...

Jack, congrats on being first to post. Good work, but you should have expanded a little more on why the other character’s focus on Billy is important to the story. Does it ground them? Does it give them a sense of guilt about what they still have? Philip, forget about the mystery, I liked your ideas on how he is connected to Reuven’s “possible” future. You could have expanded on that. Ashley… Thank you for disagreeing. It’s not that I think anyone’s right or anyone’s wrong, it’s just that I like a little contention in my blogs. Good job on pointing out what Billy symbolizes (Reuven’s possible future) but then you acted like you forgot about it at the end “symbolizes something”. Aly, don’t jump to any conclusions about Reuven and his dad. There are all kinds of intense love. Also, good job on pointing out the character that isn’t a character. Sometimes, characters that aren’t even there (mom) add to the story. John, good catch on the lights. I usually have to point out the humor in that statement. Kids usually just read over it. I would also have to agree with you on the most “mysterious” character being Tony. It’s funny how this has turned into a blog about mysteriousness. But yeah, with Tony, there are many questions but never any answers…. ever. We’ve actually had some pretty interesting discussions about Tony in the past. Edward, you wasted four lines on apologizing for your answers lack of length… ironic huh? I agree with you on the father. David (that’s his name) Malter is an extremely interesting character who gains speed as the story progresses. Katherine, I wonder if you, and everyone else who picked Billy, like him because he is interesting or because he is likeable? Just thinking out loud here, all of your points are well made and valid. Dora, you’re wrong about two things: 1.Tony isn’t a kid and 2.All of these fellow hospital “mates” will drop out of Reuven’s life as soon as he leaves the hospital. Still, you made some good points about Billy. JC, what makes you think that Tony is getting better? And of course they all have eye injuries… they’re in the eye ward. Also, you’re response could do with a little length. Leslie, I would like to point out that, even though you selected Billy as the most interesting character, you talked more about Tony…. hmmmmm. You should also avoid using the word “kinda” so much because it sends the message that you only “kinda” have an opinion. Elena, you are a writng “tease”. You started with a great answer but didn’t expand on it enough. Tell me more about how Potok uses Billy to open Reuven’s eyes wow, “open his eyes” see that would have impressed me had you said it and not me, sticking with the eye theme in your answer. Whoever the flippin’ Yellow Dart is, any answer that is made up of half questions isn’t, by definition, an answer.