The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz: Part 1, Chapter 10

This exhibit examines the opening sequences of Part 1, Chapter 10 in The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz. This draft appears to be one of the final drafts before the publication of the novel, as the changes focus on smaller details; the final adjustments of the sentences appear almost verbatim in the final novel. These smaller changes include: changing of Duddy’s “real” job, to his “regular” job, the change of “eighteen dollars per week” to “sixteen dollars a week”, changing “five years” to “finally”, and changing “Uncle Morris” to “Uncle Benjy”. These changes reflect how Richler gained a better understanding of the timeline he wanted to follow in his novel, and the specific facts about the era in Montreal. Most notably is the change regarding Ida’s infertility. In the published novel, the reader is not privy to Ida’s infertility until the end of the novel, believing Uncle Benjy to be the infertile one. This alteration in the published novel creates a redeeming quality in Uncle Benjy’s characterization as he takes the blame for producing no grandchildren. Additionally, the characterization of the workers at Uncle Benjy’s factory, namely Malloy and Esptein, is lessened in the novel in order to abstain from detracting from the novel’s focal character, Duddy.