Category Archives: Chaim Potok

Holding Both Halves: The Intellectual Life of Chaim Potok

Chaim Potok was born Herman Harold Potok in the Bronx in 1929, the eldest child of Polish Jewish immigrants. His father Benjamin came out of Belzer Hasidic piety and survived the trenches of the First World War. The household held … Continue reading

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The Jurisdictional Wars: Alliance Theory and the Battle for Authority in Chaim Potok’s Fiction

Serious Jews in Chaim Potok’s Brooklyn do not compete for authority by saying they want power. They compete by invoking moral languages that frame their authority as fidelity to Torah, loyalty to a Rebbe or a scholarly father, or responsibility … Continue reading

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