American Author

Bernard Malamud is considered one of the most prominent figures in Jewish American
literature, a movement that began in the 1930s and is known for its combination of tragic and
comic elements.

Early Life

Bernard Malamud was born on April 26, 1914, in Brooklyn, New York, the first of Max and
Bertha Fidelman Malamud's two sons. His parents, whom he described as "gentle, honest,
kindly people," had come to the United States from Russia in the early 1900s and ran their
own grocery store. They were not highly educated and knew very little about literature or the
arts. "There were no books that I remember in the house, no records, music, pictures on the
wall," Malamud said. Malamud liked to read and to attend a local Yiddish (the language
spoken by Jews in Europe) theater. He began to try to write stories of his own.

Malamud attended high school in Brooklyn and received his bachelor's degree from the City
College of New York in 1936. After graduation he worked in a factory and as a clerk at the
Census Bureau in Washington, D.C. Although he wrote in his spare time, Malamud did not
begin writing seriously until hearing of the horrors of the Holocaust, when the Germans, led
by Adolf Hitler (1889–1945), put six million Jewish people to death during World War II
(1939–45; a war in which Great Britain, France, the Soviet Union, and the United States
battled Germany, Italy, and Japan). Malamud also began reading about Jewish tradition and
history. In 1949 he started teaching at Oregon State University. He left this post in 1961 to
teach creative writing at Bennington College in Vermont, where he remained until shortly
before his death.

Works

Malamud's first novel, The Natural (1952), traces the life of Roy Hobbs, an American
baseball player. The book has mythic elements and explores such themes as initiation and
isolation. Malamud's second novel, The Assistant (1957), tells the story of Morris Bober, a
Jewish immigrant who owns a grocery store in Brooklyn. Although he is struggling to make
ends meet, Bober hires an anti-Semitic (prejudiced against Jewish people) youth, whom he
learns is homeless and on the verge of starvation. This novel shows the value of maintaining
faith in the goodness of the human soul. Malamud's first collection of short stories, The
Magic Barrel (1958), was awarded the National Book Award in 1959. Many of Malamud's
best-known short stories were republished in The Stories of Bernard Malamud in 1983.

A New Life (1961), considered one of Malamud's most true-to-life novels, is based in part on
Malamud's teaching career at Oregon State University. This work focuses on an ex-alcoholic
Jew from New York City who becomes a professor at a college in the Pacific Northwest. It
examines the main character's search for self-respect, while poking fun at life at a learning
institution. Malamud's next novel, The Fixer  (1966), is one of his most powerful works. The
winner of both the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award, this book is based on the
historical account of Mendel Beiliss, a Russian Jew who was accused of murdering a
Christian child. With The Tenants (1971), Malamud returns to a New York City setting in a
contrast between two writers—one Jewish and the other African American—struggling to
survive in an urban ghetto (the run-down part of a city).

Later Years.

In Dubin's Lives (1979), which took Malamud over five years to write, the main character,
William Dubin, attempts to create a sense of worth for himself, both as a man and as a writer.
Malamud's last finished novel, God's Grace (1982), studies both the original Holocaust and a
new, imagined Holocaust of the future. The novel is a wild, at times brilliant, at times
confusing, description of a flood similar to that in the Bible story of Noah's ark.

Malamud continued to place stories in top American magazines. Mervyn Rothstein reported
in the New York Times that Malamud said at the end of his life, "With me, it's story, story,
story." In Malamud's next-to-last collection, Rembrandt's Hat, only one story, "The Silver
Crown," deals with Jewish themes.

Malamud's final, unfinished work, "The Tribe," concerns the adventures of a Russian Jewish
peddler, Yozip, among the western Native American Indians. Malamud gave few interviews,
but those he did grant provided the best insight into his work, as when he told Michiko
Kakutani in the New York Times: "People say I write so much about misery, but you write
about what you write best." Bernard Malamud died on March 18, 1986.

The Prison- Analysis

In The Prison by Bernard Malamud we have the theme of freedom, regret, connection,
helplessness, control, escape, paralysis and hope. Taken from his The Complete Stories
collection the story is narrated in the third person by an unnamed narrator and after reading
the story the reader realises that Malamud may be exploring the theme of freedom.
Throughout the story there is a sense that Tommy feels trapped, not only because he has to
work in the candy store but he also appears to be trapped inside a marriage that he does not
want to be in. Despite having left New York to go to Texas, Tommy returns and marries
Rosa though at no stage in the story does the reader feel that Tommy is in love with Rosa.   If
anything there is a sense that Tommy is helpless when it comes to his relationship with Rosa.
She is in complete control of the relationship something that is noticeable by her changing
Tommy’s name from Tony to Tommy. Similarly Rosa’s father exerts control over Tommy
when he breaks the slot machine in the shop. Tommy again can do nothing about it. Not only
is Tommy stuck working in the shop, which he doesn’t want to be but he is also stuck in a
loveless marriage.
Malamud also appears to be exploring the theme of regret. Tommy can remember a time in
his life when he was happy. When he was fishing with his Uncle Dom. This memory may be
important as Malamud may be suggesting that Tommy longs for a time when his life was
simpler. How important Dom is to Tommy is also noticeable by Tommy’s wish to try and
find him even though it has been several years since he last saw him. If anything Tommy
wishes to reconnect with Dom. To renew the connection he had with him when he was a
child. Even though he knows it may be impractical due to the passing of time and the fact
that he doesn’t even know if Dom is alive. The fifty five dollars that Tommy has hidden
away may also be symbolically important as for Tommy it represents hope and freedom.
Rosa is unaware that he has saved the money and by making reference to it in the story on
several occasions Malamud may be highlighting just how unhappy Tommy is and how strong
his desire to escape from Rosa and the candy store is.
There is other symbolism in the story which may also be important. The candy store itself is
a prison to Tommy. He spends every day in the store with the exception of Tuesday when he
goes to the movies. Apart from that Tommy has no other avenue of escape which would
suggest there is a paralysis in Tommy’s life. The mirror that Rosa hangs up in the store may
also be symbolically important. A mirror is used to reflect something, usually a person’s own
image and it is through the mirror that Tommy sees the young girl stealing the candy. An
action that Tommy knows mirrors events from his own youth. When Tommy looks in the
mirror and sees the girl stealing, he sees a reflection of himself.
For Tommy there is an obvious connection between himself and the young girl. How strong
this connection is, is noticeable by how difficult Tommy finds it to warn her about stealing
the candy. He is afraid to upset the girl and wants to advise her rather than give out to her.
The reader aware that Tommy is drawing on his own life experience and trying to warn the
girl not to waste her life doing the wrong things (stealing). If anything Tommy may be acting
as a father figure to the girl. Hoping that he can save her from making the same mistakes that
he made when he was younger. How important it is to Tommy to warn the girl is noticeable
by the efforts he goes to. Making sure that he warns her in a nice way. He does not want to
upset or scare the girl rather he wants to be as gentle as he can be. Something that the reader
becomes aware of when Tommy signs the cardboard ‘Your Friend.’
The ending of the story is also interesting though some critics might differ on what
Malamud’s intentions may have been. By hitting Rosa Tommy is exerting control for the first
time in the story. Rather than doing as Rosa wants him to do, which Tommy has done
throughout the story, he is doing what he wants to do. He is helping the young girl and
minimizing what she has done. Though some critics might suggest he is acting like a thug
and that very little has actually changed for Tommy since he was a teenager. Either way there
is no doubting that Tommy’s priority throughout the story has not changed. He wanted to
help the young girl and by defending her at the end of the story he has done so. It might also
be a case that Malamud is suggesting that by hitting Rosa, Tommy is freeing himself from
Rosa’s control. No longer is he answerable to her as he had been throughout the story.

Source 2

Main themes
The imprisonment people suffer even when seemingly free is the main theme of The Prison.
When he was young, Tommy’s dream had been to break free from “the thickly tenemented,
kidsquawking neighborhood, with its lousy poverty” but it does not quite turn out that way.
He quit the vocational school that could have taken him somewhere, began hanging out with
the boys who seemed to have money to blow. The attempt to hold up a liquor store goes
wrong and he is lucky not to get caught. He briefly escapes to Texas but comes back and gets
married to Rosa.
The banality of his present life affords him no escape; everyday is the same. There is the
candy store where he sells the same toffees and cigarettes and there is plain ol’ Rosa for
whom he has no love. When he catches the little girl pinching chocolate, there is something
new, something interesting in his life. He wants to reform her because he knows her life too
could go his way. But his noble intentions don’t go the way he wants.
Characters - Analysis of 'The Prison' by Bernard Malamud
Tommy Castelli
The reader gets to know Tommy Castelli quite well. His is the only character which fully
developed in the short story. Tommy is a decent fellow in spite of his checkered early days.
His incarceration stems from his early brush with crime when he partakes in an attempt to
hold up a liquor store. He escapes being caught by law but he effectively loses his freedom
when he marries Rosa, a match his father arranges to keep him on the right side of law. Life
in the small town with no escape in sight jars so he twice plans to make a little money on the
side but both ventures are failures.
It’s when he is thoroughly bored with his life that he catches the little girl stealing chocolate
from the counter. He is confused about what to do but she is so young he has this strong urge
to help her break out of it. He remembers his childhood when he would go out with his Uncle
Dom who was adept at cheating. But Uncle Dom is now in prison for his crimes. Before
Tommy can carry out his plan to warn the little girl she is caught by Rosa who thrashes her.
Rosa’s fury angers Tommy and he slaps her. Tommy tries to save the girl from Rosa’s fury
by saying he had let her have the candy. The girl is hardly thankful; she sticks her tongue out
at him in disdain.
Rosa
We get to know of Rosa from Tommy’s thoughts which are hardly complimentary to her.
Rosa has a waspish tongue and a worse temper. She nags him when he does things that she
does not approve of. To her credit it must be said that she does not like him flirting with law.
When Rosa is angry, she screeches. She screeches at him so loudly when he brings in the slot
machine that her father goes at it with a plumber’s hammer. When she catches the little girl
stealing chocolate she flies off the handle, provoking Tommy to slap her. This shocks her as
Tommy has meekly taken her tantrums till now.
The little girl
From the story, it does not seem like she is a first time thief. She times her moves well and as
Tommy goes inside the back room to fetch the tissue paper, she dips her hand into the case
and extracts two chocolates. When Rosa catches her stealing, she thrashes her. When her
mother comes in hearing the commotion, the girl tries to wriggle out of the mess by claiming
that one chocolate was for the mother as though that exonerates her. Tommy tries to help her
escape punishment by declaring that he had let her have the chocolates. But the girl is not
grateful; while leaving with her mother, she rudely sticks her tongue out at him.
Plot
Tommy Castelli’s prison is his existence. He is married to a woman he does not love and
runs a candy shop that he hates. He has had brushes with law; even now he tries to make
money on the side by having a slot machine that is illegal. One day he catches a little girl
stealing chocolates. She reminds him of his childhood when he too dabbled in petty crime.
He wants to help the girl but isn’t sure how. Before he can do anything, she is caught by his
wife. He tries to help her now but she is rude to him.
Summary - Analysis of 'The Prison' by Bernard Malamud
For Tommy Castelli, his life is a prison. He is married to Rosa whom he does not love. He
manages a candy shop set up by Rosa’s father. Tommy hates doing the same work day after
day. He has nothing to look forward to. He toys with the idea of running away but knows he
cannot go far as he does not have much money. Rosa controls his life tightly and nags him
when he steps out of line, like when he takes too long a break in the afternoons.
His life was not always like this. He had wanted to escape the poor locality where he lived
but he went about in the wrong way. He joined a gang of boys impressed by the money they
flashed about. Their attempt to hold up a liquor store goes wrong and Tommy just escapes
going to prison. His father arranges his marriage with Rosa as her father offers to put up the
money for a candy shop. The idea does not appeal to Tommy so he runs away for a while.
But he comes back and gets locked into a loveless marriage and a boring job managing the
candy shop.
One day he catches a young girl cleverly stealing chocolates from the shop. He is reminded
of his childhood days when he was exposed to petty crime by his Uncle Dom who is in now
in prison. He wants to help the girl stop stealing but he does not know how to go about it.
Tommy wonders whether he should speak to her but he lacks the courage for that. He keeps
looking for excuses not to talk. In the end he decides to leave a note for her in the chocolate
case next Monday which is the day she always comes to the shop. But the next Monday she
does not appear in the morning.
Analysis of 'The Prison' by Bernard Malamud
Disappointed, he goes for his afternoon nap. When he comes down later, he hears Rosa’s
screeching voice. She has caught the girl stealing. Rosa is harsh with the girl so Tommy slaps
her which shocks Rosa. Hearing the commotion, the girl’s mother comes in. Tommy wants to
save her more punishment so he says that he let her have the chocolates. The girl tries to
escape her mother’s anger by saying that one chocolate of the two she stole was meant for
her. The mother threatens to punish her anyway for stealing. When she is dragged away by
the mother, the little girl rudely sticks out her tongue at Tommy.
Metaphorical inferences
The life that Tommy Castelli is forced to lead is his prison. Right at the beginning, the author
says that a prison need not be a grey building with watch towers and guards. Nevertheless,
Tommy is in a prison from which escape seems unlikely.
Language
The story is in third person narrative except for a short piece when the author uses second
person when Tommy ponders about life. “You never got what you wanted…” The only
dialogue in the story comes at the very end. The language is straightforward and matter of
fact.
6 Important Quotes
He had been, as Tony, a kid of many ideas and schemes, especially for getting out of this
thickly tenemented, kidsquawking neighborhood, with its lousy poverty, but everything had
fouled up against him before he could.
It was after marriage that Tony became Tommy as his wife Rosa disapproved of his earlier
name. He leads a painfully boring life now chained in marriage to Rosa who is a harridan.
Time hangs heavy on his hands and the job of running the candy shop is a bore. When he was
a kid, Tommy had been full of ideas that would put money into his pockets and take him
away from this poor district that was full of poverty and squawking children. But he never
got a chance to do all that. Things went very wrong right at the outset.
The next day the cops raided for slot machines and gave out summonses wherever they found
them, and though Tommy’s place was the only candy store in the neighborhood that didn’t
have one, he felt bad about the machine for a long time.
Tommy was often on the look out to make a little extra money. He liked the excitement it
provided. He may have hoped to make a secret stash so that he could run away from his
boring existence.
Once when Rosa was away at her mother’s, Tommy had a slot machine installed. When Rosa
discovered the machine, he tried to explain it away as a legal way of making money. But she
was not convinced and kept up her screaming. When her father got wind of the slot machine,
he came in and wrecked it with a hammer.
The very next day the police raided the locality for slot machines; Tommy’s candy shop was
the only shop that did not have a slot machine. He had had a lucky escape and it rankled for a
long time.
He cursed the place and Rosa, and cursed, from its beginning, his unhappy life. The best time
of the day for Tommy was mornings when Rosa was too busy cleaning up to nag him. There
were few customers and in the quiet, Tommy would laze near the fountain counter scanning
the newspapers or chat with the cellar-club guys about the day’s race.
Often he would laze away the mornings with a cup of coffee contemplating running away
with his secret stash of fifty-five dollars. But there were days especially after the slot
machine was gone when time hung on his hands; he hated his existence then. Nothing had
gone right for him and he cursed Rosa and the candy shop for ruining his life.
Analysis of 'The Prison' by Bernard Malamud
He felt he should do something for her, warn her to cut it out before she got into a jam and
fouled up her whole life. The urge to do so was strong, but when he went forward she
glanced up frightened because he had taken so long.
Tommy catches the little girl stealing chocolates by chance. She had waited for an
opportunity when Tommy went to the back of the shop to fetch the colored tissue paper.
Rosa had hung a mirror precisely so that it was possible to observe the front of the shop
while she or Tommy was at the rear of the shop. When Tommy sees the girl lifting the
chocolates, he is at a loss for words. His first reaction is to want to give her a good shake. But
he later reasons that what he needs to do is talk to her to reform herself while there is
opportunity and time. He wants to warn her that crime can ruin her whole life.

You could never see the sky and the ocean because you were locked in a prison, except that
nobody called it a prison, and if you did, nobody knew what you were talking about, or they
said they didn’t. A pall settled over him. He lay motionless, without thought or sympathy for
himself or anyone. Tommy is disturbed about the girl who comes in every Monday asking for
colored tissue paper and stealing chocolates when he goes to the rear of the shop.
Tommy has never been felicitous with words and he turns over several options before finally
deciding on leaving a note for her in the counter telling her to quit stealing before it catches
hold of her life. Unfortunately, she does not turn up that Monday morning. He is depressed
that he has missed an opportunity to reform the girl. Tommy ponders on life. He feels that for
some nothing good ever happens and you remain trapped.
She pawed at the girl, grabbed her arm and yanked her out. The girl, like a grotesque
ballerina, half ran, half fell forward, but at the door she managed to turn her white face and
thrust out at him her red tongue. When Rosa discovers the girl stealing chocolates, she is wild
with fury. She shakes her till her head lolls about like that of a doll. This angers Tommy and
he slaps his wife. The commotion brings in the girl’s mother who wants to know what the
fuss is all about.
In order to save the girl from more punishment, Tommy declares that he had let her have the
chocolates. To mitigate her crime, the girl declares that one chocolate she stole was for her
mother. But the mother is infuriated and drags her away home. As she leaves, she looks back
at Tommy and rudely sticks out her tongue at him.
Relevance of the Title
The prison in this story is Tommy Castelli’s life. For many people, prison does not mean
grey buildings with guards and watch towers. Tommy is locked into a drab life that he shares
with a woman he has never loved, doing work that has no meaning with no hope of any
redemption. Every day is like any other. Catching the young girl stealing adds a spark to his
life because there is something new about it. He sees something of his early life in her actions
and that prods him to do something to save her before it is too late. But he fails miserably
here too.