In the traditional Jewish community, the arranged marriage is the approved model for marital relations. Arranged marriages still continue to exist today in modern orthodox Jewish communities. The shadchanim, or marriage brokers, were respected members of society. Often, the shadchanim were the Rabbis, who viewed the arranging of marriages as one of their duties to the community. Through time, however, the arranging of marriages lost its distinction and became the livelihood for the lower classes in the Jewish community. The professional shadchanim were portrayed as a kind of a businessman and con man rolled into one; he was someone who was only eager to earn him commission from closing a success marriage deal. (Israel online)

Bernard Malamud's "The Magic Barrel" is the classic modern story portraying the shadchan as a con artist. Pinye Salzman is the marriage broker employed by the Rabbinical student Leo Finkle to find him...