1. Instead of being a "traditional" novel using an essentially linear plot development, Marguerite Duras’ 1984 novel The Lover is considered to be a "New Novel" in the handling of its narration. Describe Duras’ technique of first-person (and sometimes third-person) narration as she describes events that occurred over a 50-year period but with the main episode taking place during an 18-month period between 1929 and 1931 in and around Saigon. Despite the impression of a series of random reminiscences told as they occur to the narrator, how does the author manage to keep the reader’s attention focused on the central theme of a passionate love affair long ago?

2. Although Marguerite Duras’ semi-autobiographical novel The Lover is primarily concerned with an "inappropriate relationship" between a 15½-year-old French schoolgirl and a 28-year-old ethnic Chinese businessman in what was then Saigon, the author’s descriptions of their frequent and intense amorous encounters could never be considered pornographic. Describe how the author handles these descriptions with dignity and restraint, supporting your discussion with specific examples.

3. In Marguerite Duras’ novel The Lover, the narrator often speaks of her two brothers and her lifelong interaction with them. Describe each brother and the part each played in her life at the time of her interracial love affair. What were the chief differences between them in her eyes? At the end of the novel, what is her attitude in retrospect toward each of them?

4. Among the young women friends about whom the narrator reminisces in Marguerite Duras’ The Lover, the one most important and closest to her was clearly Hélène Lagonelle. Describe their association and the narrator’s attitude toward this particular friend at that time. In your opinion, what was the probable reason for Jean-Jacques Annaud’s decision to de-emphasize this friendship while still including it in his 1992 film adaptation of Duras’ novel?

5. In Marguerite Duras’ novel The Lover, the greatest obstacle to the love affair between the narrator and her Chinese lover is the inflexible ethnocentricity (feeling of racial superiority) of each of them. Describe how each perceives the other in the light of this attitude and how it affects their behavior toward each other, supporting your discussion with specific examples taken from the text.