The Assistant (Cyclopedia of Literary Characters)
At a glance:
- Author: Bernard Malamud
- First Published: 1957
- Type of Work: Novel
- Type of Plot: Social realism
- Time of Work: 1930’s
- Setting: Brooklyn, New York
- Genres: Long fiction, Social realism, Domestic realism
- Subjects: Family or family life, New York, North America or North Americans, Northeast, U.S., United States or Americans, New York City, Guilt, 1930’s, Robbery or robbers, Ethics, Judaism, Grocery trade
- Locales: Brooklyn, NY
Characters Discussed
Frank Alpine, a young Italian drifter. Tall and bearded, with eyes haunted by a profound loneliness and a deep spiritual sadness, Frank wants to escape a past full of mistakes and broken promises. Fascinated by the stories of Saint Francis that he heard in the orphanage where he was reared, he continually aspires to a life of good but finds himself unable to keep himself on the right track. After robbing the Bobers’ grocery store, his guilt is so strong that he returns to the store and helps the old shopkeeper without pay. When Morris Bober falls ill, he...
[The entire page is 1086 words long]
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