The Apprenticeship Of Duddy Kravitz Analysis

828 Words2 Pages

According to Anne Frank, “Parents can only give good advice or put them on the right paths, but the final forming of persons character lies in their own hands”. Duddy Kravitz is coming of age and has his whole life ahead of him. He is offered advice from the parental figures in his life and he is taking it to heart. However, Duddy must decide how he will choose to pursue his dreams and build his character. In Mordecai Richler’s novel, The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz, one is able to analyze the story through a Feminist, Marxist and Psychoanalytic lenses.
Feminism is one of the lenses through which the reader is able to analyze the novel. In the novel, Yvette Durelle, is the leading female character. Yvette meets Duddy during his summer employment at the hotel in St. Agathe. She is the one to introduce Duddy to the land …show more content…

The main character, Duddy Kravitz, is a young boy – not of age – from a Jewish community in Quebec. Duddy resides with his father, Max, who defines as being a pimp. Duddy’s mother dies when he is young and has no female role model in his life; he is raised by men. For example, “Then she turned her attention on Duddy and hoping to distract her, he talked about Yvette. ‘The Oedipus’ Aunt Ida said. (…) ‘Your mother was taken from you when you were young and all your life you will be searching for a woman to replace her. All boys want to have sexual relations with their mother’” (244). The loss of his mother effects Duddy’s behaviour and attitude towards women. Duddy unconsciously views Yvette as a mother figure; replacing the mother he is never able to know. The lack of compassion and sympathy – typically provided by a mother in a child’s life – from the men in his family, Duddy adopted as well. Duddy does not know or understand how he should be treating people, more specifically women. To continue during Duddy’s childhood, his

Open Document