Barrier Against the Pacific Ocean
About This Novel
Duras' masterpiece novel, a panoramic version of the autobiographical story that runs through Duras's life; a stubborn mother\u002F a laissez-faire son\u002F a precocious daughter\u002F a tense mother-daughter relationship\u002F a hard-working but hopeless future; it has been adapted into a movie twice, starring French movie star Isabelle Huppert in 2008. "Dike Against the Pacific" is Duras's representative autobiographical work and a panoramic version of the autobiographical stories throughout Duras's creative career. The couple, both primary school teachers, were tempted by the advertisements and went to the Eastern colonies for adventure. After a few relatively happy years, his father passed away, leaving his mother and two children. My mother played the piano at the Eden Cinema for ten years, frugally saved up money, and obtained a leased land. My mother planned to build a levee to withstand the Pacific Ocean tides to protect her and her neighbors' land. The novel begins with that moment. Their mother, 20-year-old Joseph and 16-year-old Susan, lived a difficult life in a dilapidated stilt building in the middle of the leased land, and were constantly threatened by the Cadastral Administration to take back the leased land. Joseph's anger and love, Susan's resignation, a certain Mr. Ruo's plan to seduce a young girl... The mother never lost her perseverance and hope. She calculated carefully and planned with a cautious and cunning enthusiasm. She imagined the construction of a dam to withstand the tide of the Pacific Ocean, looked forward to the future harvest of the leased land, and was afraid of the final separation from her children - even though she knew it was irresistible.
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