When word spread about the love affair, the main character was looked at differently and her mother warned her that no one in the town would marry her. It is very clear that they do not respect him, even though he is of a higher social class. As much as the lover tries to get the family to like him he is gawked by the older brother, and is rudely treated by the mother. Race is a very important factor in this relationship.
![the lover duras google book the lover duras google book](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/m_UONfGsZi0/hqdefault.jpg)
Due to the fact that her lover is Chinese, and older, her mother is comforted, in a sense, at the fact that she is only dating a Chinese man for his money. When Duras tells her mother that her relationship is only about the money, her mother seems relieved. The love affair shows the importance of money. Although people are categorized and judged by their race and social class, the love affair illustrates that people can make exceptions for other races as long as they are from a high social class. It is odd to see the role of race and social class. People of the higher class were more respected and were thought of as superior. Money meant security, and power. In the novel, Duras mentions that she is only in the relationship for the money. Race and social class were very important in the 1930’s. Her family is almost accepting of the affair because he has money, but they do not accept that him because of his race. Besides the man being much older than her, he is also apart of a higher social class and a different race. In Marguerite Duras’s novel, The Lover, there is an obvious strain put between the love affair.
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How does Duras portray race and social class? In Marguerite Duras’s novel, The Lover, there is an obvious strain put between the love affair.