The Lover: Blinded Romance
Alex DuBout
Professor Stout
ENGL 1301-8301
13 February 2013
The Lover: Blinded Romance
A well-known famous French work of literature titled The Lover, written by Marguerite Duras, tells a forbidden love story between her as a young girl and a considerably older and wealthy man. The work was published as a book in 1984 which was later produced into a film in 1991. Ever since the reckless affair that Duras had with the rich man, the image of their love never dissipated from her memory. Was she aware of the imminent danger of maintaining such a relationship? Had she been thinking clearly, or had lust blinded her? The relationship between the man and the girl was not beneficial. The relationship between the man and girl of the story was harmful to her life practically. It was wrong because she was a fifteen year old girl who was white that was with a thirty seven year old Chinese man. The relationship was not a normal one. It was an affair. She mentions a clause in her book, “throughout our affair, for a year and a half.” She knew for sure that this was an illicit relationship that they could not be in. They had a difference of race, a difference between yellow and white. Duras knew beforehand that the relationship would not work out because she says in her narrative that the man was “a Chinese, because he’s not a white man.” In the French colonial era of Vietnam, society would not accept a relationship between people of two different races. Both were minorities and were not indigenous people to Vietnam. In the ending of the book when the boat left for Paris, Duras sadly writes, “She’d wept without letting anyone see her tears, because he was Chinese…” It was also harmful practically because of the huge age gap that even today’s society would strongly condemn. Duras says, “He’s twelve years older than I, and this scares him.” The man was scared of what society inflicts on him if he were to love the young girl. Marriage and a future together were
Professor Stout
ENGL 1301-8301
13 February 2013
The Lover: Blinded Romance
A well-known famous French work of literature titled The Lover, written by Marguerite Duras, tells a forbidden love story between her as a young girl and a considerably older and wealthy man. The work was published as a book in 1984 which was later produced into a film in 1991. Ever since the reckless affair that Duras had with the rich man, the image of their love never dissipated from her memory. Was she aware of the imminent danger of maintaining such a relationship? Had she been thinking clearly, or had lust blinded her? The relationship between the man and the girl was not beneficial. The relationship between the man and girl of the story was harmful to her life practically. It was wrong because she was a fifteen year old girl who was white that was with a thirty seven year old Chinese man. The relationship was not a normal one. It was an affair. She mentions a clause in her book, “throughout our affair, for a year and a half.” She knew for sure that this was an illicit relationship that they could not be in. They had a difference of race, a difference between yellow and white. Duras knew beforehand that the relationship would not work out because she says in her narrative that the man was “a Chinese, because he’s not a white man.” In the French colonial era of Vietnam, society would not accept a relationship between people of two different races. Both were minorities and were not indigenous people to Vietnam. In the ending of the book when the boat left for Paris, Duras sadly writes, “She’d wept without letting anyone see her tears, because he was Chinese…” It was also harmful practically because of the huge age gap that even today’s society would strongly condemn. Duras says, “He’s twelve years older than I, and this scares him.” The man was scared of what society inflicts on him if he were to love the young girl. Marriage and a future together were