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The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz is the fourth novel by Canadian author Mordecai Richler. It was first published in 1959 by André Deutsch, then adapted to the screen 1974 as film The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz.
[edit] SettingThe novel is set mostly in Montreal': A “European city,” the city is old, dirty, crowded, divided into sections based on ethnicity and religion. The city is a stark, bustling place: “Below, the city and the river hummed obligingly under a still cloud of factory fumes” (170). There are poor districts, like St. Urbain Street, and there are wealthy districts, like Westmount and Outremont. The Jews believe that the only way to bridge the poverty gap is to be materially successful like the Gentiles. The Jews who try to bridge the gap of poverty pursue money amorally (e.g. Mr. Cohen). The Jews who are unsuccessful in bridging the poverty gap live off the success of others (e.g. Max Kravitz, living vicariously through the success of Boy Wonder). The Poor Neighbourhood - St. Urbain Street: This is the middle of the Jewish ghetto: dirty, decaying. “To the middle class stranger…one street would have seemed as squalid as the next…Outside staircases everywhere. Winding ones…rusty and rickety ones. Here a prized plot of grass splendidly barbered” (13). There is an occasional “patch” of green grass to show that people are trying to make something of their lives. The lack of success is reflected in Duddy's grandfather Simcha’s garden: the futility of the lives of the people who live on St. Urbain street. “Each year the corn came up scrawnier and the cucumbers yellowed before they ripened, but Simcha persisted with his planting” (45). The neighbourhood does not lack life; it is the scene of many lively events (e.g. parade “The March of the Fletcher’s Cadets). The motif of decay is again present when the parade passes the senior citizens’ home. Decay doesn’t simply apply to the physical neighbourhood, but also to the lives of the people. The contrast of parade and decay can also be applied to Duddy: he can be “an intelligent young boy” or a “scheming little bastard.” The Wealthy Neighbourhood - Westmount / Outremont: Westmount is where the rich people live in mansions. “The higher you could climbed up splendid tree-lined streets the thicker the ivy, the more massive the mansions, and the more important the men inside” (170). Westmount is seen as “above” (above labour, poverty, etc) the hellish city. Duddy is out of place in this neighbourhood: he is from “down there.” This disparity becomes clearly evident in the conversation that Duddy has with Mr. Calder in chapter 11. The Lake (Ste. Agathe) / Laurentian Mountains – Natural World: Yvette Durelle takes Duddy Kravitz to the lake: Yvette appreciates the beauty of nature, while Duddy only thinks about the land’s development for profit. Lac St. Pierre is Duddy’s dream. He lies, cheats, and steals to buy the land, which is equated with the Promised Land. [edit] Plot introductionThe novel focuses on the young life of Duddy Kravitz, a poor Jewish boy raised in Montreal, Quebec. Family, friends, lovers, and teachers all contribute to Duddy's burgeoning obsession with power and money — desires embodied in the possession of land. Duddy soon believes land ownership to be life's ultimate goal and the means by which a man is made. The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz is about a young teenaged boy growing up in Montreal, Quebec on St. Urbain Street. His mother died when he was young. He is a poor Jewish boy who is given nothing as a child and must work if he wants anything. His friends, family, teachers, and girlfriends all lead to his passion in power, money, and owning land. Duddy is told by his grandfather that a man without land is nobody; this motivates him to do whatever he has to in order to own land as soon as possible. He begins by taking a summer job at a hotel in St. Agathe, where he soon stumbles upon the land he wants to own. He finds this land while on a date with Yvette, a chambermaid from the hotel. Upon finding the property, he heads back to Montreal to start a company which makes slightly offbeat bar mitzvah films. The film company becomes a huge success and he is soon able to begin to purchase a portion of the land. Duddy then makes a profit on ten pinball machines from Virgil, an epileptic, who is then offered a job on the distribution side of the movie business, and all he has to do was show the movies. A couple of months later, Virgil experiences a seizure while driving and is paralyzed from the waist down. Yvette leaves Duddy to take care of Virgil full time. This accident leaves Duddy to show the movies seven days a week and try to produce movies at the same time. When Duddy’s uncle Benjy dies, this acts as a trigger for Duddy who then experiences a nervous breakdown and doesn’t leave his room for a week. This week of no communication with the outside world causes Duddy to lose all his clients, thus forcing him to declare bankruptcy and to give all his possessions over to the state (except for the land, which is not in his name). After Duddy recovers from his nervous breakdown, he invites Yvette and Virgil to move into his uncle’s mansion with him. Duddy finally owns all the land, but embarrasses his grandfather who is unhappy with the way he obtained the land. (Duddy had obtained the final portion of the land after stealing from Virgil.) This robbery prompts Yvette and Virgil to move out of the mansion and to ban Duddy from ever seeing them again. Finally when all is said and done, Duddy is happy that he accomplished his goal of owning land and being somebody. The ending of the novel is ambiguous. Duddy's selfishness and ruthless materialism are obviously negative qualities. On the other hand, Duddy's youth and underdog status are ameliorating factors, and his entrepreneurial creativity is admirable. In the end, we can't help admire Duddy despite his many flaws. An older Duddy makes brief, comic appearances in Richler's later novels. Duddy never loses his drive to make money. [edit] CharactersTHE KRAVITZ FAMILY
DUDDY'S FRIENDS AND CLASSMATES
TEACHERS
THE FEMALE CHARACTERS
THE ANTAGONISTS
OTHER CHARACTERS
[edit] Major Themes[edit] See also
Directorio de Enlaces Directorio dmoz Directorio espejo dmoz Pedro Bernardo | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
