The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz: Part 2, Chapter 7

The variants and revisions indicated in part two chapter seven typescript of The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz by Mordecai Richler are nuanced, but deliberate. Firstly, these selected five pages of the typescript are not consistent with their assigned page numbers in the published novel. The typescript pages read 301-303, and peculiarly, pages 1-2 follow. However, the pages in the novel that are consistent with the content in the typescript read 299-303. Secondly, certain elements of the content changed, including the dialogue between characters. Richler rephrased Duddy Kravitz’s dialogue with Yvette to augment the vileness of Kravitz. The published novel displays an additional line directed at Yvette, “Quack-quack-quack. Can’t you keep your face shut once in a blue moon?” (301). This replaces a simple “Oi” (301), in the typescript, and consequently characterizes Duddy as more vulgar. Thirdly, the typescript indicates that Kravitz requires twenty-seven hundred dollars, however, the published novel changes this amount to twenty-two hundred dollars, suggesting that research was completed in the interest of making this novel realistic. Finally, the extensive handwritten notes on page 303 and on the back of page 2 in the typescript depict Richler’s brainstorming concerning the content of the narrative. These notes are partially consistent with events in the story, including the “fight with grandfather” (2a), reinforcing that changes between the typescript and the published novel are noteworthy and fascinating.